University of Cincinnati bowl games: Bearcats opponents, records

When the Cincinnati Bearcats and Alabama Crimson Tide meet on New Year's Eve in the Cotton Bowl in Arlington, Texas, it will be the 21st bowl game in UC's history.

The first bowl game came on Jan. 1, 1947 when the Bearcats defeated Virginia Tech 18-6 in the Sun Bowl.

The Bearcats would defeat Toledo in the 1949 Glass Bowl before losing to West Texas State in the 1951 Sun Bowl.

That would be the Bearcats' last appearance in a bowl game until a 35-19 win over Utah State in the 1997 Humanitarian Bowl.

Entering this season's Cotton Bowl, the Bearcats have a 10-10 all-time record in bowl games.

Their first bowl opponent, Virginia Tech, has also been their most-played bowl opponent. The Hokies defeated the Bearcats in the 2008 Orange Bowl and 2014 Military Bowl, while UC got the win in the 2018 Military Bowl.

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Here is the University of Cincinnati's all-time bowl record:

Jan. 1, 1947 Sun Bowl: Cincinnati 18, Virginia Tech 6

Dec. 3, 1949 Glass Bowl: Cincinnati 33, Toledo 13

Jan. 1, 1951 Sun Bowl: West Texas A&M 14, Cincinnati 13

Dec. 29, 1997 Humanitarian Bowl: Cincinnati 35, Utah State 19

Dec. 27, 2000 Motor City Bowl: Marshall 25, Cincinnati 14

Dec. 29, 2001 Motor City Bowl: Toledo 23, Cincinnati 16

Dec. 17, 2002 New Orleans Bowl: North Texas 24, Cincinnati 19

Dec. 23, 2004 Fort Worth Bowl: Cincinnati 32, Marshall 14

Jan. 6, 2007 International Bowl: Cincinnati 27, Western Michigan 24