Victory Bell (Cincinnati–Miami)

This article is about trophy for the Cincinnati–Miami University football game. For other trophies, see Victory Bell (disambiguation).

The Miami–Cincinnati Victory Bell is the trophy awarded to the winner of the American college football rivalry game played by the Cincinnati Bearcats football team of the University of Cincinnati and the Miami RedHawks football team of Miami University. The Victory Bell is the oldest current non-conference college football rivalry in the United States (though the teams were briefly conference rivals in the late 1940s and early 1950s), the oldest rivalry in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, having first played in 1888, and being only tied with the UNC-Wake Forest rivalry, and the Carolina-Duke football game, both of which were first played in 1888, And is also the fourth-most played college football rivalry game, with 127 meetings total.

Victory Bell

111th Victory Bell logo
Cincinnati Bearcats Miami RedHawks
Sport	Football
First meeting	December 8, 1888 Cincinnati 0, Miami 0
Latest meeting	September 16, 2023 Miami 31, Cincinnati 24
Next meeting	September 14, 2024
Trophy	Victory Bell
Statistics
Meetings total	127
All-time series	Tied, 60–60–7
Largest victory	Cincinnati, 46–0 (1904)
Longest win streak	Cincinnati, 16 (2006–2022)
Current win streak	Miami, 1 (2023–present)

45km
30miles

Miami

Cincinnati

  

Locations of Cincinnati and Miami

Historical background

College Comparison

	Cincinnati	Miami
Founded	1819	1809
Type	Public	Public
Location	Cincinnati, OH	Oxford, OH
Conference	Big 12	MAC
Students	46,710	24,377
School colors
Nickname	Bearcats	RedHawks
Stadium	Nippert Stadium	Yager Stadium

As part of the agreement for the Symmes Purchase, John Cleves Symmes was instructed by the federal government to reserve a township for the creation of a university. Initially, land had been set aside in Cincinnati, but after a revision of the purchase, Symmes erroneously believed the requirement for a university was no longer necessary so the original plot was sold to settlers. Finally, on March 3, 1803, two days after Ohio attained statehood, Congress granted one complete township to be located in the District of Cincinnati under direction of the Ohio Legislature; if no township within the Symmes Purchase were offered in five years, then a township from federal lands was granted the State of Ohio to be held in trust for the establishment of a college. No township was offered, since no unentered township remained between the two Miami rivers. Miami University was finally founded in 1809, although construction was halted for many years. Interest in higher education did not decline in Cincinnati, with the foundation of the Cincinnati College in 1819, which would later become part of the University of Cincinnati. Delays during the War of 1812 even saw residents of Cincinnati try—and fail—to move Miami to the city in 1822 and to divert its income to the foundation of another college in Cincinnati. ^[1]

Beyond this foundational rivalry, many early faculty would serve at both universities. Famously William Holmes McGuffey joined the faculty of Miami in 1826, and began his work on the McGuffey Readers while in Oxford. McGuffey resigned in 1836 and became the President of the Cincinnati College, where he urged parents not to send their children to Miami noting, "[Miami would be] where it was more likely they would be made into Drunkards and Gamblers than good Scholars."^[1]

Series history

The Bearcats and RedHawks square off each fall for the famed Victory Bell. The first game in the series, played on December 8, 1888, in Oxford, Ohio, was the first college football game played in the state of Ohio. The original bell hung in Miami's Harrison Hall (Old Main) near the site of the first game and was used to ring in Miami victories. The traveling trophy tradition began in the 1890s when some Cincinnati fans "borrowed" the bell. The bell went to the winner of the annual game for the next forty years until it mysteriously disappeared in the 1930s. The original bell reappeared in 1946 and was on display in the lobby of Miami's Murstein Alumni Center for years. The current trophy is a replica of the original bell and is kept in the possession of the winning team each year. One side of the bell is painted black with white numbers showing Cincinnati's victories, while the other side is white with red numbers showing Miami's victories. Ties are indicated on the top of the red yoke in white numbers.

Given the proximity of the schools and many enrollees and alumni from the Greater Cincinnati area, from 1909 to 1970 the game was exclusively played at Cincinnati's Nippert Stadium, rather than hosting in the more rural Oxford. From 1912 to 1960 the game took place over Thanksgiving Weekend, making the Victory Bell a featured part of Thanksgiving traditions for fans of both schools. Cincinnati students and fans alike would go on an annual "Pajama Parade" through downtown Cincinnati the night prior to each Victory Bell contest.

