The “Decade in Review” series continues with a look at how Ohio Bobcats football fared during the 2010s. In one sense, it was a consistent decade for the team, as head coach Frank Solich presided over squads that consistently posted bowl-eligible records. At the same time, there was a fair amount of unpredictability, with teams picked to seriously contend for a MAC title ultimately underachieving.

The Bobcats closed the previous decade with an unexpected MAC East championship in 2009, and after a rocky start to open the 2010 season, appeared destined for a return trip to Detroit following seven straight wins. However, a road loss at Kent State meant Ohio would watch their archrival Miami win the conference crown instead.

Ohio regrouped in 2011 and not only won the East, but took a 20-0 lead into halftime of the MAC title game against Northern Illinois. However, the Huskies rallied with 23 unanswered points to win the championship, but Ohio would go on to rally in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl and beat Utah State for their first-ever bowl game victory. 2012 began with a non-conference win at Penn State, as the Bobcats won their first seven games and entered the BCS rankings for the first time. Although they’d drop four of their last five to close the regular season, they would dominate Louisiana-Monroe in the Independence Bowl 45-14.

The 2013, 2014, and 2015 campaigns saw Ohio consistently finish in the middle of the MAC East standings, with 2014 being the one year in the decade that the Bobcats would miss out on a bowl invitation, despite finishing 6-6. In 2016, Ohio would emerge from the East as division champion for the third time in an eight-year span. They would give unbeaten Western Michigan all they could handle in the championship game but the Broncos ultimately prevailed 29-23.

The last three seasons of the decade have a common thread: high expectations that were not met. Ohio was the preseason pick to win at least the East in 2017, ’18, ‘and ’19; the last two of those they were also tabbed to win the MAC. However, it was a case of one or two games that Ohio expected to win but didn’t.  The last two years, that proverbial thorn in the Bobcats’ side has been archrival Miami, who kicked a late field goal in November to win the 2019 meeting. Ohio found themselves needing to win their final two games this fall to become bowl-eligible, but they did just that by outscoring Bowling Green and Akron by a total of 118-27. The Bobcats will return to Boise, Idaho on January 3 as they face Nevada in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl.

So what’s next for Ohio football as they enter the 2020s? One thing likely to change is their head coach, as Frank Solich is already well in his 70s. The Bobcats will also begin the decade with a new quarterback following the graduation of Nathan Rourke, who has set many career and single-season records over his time in Athens. The million dollar question remains, will Ohio stay near the top of the MAC standings, or will it fall back into the state it was in prior to Solich’s 2005 arrival? Expect the next few seasons to reveal the answer.