Luke Fickell and Cincinnati were a great marriage, a feel-good story, a nice change of pace from the unchecked greed and naked striving that flourish in college athletics. Fickell was a coach on the rise who turned down high-profile jobs to stay and keep building around a special nucleus of players. Cincinnati was a school on the wrong side of the Power 5 tracks that worked to meet Fickell’s commitment halfway with increased salaries, facilities and staff.
They mutually achieved the unprecedented last season, Fickell’s fifth on the job. First, Cincinnati broke into the Power 5, effective 2023, with membership within the Big 12.