Cincinnati–Louisville rivalry

American college sports rivalry This article is about the college sports rivalry. For the professional soccer rivalry between FC Cincinnati and Louisville City FC, see River Cities Cup.

Cincinnati–Louisville rivalry
Cincinnati Bearcats Louisville Cardinals
Sport	Football, basketball, others
First meeting	1921

75km
50miles

Louisville

Cincinnati Locations of Cincinnati and Louisville

The Cincinnati–Louisville rivalry is a college sports rivalry between the University of Cincinnati Bearcats and the University of Louisville Cardinals. The rivalry between these two schools, located about 100 miles (160 km) apart, dates to their first men's college basketball game in 1921, and has continued across all sports, with the football series gaining attention as well, having started in 1929. Both universities share common characteristics, both being over 200 year old institutions in urban settings. The schools have also shared conferences historically, with the rivalry stretching over the span of four conferences from the Missouri Valley Conference, to the Metro Conference to Conference USA, and more recently in the Big East Conference, which in 2013 was renamed to the American Athletic Conference. After the 2013–14 season, Louisville joined the Atlantic Coast Conference and since then the rivalry has been put on hiatus in football and basketball. Cincinnati officially joined the Big 12 conference in 2023. However, many other sports at the universities, such as baseball, continue to battle periodically.

History

College Comparison
	Cincinnati	Louisville
Founded	1819	1798
Type	Public	Public
Location	Cincinnati, OH	Louisville, KY
Conference	Big 12	ACC
Students	46,710	23,043
School colors
Nickname	Bearcats	Cardinals
Stadium	Nippert Stadium	Cardinal Stadium
Arena	Fifth Third Arena	KFC Yum! Center

Both universities have traced parallel paths, from their early foundation in the early nineteenth century as municipal universities to their later growth into state sponsored institutions in the 1960s and 70s. Due to their close proximity, the universities became early athletic opponents as college athletics developed first facing off in 1921 in a men's college basketball game. Additionally, this proximity led to both schools being members of the Missouri Valley Conference, Metro Conference, Conference USA, and the Big East Conference historically. While the rivalry was represented annually in football from 1966 to 1992 and 1996 to 2013, the true intensity of the rivalry was felt on the basketball court. Legendary coaches Denny Crum, Bob Huggins, and Rick Pitino each played their part in famous wins for each program and fanning the flames of the matchup.

In the last year of the rivalry in football and basketball for the foreseeable future, the contests lived up to the pressure. In the battle for The Keg of Nails, Teddy Bridgewater led the No. 19 Cardinals to an overtime comeback at Nippert Stadium much to the ire of the Bearcat faithful. On the hardwood both teams would claim upset, ranked wins at their opponent's home court. Sean Kilpatrick lead the Bearcats to a 69–66 victory at the KFC Yum! Center while Russ Smith and the Cardinals would beat the Bearcats 58–57 at Fifth Third Arena in their last matchup as conference foes.

On April 30, 2019 John Brannen and Chris Mack exchanged tweets announcing a renewal of the Cincinnati–Louisville rivalry with the first game at Fifth Third Arena. The series was delayed first due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Chris Mack later confirmed that the series would not be played during the 2021–22 season, putting the resumption of the rivalry into question.

Football

Main article: The Keg of Nails See also: Cincinnati Bearcats football and Louisville Cardinals football

Men's basketball

Cincinnati–Louisville basketball rivalry
Statistics
Cincinnati Bearcats Louisville Cardinals
Sport	College Basketball
First meeting	January 17, 1921 Cincinnati 36 – Louisville 16
Latest meeting	November 23, 2022 Cincinnati 81 – Louisville 62
Meetings total	100
All-time series	Louisville leads, 53–44
Longest win streak	Louisville, 16 (January 19, 1977 – March 8, 1984)

Men's Basketball Comparison
	Cincinnati	Louisville
First season	1901	1911
NCAA championships	2	3*
NCAA tournament appearances	33	43*
Conference championships	29	23*
Conference tournament championships	12	19*
All-Americans	44	25
Consensus 1st Team All-Americans	8	7
Player of the Year	3	1
Conference Player of the Year	10	10

Cincinnati and Louisville were rivals, first playing in 1921, until the 2010–14 NCAA conference realignment put the contest on hiatus, as Louisville moved to the Atlantic Coast Conference on July 1, 2014. The teams have faced off 99 times in basketball series history, with Louisville leading the all-time series 53–43.

