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Cincinnati started the year on a positive note on Thursday night, posting a 24-14 win over UCLA to open the 2019 campaign 1-0. But there was some bad news from the program following the victory.
Head coach Luke Fickell has announced that starting safety James Wiggins will miss the entire season due to a significant knee injury, according to collegefootballtalk.com. Earlier in the week, Fickell said that Wiggins had tweaked his knee during practice.
The news comes a week before the Bearcats head to Columbus to play Ohio State in Week 2. It will be Fickell’s first appearance at The Horseshoe since taking the head coaching job at Cincinnati in 2017.
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Wiggins is a former three-star prospect in the 2019 recruiting class and had a solid campaign in 2018. He finished the year with nine pass break-ups and four interceptions for the Bearcats. He was a second-team All-AAC selection.
Cincinnati finished the 2018 season with an 11-2 record. The Bearcats have not defeated the Buckeyes in over 120 years.
Dustin grew up in the heart of Big Ten country and has been in sports media since 2010. He has been covering Big Ten football since 2014. You can follow him on Twitter: @SchutteCFB