Jerrod Calhoun Makes Ambitious Quote That Should Get Cincinnati Bearcats Fans Fired Up

The Cincinnati Bearcats have gotten used to not making the NCAA Tournament.

Something that shouldn’t be said after the team had gone from 1992, up until 2019, making the tournament all but five times over the course of 28 years. However, since former head coach Mick Cronin left the program to join the historic UCLA, things have stalled, and the Bearcats haven’t made the tournament since, and instead have installed three new coaches with John Brannen and Wes Miller taking the mantle before the newest coach, Jerrod Calhoun, joined the program last month.

Calhoun Has Proved He Is Worth His Weight In Gold

Calhoun first stepped into the Division I sphere with Youngstown State, where he rebuilt the Penguins from an 8-24 record in year one, all the way to back-to-back 20+ win seasons before entering Utah State’s radar, where he would soon take the helm.

As head coach of the Aggies, Calhoun took no time to adapt to the Mountain West and finished with a 55-15 record and two NCAA Tournament appearances. With the 2025/26 season ending with a Utah State regular season title and a conference tournament championship to follow suit, before Arizona pushed past the Aggies in the second round of the NCAA Tournament with a 78-66 loss.

“Cincinnati Is Starving For A Winner”

Calhoun recently sat down with CBS Sports in their preparation for this weekend’s Final Four, where he discussed getting Cincinnati back on track.

“We have a great sell. We've got a great program, the best conference in the country over the last 10 years. But Cincinnati is starving for a winner.”

Since the Bearcats last made the NCAA Tournament, their record stands at 132-95 and a Big 12 record of 23-33.

“College basketball is better with Cincinnati in the NCAA tournament. We need to get them back.”

While competing in a conference that currently holds three of the top seven teams in the KenPom is a tall task, Calhoun’s Aggies finished last season with the nation’s 30th most efficient offense, and his past of working with some of the game's top minds should be a reassurance to Cincinnati fans.

“I played for Coach [Rollie] Massimino at Cleveland State, and a lot of the stuff we do, Coach Massimino taught me that. So I've had great mentors.”

Massimino took Villanova to its first-ever national title back in 1984 before taking on the Cleveland State job in 1996.

“Coach Huggins, Rollie Massimino, and then, obviously, picking the brain of Joe Mazzulla, I think the best offensive coach, regardless of level, he was on my staff. So I've been prepared for this for a long time.”

"We recruit to our identity on offense and defense...

Cincinnati is starving for a winner. College basketball is better when Cincinnati is in the NCAA Tournament. We need to get them back."

-- @GoBearcatsMBB's Jerrod Calhoun pic.twitter.com/80XSWgb8Dd
— CBS Sports College Basketball 🏀 (@CBSSportsCBB) April 3, 2026

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