The Bearcats and Cardinals have played in eight conference tournaments, with the Bearcats and Cardinals tied at 4–4. Louisville won all 3 games in the Metro Conference with Cincinnati winning all 3 games in Conference USA. The teams split 1–1 in the Big East tournament.

The teams have also met twice in the NCAA Tournament, tied overall at 1–1.

Notable games

March 21, 1959: The Bearcats met the Cardinals on their home court, Freedom Hall, for the Third Place game of the NCAA tournament. Oscar Robertson would score 39 points, earning the first triple double in Final Four history, leading his Bearcats to a 98–85 victory.

January 21, 1967: The No. 2 Cardinals led by eventual All-American Wes Unseld visited the Armory Fieldhouse to take on the Bearcats. Despite the difference in talent, the entire game was close. With two seconds remaining, Bearcat Gordie Smith threw in a fifteen-foot jumper to win the game 59–58 for UC.

March 20, 1975: The No. 3 Cardinals collided with the No. 12 Bearcats in the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA tournament. Louisville took a solid lead in the first half which proved too much for the Bearcats to overcome, seeing the Cardinals win 78–63. Louisville would go on to finish 3rd overall in the tournament.

January 7, 1978: The Bearcats entered the matchup, tied for the longest home winning streak in the nation at 60 games. The first matchup at Riverfront Coliseum, No. 10 Louisville would snap the Cincinnati streak, winning 78–75.

March 8, 1981: The reigning National Champion Cardinals took on the Bearcats in the final of the Metro Conference tournament at Freedom Hall. In an ugly, low-scoring affair, the Cardinals were triumphant in the game to a score of 42–31.

January 20, 1986: The Bearcats headed to Freedom Hall to take on the No. 18, and eventual national champion, Cardinals. With Louisville pulling ahead their lead, Bearcat Roger McClendon would score 24 of his 35 points in the second half to gain an 84–82 victory for Cincinnati.

March 8, 1996: In 1991 Cincinnati left the Metro Conference to form the Great Midwest Conference, putting the rivalry on a five-year hiatus. In 1995, the Great Midwest and Metro combined to form Conference USA bringing the Bearcats and Cardinals back into the same conference. No. 21 Louisville took the first game 72–66 at the Shoemaker Center in February, but with revenge on their mind the Bob Huggins lead No. 8 Bearcats defeated No. 22 Louisville in the Conference tournament Quarterfinals 92–81. In the NCAA tournament the Bearcats advanced to the Elite Eight and the Cardinals made it to the Sweet Sixteen.

February 22, 2003: No. 4 Louisville traveled to Cincinnati and were stunned by the 31 point performance of Leonard Stokes that would help navigate the Bearcats to the 101–80 upset of the Cardinals. The Bearcats would also set a school record, shooting 42-of-58 on free throws in the game.

March 11, 2004: Cincinnati and Louisville faced off in the 2004 Conference USA men's basketball tournament hosted at US Bank Arena in Cincinnati. After splitting the regular season matchups, the Bearcats proved too much for Rick Pitino's Cardinals winning 64–62 after Armein Kirkland banked a shot in for the Bearcats with only 16.9 seconds remaining. The No. 13 Bearcats would go on to win the conference tournament. This game was Huggins's last victory in the matchup.

March 10, 2012†: In an unlikely Big East tournament championship game, Louisville and Cincinnati faced off, with Mick Cronin coaching against his former boss Pitino. Cincinnati fought their way past No. 13 Georgetown in double overtime and No. 2 Syracuse while Louisville beat No. 9 Marquette and No. 23 Notre Dame. Louisville ended up winning the tilt 50–44, in what was the lowest scoring championship game in Big East history. Both teams made runs in the NCAA tournament with Cincinnati advancing to the Sweet Sixteen and Louisville making it to the Final Four.

