Cincinnati won't play at Paul Brown Stadium

Published Mar. 28, 2012 4:00 p.m. ET

foxsports

The University of Cincinnati has changed its philosophy about playing home games in Paul Brown Stadium.

After a two-year experiment that included three games at the NFL stadium downtown, the Bearcats are returning to campus for 2012. They're playing seven home games at 35,000-seat Nippert Stadium, which coach Butch Jones and players prefer.

Athletics director Whit Babcock told The Associated Press on Wednesday that he hasn't ruled out playing games at the Cincinnati Bengals' stadium in future years, but he's more inclined to revamp Nippert Stadium and play there.

The Bearcats played Louisville and West Virginia at Paul Brown last season, drawing crowds of 40,000 and 48,000. Babcock says games at Paul Brown need to draw bigger crowds in order to make sense financially.