Toledo @ Cincinnati preview

Last Meeting ( Oct 20, 2012 ) Cincinnati 23, Toledo 29

Cincinnati finally get its season going Friday night when it hosts in-state foe Toledo in a non-conference game. While the rest of the nation has been playing for a week or two, the Bearcats have been forced to grind through extra practice, a task that has been difficult for the coaching staff. "We've had to be very imaginative the last few weeks trying to keep our guys focused on what they are doing, trying to get better," coach Tommy Tuberville told reporters Tuesday.

Tuberville - in his first season with Cincinnati last year - guided the Bearcats to a third-place finish in their inaugural American Athletic Conference campaign and a berth in the Belk Bowl. Toledo has already played a pair of games, first topping New Hampshire before a rough first half led to a 49-24 loss at home to No. 22 Missouri last Saturday in a game that saw quarterback Phillip Ely suffering a season-ending ACL tear. Cincinnati leads the series 4-3 but the Rockets have won the last three meetings, including a 29-23 triumph in 2012.

TV: 7 p.m. ET, ESPNU. LINE: None

ABOUT TOLEDO (1-1): Ely will be replaced by Logan Woodside, who took over against Missouri following the injury and was 6-for-10 for 52 yards. Woodside, a sophomore, saw sporadic action last season, going 21-for-41 for 240 yards and a touchdown. His inexperience should allow the Bearcats to give their attention to running back Kareem Hunt, who ran for 148 yards and three touchdowns last weekend and is averaging 8.1 yards per carry through his first two games.

ABOUT CINCINNATI (2013: 9-4): The Bearcats are also breaking in an inexperienced, albeit highly touted, quarterback in sophomore transfer Gunner Kiel, who was the nation's top quarterback prospect coming out of high school before redshirting at Notre Dame. Tuberville said that while Kiel is the No. 1 guy and has impressed in preseason practice, others could see action against Toledo under center. One of those options is senior Munchie Legaux, who is coming back from a knee injury that ended his 2013 campaign after two games.

EXTRA POINTS

1. Each of the Bearcats' home games in 2014 will be played at Paul Brown Stadium in Cincinnati while Nippert Stadium undergoes a renovation and expansion.

2. Twelve different players have caught at least one pass for Toledo through the first two games.

3. Cincinnati led the AAC in total offense (472.1 yards per game) and rushing offense (168.3) in 2013.

PREDICTION: Cincinnati 31, Toledo 21