February 22, 2014†: In the last matchup between rivals before Louisville left for the Atlantic Coast Conference the teams met at Fifth Third Arena. No. 7 Cincinnati and No. 11 Louisville played in a memorable, blow-for-blow game which would see Sean Kilpatrick record 28 points. However, in the dwindling seconds of the second half, Russ Smith scored with 3 seconds remaining, earning Louisville a 58–57 victory.

November 23, 2022: In their first matchup since 2014 the two rivals played in a 7th place game at the Maui Invitational. This game was not as memorable as the last as Cincinnati routed Louisville 81–62.

† Denotes game vacated by Louisville

Game results

Rankings are from the AP Poll (1936–present)

Cincinnati victories

Louisville victories

Tie games

Vacated wins

No.	Date	Location	Winner	Score
1	January 17, 1921	Schmidlapp Gym	Cincinnati	36–16
2	December 20, 1924	Schmidlapp Gym	Cincinnati	29–18
3	December 21, 1938	Belknap Gymnasium	Cincinnati	54–41
4	December 21, 1939	Schmidlapp Gym	Cincinnati	62–17
5	January 12, 1946	Jefferson County Armory	Louisville	59–40
6	January 22, 1946	Schmidlapp Gym	Louisville	61–39
7	January 9, 1947	Schmidlapp Gym	Louisville	60–39
8	January 25, 1947	Jefferson County Armory	Louisville	71–52
9	March 21, 1959	Freedom Hall	No. 5 Cincinnati	98–85
10	December 19, 1959	Freedom Hall	Cincinnati	97–74
11	December 12, 1964	Armory Fieldhouse	Cincinnati	67–57
12	January 19, 1965	Freedom Hall	Louisville	82–80
13	January 22, 1966	Freedom Hall	Cincinnati	67–65
14	February 5, 1966	Armory Fieldhouse	No. 10 Cincinnati	56–54
15	January 21, 1967	Armory Fieldhouse	Cincinnati	59–58
16	February 4, 1967	Freedom Hall	No. 3 Louisville	65–57
17	January 20, 1968	Armory Fieldhouse	Cincinnati	82–72
18	February 3, 1968	Freedom Hall	Louisville	81–65
19	January 11, 1969	Armory Fieldhouse	No. 19 Cincinnati	87–75
20	February 22, 1969	Freedom Hall	No. 13 Louisville	72–68
21	January 10, 1970	Armory Fieldhouse	No. 20 Louisville	64–63
22	February 21, 1970	Freedom Hall	Cincinnati	53–52
23	January 20, 1971	Freedom Hall	Louisville	85–72
24	February 24, 1971	Armory Fieldhouse	Cincinnati	79–78
25	January 8, 1972	Armory Fieldhouse	No. 7 Louisville	84–76
26	February 23, 1972	Freedom Hall	No. 3 Louisville	93–73
27	February 5, 1973	Armory Fieldhouse	Cincinnati	81–79
28	February 24, 1973	Freedom Hall	Louisville	91–81
29	December 1, 1973	Freedom Hall	Cincinnati	65–58
30	January 9, 1974	Armory Fieldhouse	Cincinnati	77–70
31	January 7, 1975	Freedom Hall	No. 3 Louisville	82–74
32	March 20, 1975	Pan American Center	No. 3 Louisville	78–63
33	January 6, 1976	Armory Fieldhouse	No. 15 Cincinnati	77–73
34	January 19, 1977	Freedom Hall	No. 12 Louisville	83–77
35	January 7, 1978	Riverfront Coliseum	No. 10 Louisville	78–75
36	February 4, 1978	Freedom Hall	No. 9 Louisville	83–76
37	January 18, 1979	Riverfront Coliseum	No. 7 Louisville	82–77
38	February 3, 1979	Freedom Hall	No. 6 Louisville	88–85
39	February 6, 1980	Freedom Hall	No. 3 Louisville	88–73
40	February 16, 1980	Riverfront Coliseum	No. 3 Louisville	61–57
41	January 10, 1981	Riverfront Coliseum	Louisville	83–68
42	February 23, 1981	Freedom Hall	Louisville	81–67
43	March 8, 1981	Freedom Hall	No. 17 Louisville	42–31
44	January 16, 1982	Freedom Hall	No. 17 Louisville	74–56
45	February 13, 1982	Riverfront Coliseum	Louisville	67–53
46	January 3, 1983	Freedom Hall	No. 13 Louisville	65–58
47	February 2, 1983	Riverfront Coliseum	No. 12 Louisville	79–73
48	January 7, 1984	Riverfront Coliseum	Louisville	51–37
49	January 18, 1984	Freedom Hall	Louisville	78–64
50	March 8, 1984	Mid-South Coliseum	No. 18 Louisville	62–55
51	January 29, 1985	Riverfront Coliseum	Cincinnati	56–54