The Miami–Cincinnati series ranks fifth on the list of most-played rivalries in college football and is the oldest Division I rivalry west of the Allegheny Mountains. After the 2010–2014 NCAA conference realignment led to the end of several historic rivalries, it is now the most-played currently active rivalry involving schools from the same state, and also holds the same distinction among inter-conference rivalries. Of the more than thirty college football rivalries that include at least 89 games, none is older than Miami vs. Cincinnati.

The two schools also have strong coaching histories, especially Miami's Cradle of Coaches. Four men have been head coaches at both schools: Amos Foster, George Little, Sid Gillman, and George Blackburn.

Miami and Cincinnati extended the rivalry series through 2029,^[2] committing to preserving one of the oldest and longest played games in college football. The Victory Bell will be hosted at Paul Brown Stadium in 2018, 2022, and 2026 as a part of the renewed contract.^[3] However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Mid-American Conference postponed fall sports in August 2020, canceling that year's edition of the Victory Bell game.^[4]

Notable games

November 23, 1923: The Bearcats would go on to beat Miami 23–0. The significance of this match-up would come a month later, when Cincinnati player James Gamble "Jimmy" Nippert on would die from blood poisoning, due to a spike wound sustained during the game. James N. Gamble of Procter & Gamble, donated the required funds to complete the stadium. A locker room and training (medical) facility was added as part of the renovation for the safety of players.^[5]

November 25, 1950: In a clash of future coaching legends, Miami and Woody Hayes took on Cincinnati and former Miami head coach Sid Gillman for the MAC Championship title in the midst of a snowstorm. The Redskins ended up being too much for the Bearcats and would take the game 28–0 as well as the conference crown. Miami would go on to win the Salad Bowl against Arizona State 34–21. Additionally, this game took place on the same day as the Snow Bowl between Michigan and Ohio State. Ohio State's loss to Michigan led to the Buckeyes to hire Woody Hayes away from Miami.

November 23, 1968: Determined to hand Miami a loss, Cincinnati had a potent offense led by QB Greg Cook and WR/K Jim O'Brien. Climbing back from a 21–6 deficit, the Bearcats recovered an onside kick and completed one pass before O'Brien drilled a forty-seven-yard field goal with three seconds remaining in the fourth quarter. UC would win the bell 23–21. This was Bo Schembechler's last game before he left to coach at the University of Michigan. Cincinnati Bengals founder Paul Brown was in attendance and concluded to draft Cook based on his performance in the game.^[6]

September 27, 2003: The 3–0 Bearcats headed to Oxford to take on Ben Roethlisberger and the RedHawks. Miami jumped to a huge lead, with Roethlisberger passing for 377 yards. The Bearcats mounted a furious comeback, scoring three times in the final eight minutes, but Miami's lead was too much and they would win 42–37.^[7]

September 16, 2017: It was Homecoming at Miami, and the RedHawk faithful were hopeful they could finally end Cincinnati's then 11-game winning streak with the Bearcats now led by then first-year coach Luke Fickell. Miami was leading 17–6 with 4:45 left in the game, when the Bearcats mounted an unthinkable comeback, scoring 15 unanswered points in the final 2:52. After a late Bearcats touchdown drive, Miami still held a 17-14 lead, and was poised to run out the clock. With 1:13 remaining and UC holding only one timeout, the RedHawks attempted to convert a 3rd down & 7 that would effectively end the game, but MU QB Gus Ragland made an ill-advised throw into double coverage. UC linebacker Malik Clements intercepted the pass and ran it into the end zone for a pick-six touchdown. The Bearcats would hold on and escape, winning 21–17.^[8]

September 4, 2021: After the 2020 meeting between the two schools was cancelled the teams resumed their rivalry and for the first time in the series was each others first game of the season. The Bearcats picked up right where they left off and continued to win, Desmond Ridder hit Tyler Scott with an 81-yard bomb 45 seconds into the game, The Bearcats scored the first 42 points of the game and led all the way to a 49–14 win at Nippert Stadium. The win extended UC's winning streak in the series to 14, and knotted the all-time series at 59–59–7.

September 16, 2023: Miami won its first game since 2005, breaking a 16-game losing streak and tying the series at 60–60–7. Miami evened the game with a field goal with just over five minutes left in the regular session, and scored the only touchdown in overtime to pull the huge upset.

