Cincinnati Bearcats head coach Luke Fickell takes the field before the NCAA Football game between the Cincinnati Bearcats and the South Florida Bulls at Nippert Stadium in Cincinnati on Saturday, Oct. 8, 2022. South Florida Bulls At Cincinnati Bearcats 156 — © Albert Cesare/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK

Luke Fickell: Bye Week Came at 'Pretty Good Time'

The Bearcats take on SMU in Texas this weekend.

Author:
Russ Heltman
Oct 18, 2022 4:46 PM EDT

CINCINNATI — The UC football team is fresh off its bye week and ready to face a daunting two-game road trip against SMU and UCF.

Head coach Luke Fickell met with the media to update injuries, assess the bye, and more.

Check out some of his best quotes.

On Injuries To Multiple Key Players:

"No, I mean, obviously, Ben Bryant has been able to get back. So, I think that you've got some uniqueness there, and Tyler Scott is a guy that we're hoping, throughout the rest of this week, will continue to get better and better and be able to play. As I said, you want those guys to be at their best in order to play, and the uniqueness that we've got is we have enough depth that you don't want to put a guy out there that's not going to be able to play and perform to the best of his ability. So, we'll see as we continue to push along, but we don't have anything as of yet."

On Corey Kiner:

"He should be fine. It was It wasn't anything major. It was one of those things that just probably held him out for that week. But he's been back into practice and hopefully, he will not have any setbacks."

On The Bye Week Coming In The Middle Of The Season:

"I mean, I guess if you could put it anyplace if you had your pick, you would say it'd be best to be in the middle, but you never know based on your season. There are times early in the season you wish you had one—there are times later in the season you wish you had one. So, I think for us, yes, it did come, I think at a pretty good time. A time when you know a break probably was needed, and maybe some of those guys with nicks and bruises, the way the last game went, hopefully, the timing was right for us to get back. But there's a momentum shift and things as you're rolling through a season. It's never there's never an exact right time. But I think if you could pick it, you choose the middle, and I think it was good for us."

On New SMU Head Coach Rhett Lashlee:

"Well, We have played him—he was the offensive coordinator at SMU a few years ago. In a lot of ways, there are some similarities to what they've done. I think it's a group offensively that's going to be very similar to what they have been, up-tempo, throwing the football.

"The quarterback is a really good football player, and I think that more than anything, they want to put the ball in his hands and let him kind of run the show and control the offense. We haven't studied last year's film as much just because of the new coaching staff. All those things kind of add up, but there are more similarities than there are differences. I'm sure the university knew that when they were hiring somebody because they had done a really good job and they had some really good pieces in place already.”

On staying in touch with players in the NFL

“Not on a consistent basis. More than anything, you have the utmost respect for what they're doing, and I'm sure they feel the same way. If after your Sunday, you sometimes see something like Myjai Sanders gets his first sack, a lot of times you would shoot him a message or Coby Bryant. It's kind of hard to stay on top of all those things.

"The nice thing is that we've got a few more that are playing, so it would probably take up a lot more time. We love when they come back and during the offseason and in the preseason as well, but that doesn't mean we're not following them. I can promise you that we all take pride in seeing what those guys do. I might not get to watch, but I can promise you part of my routine is every Sunday night, as you lay in bed, I go through the stats of all the guys just to see where they are, see who was in, who got an opportunity to play. I wish I could tell you that I sent a message to every single one of them, but my message wouldn’t be congrats, it would be thank you more than anything."

On Ahmad “Sauce” Gardner Wearing The Green Bay Packers Cheesehead:

“I know this; whatever he does, it's in good humor. It's nothing disrespectful. I don't know how it was taken or anything like that, but it doesn't surprise me. There was probably no disrespect meant, and if there was, I don't know what all has come out of it. I'm just happy to see those guys having fun doing what they're doing and obviously having some success.”

Check out the full press conference.

Make sure you bookmark All Bearcats for the latest news, exclusive interviews, film breakdowns and so much more.

You May Also Like:

UC Moves to No. 19 in AP Poll, Stays at No. 21 in Coaches Poll

Watch: Ahmad 'Sauce' Gardner Rocks Packers' Cheesehead Following Win

Three-Star Edge Rusher Brian 'Mook' Simms III Commits to UC

UC Football Hangs Onto Top-25 Status in Latest Recruiting Rankings

Report: UC to Face Bob Huggins, West Virginia Multiple Times Per Season in Big 12

UC Football First-Half Grades

AAC Coaches Project UC as Top-Three Team; David Dejulius Named Preseason All-AAC

UC Football First-Half Turning Points

Ivan Pace Jr. PFF's Highest Graded Player at Season Midpoint