No.	Date	Location	Winner	Score
52	February 6, 1985	Freedom Hall	Cincinnati	69–63
53	January 20, 1986	Freedom Hall	Cincinnati	84–82
54	February 13, 1986	Riverfront Coliseum	No. 19 Louisville	74–58
55	March 7, 1986	Freedom Hall	No. 11 Louisville	86–65
56	January 22, 1987	Freedom Hall	Louisville	81–69
57	February 25, 1987	Riverfront Coliseum	Louisville	81–69
58	January 20, 1988	Cincinnati Gardens	Louisville	91–89
59	February 15, 1988	Freedom Hall	Louisville	90–87
60	February 8, 1989	Cincinnati Gardens	No. 4 Louisville	69–66
61	March 1, 1989	Freedom Hall	Cincinnati	77–71
62	January 4, 1990	Freedom Hall	Cincinnati	71–66
63	March 1, 1990	Shoemaker Center	No. 21 Louisville	86–71
64	January 3, 1991	Shoemaker Center	Cincinnati	72–64
65	February 28, 1991	Freedom Hall	Louisville	68–61
66	February 22, 1996	Shoemaker Center	No. 21 Louisville	72–66
67	March 8, 1996	Memphis Pyramid	No. 8 Cincinnati	92–81
68	January 30, 1997	Freedom Hall	No. 9 Louisville	81–70
69	January 18, 1998	Freedom Hall	Cincinnati	71–57
70	January 29, 1998	Shoemaker Center	No. 18 Cincinnati	67–61
71	March 5, 1998	Fifth Third Arena	No. 14 Cincinnati	64–50
72	January 21, 1999	Freedom Hall	No. 5 Cincinnati	81–55
73	February 21, 1999	Shoemaker Center	No. 9 Cincinnati	91–78
74	January 27, 2000	Freedom Hall	No. 1 Cincinnati	75–65
75	February 27, 2000	Shoemaker Center	No. 3 Cincinnati	68–59
76	January 13, 2001	Freedom Hall	Cincinnati	72–52
77	January 24, 2001	Shoemaker Center	Louisville	63–54
78	January 19, 2002	Shoemaker Center	No. 7 Cincinnati	77–50
79	February 27, 2002	Freedom Hall	Louisville	74–71
80	February 5, 2003	Freedom Hall	No. 5 Louisville	77–71
81	February 22, 2003	Shoemaker Center	Cincinnati	101–80
82	January 21, 2004	Freedom Hall	No. 5 Louisville	93–66
83	February 21, 2004	Shoemaker Center	No. 17 Cincinnati	66–61
84	March 11, 2004	US Bank Arena	No. 13 Cincinnati	64–62
85	January 15, 2005	Shoemaker Center	No. 19 Louisville	69–66
86	February 2, 2005	Freedom Hall	No. 9 Louisville	77–70
87	January 25, 2006	Freedom Hall	No. 22 Louisville	67–50
88	February 6, 2006	Fifth Third Arena	Cincinnati	74–68
89	January 31, 2007	Fifth Third Arena	Louisville	69–53
90	January 1, 2008	Freedom Hall	Cincinnati	58–57
91	February 21, 2009	Fifth Third Arena	No. 7 Louisville	72–63
92	January 24, 2010	KFC Yum! Center	Louisville	68–60
93	March 10, 2010	Madison Square Garden	Cincinnati	69–66
94	February 16, 2011	Fifth Third Arena	Cincinnati	63–54
95	February 23, 2012	Fifth Third Arena	Cincinnati	60–56
96	March 10, 2012	Madison Square Garden	Louisville	50–44
97	March 4, 2013	KFC Yum! Center	No. 8 Louisville	67–51
98	January 30, 2014	KFC Yum! Center	No. 13 Cincinnati	69–66
99	February 22, 2014	Fifth Third Arena	No. 11 Louisville	58–57
100	November 23, 2022	Lahaina Civic Center	Cincinnati	81–62
Series: Louisville leads 53–44
† Vacated by Louisville.