Game results

Cincinnati victories

Miami victories

Tie games

No. Date Location Winner Score 1 December 8, 1888 Miami Field Tie 0–0 2 December 14, 1889 Miami Field Miami 34–0 3 October 7, 1893 Miami Field Miami 24–6 4 November 4, 1893 Union Ball Park Miami 6–0 5 October 20, 1894 Union Ball Park Cincinnati 6–0 6 November 16, 1895 Union Ball Park Miami 12–0 7 October 2, 1896 Union Ball Park Miami 6–4 8 October 9, 1897 Miami Field Cincinnati 6–0 9 October 30, 1897 Union Ball Park Cincinnati 10–0 10 October 8, 1898 Miami Field Cincinnati 22–0 11 October 7, 1899 Union Ball Park Cincinnati 21–0 12 November 3, 1900 Union Ball Park Cincinnati 16–12 13 October 17, 1903 Nippert Stadium Miami 15–0 14 October 15, 1904 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 46–0 15 October 13, 1906 Nippert Stadium Tie 0–0 16 November 25, 1909 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 10–6 17 October 29, 1910 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 3–0 18 November 18, 1911 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 11–0 19 November 28, 1912 Nippert Stadium Tie 21–21 20 November 27, 1913 Nippert Stadium Miami 13–7 21 November 27, 1914 Nippert Stadium Miami 20–13 22 November 25, 1915 Nippert Stadium Miami 24–12 23 November 30, 1916 Nippert Stadium Miami 33–0 24 November 29, 1917 Nippert Stadium Miami 40–0 25 November 28, 1918 Nippert Stadium Tie 0–0 26 November 28, 1919 Nippert Stadium Miami 14–0 27 November 25, 1920 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 7–0 28 November 24, 1921 Nippert Stadium Miami 15–7 29 November 30, 1922 Nippert Stadium Miami 9–6 30 November 23, 1923 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 23–0 31 November 27, 1924 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 8–7 32 November 26, 1925 Nippert Stadium Miami 33–0 33 November 25, 1926 Nippert Stadium Tie 6–6 34 November 24, 1927 Nippert Stadium Miami 17–14 35 November 29, 1928 Nippert Stadium Miami 34–0 36 November 28, 1929 Nippert Stadium Miami 14–6 37 November 27, 1930 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 6–0 38 November 26, 1931 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 20–0 39 November 24, 1932 Nippert Stadium Miami 21–13 40 November 30, 1933 Nippert Stadium Miami 6–2 41 November 29, 1934 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 21–0 42 November 28, 1935 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 8–7 43 November 26, 1936 Nippert Stadium Tie 0–0 44 November 25, 1937 Nippert Stadium Miami 14–6 45 November 24, 1938 Nippert Stadium Miami 16–7 46 November 23, 1939 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 13–0 47 November 21, 1940 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 44–0 48 November 20, 1941 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 26–0 49 November 26, 1942 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 21–12 50 November 22, 1945 Nippert Stadium Miami 28–14 51 November 28, 1946 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 13–7 52 November 27, 1947 Nippert Stadium Miami 38–7 53 November 25, 1948 Nippert Stadium Miami 43–19 54 November 24, 1949 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 27–6 55 November 25, 1950 Nippert Stadium Miami 28–0 56 November 24, 1951 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 19–14 57 November 27, 1952 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 34–9 58 November 26, 1953 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 14–0 59 November 25, 1954 Nippert Stadium Miami 21–9 60 November 24, 1955 Nippert Stadium Miami 14–0 61 November 22, 1956 Nippert Stadium Miami 27–13 62 November 28, 1957 Nippert Stadium Miami 20–14 63 November 27, 1958 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 18–7 64 November 26, 1959 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 14–7 No. Date Location Winner Score 65 November 19, 1960 Nippert Stadium Miami 10–6 66 November 18, 1961 Nippert Stadium Miami 7–3 67 November 17, 1962 Nippert Stadium Miami 38–16 68 November 28, 1963 Nippert Stadium Miami 21–19 69 November 21, 1964 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 28–14 70 November 20, 1965 Nippert Stadium Miami 37–7 71 November 26, 1966 Nippert Stadium Miami 28–8 72 November 18, 1967 Nippert Stadium Miami 27–14 73 November 23, 1968 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 23–21 74 November 22, 1969 Nippert Stadium Miami 36–20 75 November 21, 1970 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 33–0 76 November 20, 1971 Miami Field Miami 43–7 77 November 18, 1972 Nippert Stadium Miami 23–0 78 November 17, 1973 Miami Field No. 17 Miami 6–0 79 November 16, 1974 Nippert Stadium No. 12 Miami 27–7 80 November 22, 1975 Miami Field No. 16 Miami 21–13 81 September 25, 1976 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 17–0 82 November 24, 1977 Nippert Stadium Miami 12–7 83 November 18, 1978 Miami Field Miami 28–24 84 November 17, 1979 Miami Field Miami 27–14 85 November 22, 1980 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 23–13 86 November 21, 1981 Miami Field Miami 7–3 87 November 18, 1982 Riverfront Stadium Cincinnati 20–10 88 November 19, 1983 Yager Stadium Miami 14–10 89 November 22, 1984 Riverfront Stadium Miami 31–26 90 November 23, 1985 Yager Stadium Miami 16–10 91 September 13, 1986 Riverfront Stadium Cincinnati 45–38 92 September 26, 1987 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 31–26 93 September 24, 1988 Yager Stadium Cincinnati 34–18 94 September 23, 1989 Yager Stadium Cincinnati 30–14 95 September 22, 1990 Riverfront Stadium Miami 16–12 96 September 28, 1991 Nippert Stadium Miami 22–9 97 September 19, 1992 Yager Stadium Miami 17–14 98 September 18, 1993 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 30–23 99 September 17, 1994 Yager Stadium Tie 17–17 100 September 23, 1995 Yager Stadium Miami 23–16 101 September 28, 1996 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 30–23^3OT 102 October 25, 1997 Yager Stadium Cincinnati 34–31^2OT 103 October 24, 1998 Nippert Stadium Miami 41–0 104 October 30, 1999 Yager Stadium Cincinnati 52–42 105 October 28, 2000 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 45–15 106 September 22, 2001 Yager Stadium Miami 21–14 107 October 5, 2002 Nippert Stadium Miami 31–26 108 September 27, 2003 Yager Stadium Miami 42–37 109 September 11, 2004 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 45–26 110 September 28, 2005 Yager Stadium Miami 44–16 111 September 30, 2006 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 24–10 112 September 15, 2007 Yager Stadium Cincinnati 47–10 113 September 20, 2008 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 45–20 114 October 3, 2009 Yager Stadium No. 10 Cincinnati 37–13 115 October 9, 2010 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 45–3 116 October 1, 2011 Yager Stadium Cincinnati 27–0 117 October 6, 2012 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 52–14 118 September 21, 2013 Yager Stadium Cincinnati 14–0 119 September 20, 2014 Paul Brown Stadium Cincinnati 31–24 120 September 19, 2015 Yager Stadium Cincinnati 37–33 121 September 24, 2016 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 27–20 122 September 16, 2017 Yager Stadium Cincinnati 21–17 123 September 8, 2018 Paul Brown Stadium Cincinnati 21–0 124 September 14, 2019 Nippert Stadium Cincinnati 35–13 125 September 4, 2021 Nippert Stadium No. 8 Cincinnati 49–14 126 September 17, 2022 Paycor Stadium Cincinnati 38–17 127 September 16, 2023 Nippert Stadium Miami 31–24^OT Series: Tied 60–60–7

