This was originally published in The Athletic.

PASADENA, Calif. – Nearly 21 months since Luke Fickell was introduced as the head football coach at the University of Cincinnati, the Luke Fickell Era actually began.

Fickell’s second season running the UC football program began with a victory that’s an upset in name only, because anyone that watched Cincinnati’s 26-17 victory over UCLA saw that the best team between the Bearcats and Bruins won the game.

But Saturday’s emphatic signature Bearcats win was about much more than the result. It was more about what it represented, and again, to fully comprehend what UC did at the Rose Bowl required both context and eyeballs.

To read the entire piece, go to The Athletic.