Notes

Louisville has vacated all of its victories from the 2011–12, 2012–13, 2013–14, 2014–15 seasons. These 123 wins are not included in Louisville's all-time record, nor are the victories against Cincinnati during this span counted in the series record between the two teams.

1959 NCAA Third Place Game
1975 NCAA Sweet Sixteen
1981 Metro Conference men's basketball tournament
1984 Metro Conference men's basketball tournament
1986 Metro Conference men's basketball tournament
1996 Conference USA men's basketball tournament
1998 Conference USA men's basketball tournament
2004 Conference USA men's basketball tournament
2010 Big East men's basketball tournament
2012 Big East men's basketball tournament
2022 Maui Invitational Tournament

Wins by location

Category	Cincinnati	Louisville
Cincinnati, OH	25	21
Lahaina, HI	1	0
Las Cruces, NM	0	1
Louisville, KY	16	30
Memphis, TN	1	1
New York, NY	0	1

Wins by venue

Category	Cincinnati	Louisville
Armory Fieldhouse	9	2
Belknap Gymnasium	1	0
Cincinnati Gardens	0	2
Freedom Hall	14	27
Jefferson County Armory	0	2
KFC Yum! Center	2	0
Lahaina Civic Center	1	0
Madison Square Garden	0	1
Memphis Pyramid	1	0
Mid-South Coliseum	0	1
Pan American Center	0	1
Riverfront Coliseum US Bank Arena	2	9
Schmidlapp Gym	3	2
Shoemaker Center Fifth Third Arena	11	6

Women’s basketball

Louisville leads the all time contest in women's basketball 41–27. As with men's basketball and football, the teams have not played since Louisville departed for the Atlantic Coast Conference after the 2013–14 season.

Baseball

One of the series that has continued since conference realignment has been games between the baseball teams. The teams have continued to play yearly, with the two having faced off 182 times in their history after first playing in 1924. Louisville leads the series all time, 100–82 as of the 2021 season.

In 2013, Cincinnati and Louisville played the first ever college baseball game at Great American Ballpark, the home of the Cincinnati Reds on April 6, 2013. The No. 9 Cardinals would defeat the Bearcats 4–1.

On March 21, 2017, the No. 1 Louisville Cardinals played the Cincinnati Bearcats at UC Baseball Stadium. Cincinnati pulled off an upset, beating Louisville 6–3 and handing the Cardinals their first loss of the season.

On March 30, 2021, the No. 5 Louisville Cardinals were again upset by the Bearcats, 13–12 in a walk-off 10th-inning win for Cincinnati.