Source^[9]

Wins by venue

Category	Cincinnati	Miami	Tie
Nippert Stadium	39	40	5
Union Ball Park	4	3	0
Miami Field	2	8	1
Yager Stadium	10	7	1
Riverfront Stadium	2	2	0
Paul Brown Stadium/Paycor Stadium	3	0	0

See also

• List of NCAA college football rivalry games
• List of most-played college football series in NCAA Division I

References

1. Havighurst, Walter (1984). . New York: G.P. Putnam and Sons. Archived from the original on 2020-06-14. Retrieved 2010-02-28.
2. "Cincinnati-Miami Contract" (PDF). Miami University. Retrieved 25 January 2022.
3. Clark, Dave (11 September 2017). "UC Bearcats, Miami RedHawks extend rivalry through 2029". Cincinnati.com. Retrieved 24 January 2018.
4. Jenkins, Keith (August 8, 2020). "MAC postpones fall sports due to health concerns; UC loses 2 more games on football slate". Cincinnati Enquirer. Retrieved October 16, 2020.
5. "Complete story of how UC's Nippert Stadium got its namesake".
6. Tuckerman, Spencer (10 Apr 2022). "Luke Fickell's Dodd Trophy Win Brings Back Memories for Former Coach Homer Rice". gobearcats.com. UC Athletics. Retrieved 10 Apr 2022. I had perfected the onside kick. We were behind and used an onside kick to get the ball back," Rice recalled. "Greg Cook was my quarterback. He was an All-American. Tom Rossley caught a pass and got out of bounds with three seconds to play. Jim O'Brien kicked the winning field goal to win the game. Bo Schembechler had the film burned. They burned the film. There's no record, as if the game had never been played.
7. "RedHawks Capture 108th Bell".
8. "Bearcats Retain Victory Bell with Fourth Quarter Comeback".
9. "Cincinnati Bearcats vs. Miami (OH) RedHawks football series history games list". Winsipedia. Retrieved 16 September 2019.