Georgia is officially in its 4th straight New Year’s Day 6 bowl. Unlike last year, though, it won’t have far to travel.

The Bulldogs, No. 9 in the final College Football Playoff rankings, learned on Sunday that they would make the short trip to Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on Jan. 1 for the Peach Bowl, their 6th appearance in the game and 1st since 2006. Their opponent: The No. 8 Cincinnati Bearcats.

Georgia and Cincinnati have met twice on the gridiron; UGA won in 1942 and 1976. Here are 5 things to know about the Bearcats:

1. The Bearcats have made history before taking a snap

It has already been a season of enormous success for Cincinnati.

Luke Fickell’s team is 9-0. The last time the Bearcats ended a regular season unbeaten was in 2009, when Brian Kelly led them to a 12-0 start but left to take the Notre Dame coaching job before the Sugar Bowl.

It’s also the first-ever NYD6 appearance for the Bearcats since the CFP votes began choosing those bowl lineups in 2014, and Cincinnati’s first major bowl since the aforementioned Sugar Bowl season in 2009.

2. Luke Fickell, turnaround artist

Tommy Tuberville is a name that is well known to SEC fans. But as Cincinnati’s coach, he didn’t come close to the success he enjoyed at Auburn. He stepped down amid growing dissatisfaction among the fanbase following a 4-8 campaign, a 1-7 mark in the AAC, and a 29-22 record (18-14 AAC) in 4 seasons.

Safe to say, he was no Brian Kelly, or Butch Jones for that matter, on the Bearcats sideline.

So Cincinnati turned to Fickell, the former Ohio State co-defensive coordinator and one-time interim Buckeyes head coach after Jim Tressel resigned in 2011. Fickell also once worked for another former SEC head coach, Urban Meyer.

To say it has been a smart move on the part of the Bearcats is an understatement.

Fickell’s first team in 2017 was 4-8. Then the wins started coming: 11-2 and a Military Bowl win in 2018, 11-3 and a Birmingham Bowl win in 2019, and a 9-0 mark and a first-ever AAC title in 2020.

It’s no wonder why the 47-year-old has frequently been mentioned for Power 5 jobs. He was reportedly a candidate for the vacant Illinois position before the Illini hired Bret Bielema, and turned down Michigan State in February after Mark Dantonio (another former Bearcats coach) departed.

3. How’d the Bearcats get here?

Many Bearcats fans felt that their team should have received a closer look at a top 4 spot in the CFP after the team ran the table and defeated Tulsa for the AAC title on Saturday.

Cincinnati has won its last 2 games by 6 combined points. Prior to that, it won all 7 of its previous games by double digits and an average of 29.1 points.

Do Bearcats fans have a case? It depends on who you ask.

4. The best offensive player by far is Desmond Ridder

The Bearcats have enjoyed terrific play at the quarterback position from Ridder, a redshirt junior from Louisville who was named the AAC’s top rookie in 2018 and its offensive player of the year this season.

For the season, Ridder has thrown for 2,090 yards and 17 touchdowns versus just 6 interceptions. But he can get it done with his feet, too: He has run the ball 83 times for 609 yards and 12 scores.

Ridder has a phenomenal skill set and he’ll be a challenge for the Bulldogs defense to plan for.

5. Cincinnati has a stout defense

The Bearcats don’t just have a dynamic offensive weapon behind center. They have several stars on the defensive side that could make things miserable for the Dawgs, as well.

Jarell White is the team’s leading tackler with 74 stops, 7.0 for a loss, and 2.0 sacks. The senior linebacker also has 2 interceptions. Myjai Sanders will pose a challenge for the front 5 of Georgia: the junior defensive end has 10.5 tackles for a loss and 7.5 sacks.

In the secondary, cornerbacks Ahmad Gardner and Coby Bryant have combined for 6 interceptions and 13 defended passes. James Wiggins has 6 pass deflections, a sack and an interception from his safety slot.

All told, the Bearcats have allowed an average of 192.3 yards per game through the air and 122.1 yards rushing. They give up 314.4 total yards a game, 13th in the country and 8 yards fewer than Georgia on average.