References

Rauch, Jeremy (April 30, 2020). "Big college basketball news: UC will host Louisville on Friday, Nov. 13. A source really, really close to the situation told me to follow the tweets" (Tweet). Retrieved May 1, 2020 – via Twitter.
McGathic, Matthew. "Report:Louisville Finds Fourth Team For Non-Conference Bubble". SI Louisville Report. SportsIllustrated.com. Retrieved October 10, 2020.
McGathic, Matthew. "Mack: Louisville-Cincinnati Won't Take Place in 2021-22". SI Louisville Report. SportsIllustrated.com. Retrieved June 19, 2021.
"ACC votes to add Louisville in 2014". Archived from the original on March 12, 2017. Retrieved June 19, 2017.
"UC Basketball Media Guide" (PDF). GoBearcats. Retrieved January 2, 2019.
"Unforgettable March Madness Moments". ABC News. Retrieved December 27, 2019.
"Louisville vs. Cincinnati Box Score, March 20, 1975". Sports Reference. Retrieved December 27, 2019.
Perry, Michael (January 1, 2004). Tales from Cincinnati Bearcats Basketball. Sports Publishing LLC. p. 116. ISBN 9781582617459.
Jeff Greer. "The history behind U of L's rout on Monday". Louisville Courier Journal.
Perry, Michael (January 1, 2004). Tales from Cincinnati Bearcats Basketball. Sports Publishing LLC. p. 146. ISBN 9781582617459.
"Pitino ejected in second half of Cardinals' loss". ESPN. Archived from the original on December 10, 2020. Retrieved December 28, 2019.
"Kirkland scores with 16.9 seconds left". ESPN. Retrieved December 27, 2019.
"Louisville edges Cincinnati to win Big East tournament for 2nd time". ESPN. Retrieved December 27, 2019.
"Russ Smith's jumper in final seconds helps Louisville upend Cincy". ESPN. Retrieved December 27, 2019.
Crawford, Eric. "CRAWFORD | Cincinnati runs past Louisville 81-62; Cards lose 3rd straight in Maui, fall to 0-6". WDRB. Retrieved December 13, 2022.
. The Washington Post, 2018-02-20.
"2019-20 University of Cincinnati Women's Basketball Media Guide". issuu.com. Retrieved December 25, 2019.
"No. 6 Louisville Hits Road to Cincinnati Tuesday". GoCards. Retrieved December 25, 2019.
"2017 UC Baseball Media Guide" (PDF). GoBearcats. Retrieved December 28, 2019.
"No. 9 Cardinals Defeat Bearcats in Reds Collegiate Invitational". GoCards. Retrieved December 25, 2019.
"Baseball Beats No. 1 Louisville 6-3". GoBearcats. Retrieved December 25, 2019.
"Baseball Walks Off No. 5 Louisville, 13-12, In 10 Innings". GoBearcats. Retrieved May 9, 2021.

v t e All-sports or multi-sport rivalries in NCAA Division I
Trophy/point system competitions	Arizona–Arizona State (Territorial Cup Series) Boston University–Holy Cross (Turnpike Trophy) Clemson–South Carolina (Palmetto Series) George Mason–George Washington (Revolutionary Rivalry) Georgia Southern–Georgia State (Modern Day Hate) Indiana–Purdue (Indiana National Guard Governor's Cup) Iowa–Iowa State (Iowa Corn Cy-Hawk Series) James Madison–Old Dominion (Royal Rivalry) New Mexico–New Mexico State (Rio Grande Rivalry) Oklahoma–Oklahoma State (Bedlam Series) Oregon–Oregon State (Civil War Series) Sacramento State–UC Davis (Causeway Classic) South Florida–UCF (War on I-4) Texas State–UTSA (I-35 Rivalry) UCLA–USC (SoCal BMW Crosstown Cup) Virginia–Virginia Tech (Commonwealth Clash)
Defunct trophy/ point competitions	Duke–North Carolina (Carlyle Cup) Kansas–Missouri (Border Showdown Series) Texas–Texas A&M (Lone Star Showdown)
Overall rivalries	BYU–Utah Canisius–Niagara (Battle of the Bridge) Cincinnati–Louisville Cincinnati–Memphis Cincinnati–Xavier Colorado State–Wyoming (Border War) Dartmouth–New Hampshire Duke–North Carolina Duke–North Carolina–NC State–Wake Forest (Tobacco Road) Florida–Kentucky Fordham–Manhattan (Battle of the Bronx) Fordham–St. John's George Mason–VCU Hofstra–Stony Brook (Battle of Long Island) Houston–Rice Houston–SMU Illinois–Indiana Indiana–Kentucky Indiana–Purdue Iowa–Iowa State Kansas–Kansas State (Sunflower Showdown) Kansas–Missouri (Border War) Kentucky–Louisville Kentucky–Tennessee Lamar–McNeese (Battle of the Border) Louisville–Memphis North Carolina–NC State North Carolina–Wake Forest North Carolina A&T–North Carolina Central North Carolina A&T–Winston-Salem State NC State–Wake Forest Norfolk State–Old Dominion North Carolina A&T–UNC Greensboro (Battle of Market Street) Old Dominion–William & Mary Oregon–Oregon State Princeton–Rutgers Tennessee–Vanderbilt UCLA–USC UConn–UMass

