CINCINNATI -- Michael Warren II ran for three touchdowns and caught a pass for another score Saturday night, leading No. 25/23 Cincinnati to a 35-23 victory over USF that kept the Bearcats in the chase for the American Athletic Conference title.

The Bearcats (9-1, 5-1) remain a game behind unbeaten UCF for the AAC East lead. No. 11 UCF beat Navy 35-24 and hosts Cincinnati next Saturday.

Cincinnati moved back into the top 25 after a 42-0 win over Navy. The Bearcats are leaning on their versatile running back -- coach Luke Fickell says he's "built for November" -- in their most important games. Warren came through again.

He had a 13-yard touchdown catch in the first half. He ran for three touchdowns in the third quarter, including a 57-yarder, and set a school record with his 18th TD of the season. Warren has scored in all but one game this season.

USF (7-4, 3-3) has lost three straight conference games for the first time since 2013. It didn't help that the Bulls were missing their prolific quarterback against the league's stingiest defense.

Blake Barnett was hurt during a 41-15 loss to Tulane . The Bulls alternated his backups and got a few big plays, but not much else.

Sophomore Chris Oladokun made his first career start and threw for a 72-yard touchdown on his first attempt. Junior Brett Kean replaced him in the second quarter and threw a 38-yard touchdown to Mitch Wilcox on his third attempt, helping USF take a 16-14 halftime lead before Warren took over.

USF's defense wanted to show significant improvement after giving up 57 points -- a school record -- in a loss to Houston followed by 41 against Tulane. The Bulls were better for a half, but the defense was on the field a lot with the offense unable to move consistently.

Cincinnati accomplished its main goal -- staying in the title chase. Now it's head-to-head for the East lead.