Cincy hopes it has Mark of a winner in coach Dantonio

CINCINNATI -- For new Cincinnati coach Mark Dantonio, Saturday will be the easy part.

Mark Dantonio has shown no interest in leaving his Midwest roots.(AP)

The Bearcats will open the season and the Dantonio Era at No. 9 Ohio State in front of more than 100,000 people at Ohio Stadium, where the Buckeyes have never lost a season opener. Come to think of it, the Buckeyes have never lost an opener on the road, either; in 113 seasons of college football, Ohio State has gone 109-0-4 in Game 1.

This year, it's Cincinnati's turn to tumble.

Dantonio didn't come to Cincinnati to lose, but he's realistic. He spent the previous three seasons at Ohio State as defensive coordinator, so he's aware which team is bigger, stronger and faster.

With eight of his players in attendance, Dantonio reminded the local media Monday of this game's place in history.

"It's not the ultimate game," he said. "It's not the Super Bowl. It's just a game, and we should keep that in perspective."

Frankly, the Bearcats are supposed to lose Saturday. They might not -- they almost beat eventual national champion Ohio State in 2002, losing 23-19 after dropping a pass in the end zone in the final seconds -- but let's be realistic.

The Bearcats haven't beaten Ohio State in 107 years. If they don't beat the Buckeyes on Saturday, nobody in Cincinnati will be all that disappointed.

That's why Saturday is the easy part for Dantonio. There are no expectations Saturday. The expectations begin in the following weeks and the following seasons as he tries to build on the foundation laid by Rick Minter.

Minter was fired after last season with a 53-63 record in 10 seasons. It had been a half-century since a Cincinnati coach was demonstrably better, and that guy was a Hall of Famer.

Sid Gillman went 50-13-1 at Cincinnati from 1949-54 before becoming the offensive innovator who ushered professional football into the modern era.

Dantonio was hired to usher Cincinnati football into relevance. Minter couldn't do it, even if the Bearcats' number of bowl appearances doubled -- to six -- under his watch. That success was met with a yawn at home, with Nippert Stadium only once drawing as many as 33,000 fans to a game.