v t e Atlantic Coast Conference rivalries
Conference	O'Rourke–McFadden Trophy (Boston College–Clemson) Boston College–Virginia Tech Big Game (California–Stanford) Clemson–Florida State Clemson–Georgia Tech Textile Bowl (Clemson–NC State) Tobacco Road (Duke–North Carolina–NC State–Wake Forest) Duke–North Carolina basketball/overall (lacrosse) Victory Bell (Duke–North Carolina football) Duke–NC State Duke–Wake Forest Florida State–Miami Jefferson-Eppes Trophy (Florida State–Virginia) Georgia Tech–Virginia Tech Louisville–Miami Miami–Virginia Tech North Carolina–NC State overall (football) South's Oldest Rivalry (North Carolina–Virginia) North Carolina–Wake Forest NC State–Wake Forest Pittsburgh–Syracuse Syracuse–Virginia (lacrosse) Virginia–Virginia Tech (overall, football, and men's basketball)
Non-conference	Alabama–Clemson Alabama–Georgia Tech Auburn–Clemson Auburn–Georgia Tech Green Line Rivalry (Boston College–Boston U) Boston College–Holy Cross Sacred Cod Trophy (Boston College–Boston University–Holy Cross) Boston College–UMass (football) Commonwealth Classic (Boston College–UMass basketball) California–UCLA Cincinnati–Louisville (overall) The Keg of Nails (Cincinnati–Louisville football) Clemson–Georgia Clemson–South Carolina Colgate–Syracuse Cornell–Syracuse (lacrosse) Duke–Maryland (men's basketball) City Game (Duquesne–Pittsburgh) East Carolina–NC State Florida–Florida State (football) Florida–Florida State (men's basketball) Florida–Florida State (baseball) Florida–Miami (football) Florida–Miami (baseball) Florida Cup (Florida–Florida State–Miami) Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate (Georgia–Georgia Tech) Georgia Tech–Tennessee Georgia Tech–Vanderbilt Hobart–Syracuse (lacrosse) Houston–SMU Indiana–Notre Dame (men's soccer) Johns Hopkins–Syracuse (lacrosse) Johns Hopkins–Virginia (lacrosse) Kentucky–Louisville overall Governor's Cup (Kentucky–Louisville football) Kentucky–North Carolina (men's basketball) Louisville–Memphis Maryland–Virginia (football) Maryland–Virginia (lacrosse) Maryland–Virginia (men's soccer) Miami–Nebraska Gansz Trophy (Navy–SMU football) North Carolina–South Carolina Safeway Bowl (North Texas–SMU) Notre Dame–UCLA (men's basketball) Notre Dame–UConn (women's basketball) Penn State–Pittsburgh Penn State–Syracuse Old Ironsides (Penn State–Pittsburgh–West Virginia) Backyard Brawl (Pittsburgh–West Virginia) Mayor's Cup (Rice–SMU) Bill Walsh Legacy Game (San Jose State–Stanford) SMU–TCU Stanford–Tennessee (women's basketball) Stanford–UConn (women's basketball) Stanford–USC Syracuse–UConn Syracuse–West Virginia VMI–Virginia Tech Virginia Tech–West Virginia
Notre Dame football rivalries	Boston College–Notre Dame Florida State–Notre Dame Georgia Tech–Notre Dame North Carolina–Notre Dame Miami–Notre Dame Notre Dame–Pittsburgh Notre Dame–Stanford

v t e Big 12 Conference men's basketball rivalries
Conference	Arizona–Arizona State BYU–Utah Cincinnati–West Virginia Kansas–Kansas State
Non-conference	Arizona–UCLA BYU–Gonzaga Cincinnati–Louisville Cincinnati–Memphis Cincinnati–Xavier Houston–Rice Houston–SMU Iowa Big Four Iowa–Iowa State Kansas–Missouri Marshall–West Virginia Oklahoma–Oklahoma State Pittsburgh–West Virginia South Florida–UCF

