Cincinnati Bearcats play with urgency, fulfill ‘mission’ with statement win over SMU

CINCINNATI — After four weeks filled with games that were too close for comfort, Cincinnati unleashed its full potential in a 48-14 win over SMU on Saturday, clinching a spot in the AAC championship game against Houston.

The win also served as a statement of sorts.

With Cincinnati sitting at No. 5 in the College Football Playoff selection committee rankings, “style points” were very much in play, even if that is not exactly an official criteria. But looking sluggish in wins over Navy, Tulane, Tulsa and USF — four teams with losing records — did not do Cincinnati any favors simply because the bar is set so high for Group of 5 schools to make a convincing enough impression to land in the top four.

What the Bearcats needed is what they showed Saturday against an SMU team that entered the game averaging 41.6 points per game, sixth best in the nation. It also helped that SMU entered the game 8-2, third best in the AAC. Right from the start, the Cincinnati defense set the tone, forcing a three-and-out. On the first play of the next offensive series, Desmond Ridder threw a 53-yard touchdown pass to Tyler Scott and the Bearcats were off to the races — leading by as much as 48-0 before giving up two late touchdowns.

Cincinnati head coach Luke Fickell did not want to talk much about style points afterward, but he praised his team for playing a complete game and complementary football, as offense, defense and special teams all made big plays. Asked whether he sensed an increased sense of urgency this week to put together a complete performance, Fickell said, “That’s been my mission, that’s kind of been my drive the last three or four weeks.”

“I don’t know what the difference was — sometimes the opponent, sometimes just recognizing the challenges that are ahead of you,” Fickell said. “Every game is a challenge. But I think that there was a little something different coming into this one, not just that they were 8-2, the way they had played all year and the things that they…