Links to related articles

v t e Cincinnati Bearcats football
Venues	League Park (1893–1900, 1904) Carson Field (1901–1923) Nippert Stadium (1924–1989, 1991–2013, 2015–present) Riverfront Stadium (1982–1986, 1990) Paul Brown Stadium (2010–2011, 2014)
Bowls & rivalries	Bowl games Louisville (The Keg of Nails) Miami (Victory Bell) Memphis UCF West Virginia Xavier
Culture & lore	University of Cincinnati Bearcat Bands
People	Head coaches NFL draftees Statistical leaders
Seasons	1885 1886 1887 1888 1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025

v t e Cincinnati Bearcats men's basketball
Venues	Schmidlapp Gymnasium (1901–1954) Cincinnati Gardens (1949–1954; 1987–1989) Armory Fieldhouse (1954–1976) Riverfront Coliseum (1976–1987) Fifth Third Arena (1989–2017; 2018–present) BB&T Arena (2017–2018)
Rivalries	Louisville Memphis West Virginia Xavier
Culture & lore	Bearcat "Cheer Cincinnati" 2011 Crosstown Shootout brawl Longest game in Division I history UC Pep Band
People	Head coaches NBA players Statistical leaders
Seasons	1901–02 1902–03 1903–04 1904–05 1905–06 1906–07 1907–08 1908–09 1909–10 1910–11 1911–12 1912–13 1913–14 1914–15 1915–16 1916–17 1917–18 1918–19 1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25
NCAA national championships in bold; NCAA Final Four appearances in italics

v t e Cincinnati Bearcats women's basketball
Venues	Armory Fieldhouse (1971–1976) Riverfront Coliseum (1976–1987) Cincinnati Gardens (1987–1989) Fifth Third Arena (1989–2017; 2018–present) St. Ursula Academy Gymnasium & Convocation Center (2017–18)
Rivalries	Louisville Memphis Xavier
Culture & lore	Bearcat "Cheer Cincinnati" UC Pep Band
People	Head coaches
Seasons	1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24

v t e Cincinnati Bearcats baseball
Venues	Carson Field (?–1960s) Meyers Field (1960s–1991) Johnny Bench Field (1992–2002) Midland Field (2003) UC Baseball Stadium (2004–present)
Rivalries	Louisville Memphis Xavier
People	Head Coaches
Seasons	1886 1887–1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914–1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024

v t e Louisville Cardinals football
Venues	High School Park (1912) Eclipse Park (1913–1916, 1921–1922) Parkway Field (1923–1936, 1952–1956) Maxwell Field (1937–1942) duPont Manual Stadium (1938, 1940–1941, 1949–1951) Cardinal Stadium (1957–1997) L&N Federal Credit Union Stadium (1998–present)
Bowls & rivalries	Bowl games Cincinnati (Keg of Nails) Kentucky (Governor's Cup) Memphis Miami
Culture & lore	Cardinal Bird Marching band
People	Head coaches NFL draftees Statistical leaders
Seasons	1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917–1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943–1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024

v t e Louisville Cardinals men's basketball
Venues	Belknap Gymnasium (1933–1944) Jefferson County Armory (1945–1956) Freedom Hall (1956–2010) KFC Yum! Center (2010–present)
Rivalries	Cincinnati Kentucky Memphis
Culture & lore	Billy Minardi Classic Cardinal Bird The Rivalry: Red v. Blue
People	Head coaches NBA players Statistical leaders
Seasons	List of seasons 1911–12 1912–13 1913–14 1914–15 1915–16 1916–17 1917–18 1918–19 1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25
NAIA and NCAA national championships in bold; NCAA Final Four appearances in italics

v t e Louisville Cardinals women's basketball
Venues	Freedom Hall (1975–2010) KFC Yum! Center (2010–present)
Rivalries	Kentucky
Culture & lore	Cardinal Bird
People	Head coaches
Seasons	1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25
NCAA Final Four appearance in italics

v t e Louisville Cardinals baseball
Venues	Eclipse Park (1909–1912, 1920–1922) Parkway Field (1924–1995) Derby City Field (1996–1999) Cardinal Stadium (1998–2005) Jim Patterson Stadium (2005–present)
Rivalries & tournaments	Kentucky Cincinnati
People	Head Coaches
Seasons	1909 1910 1911 1912 1913–1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
College World Series appearances in italics

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