German Flag Meaning: The colors black, red and gold have been associated with Germany since the middle ages, but the current German flag colors are traced back to early 19th century volunteers, who fought for the country in the Napoleonic wars.
For the answers, we turn to Bearcats! The Story of Basketball at the University of Cincinnati, a book by Kevin Grace, Greg Hand, Tom Hathaway, Carey Hoffman and Lisa Ventre, published by Harmony House (1997). The following is adapted from an appendix in the book.
The Cincinnati Bearcats are the NCAA athletic teams representing the University of Cincinnati in Cincinnati, Ohio. The school's athletic teams are members of the American Athletic Conference (The American), which from 1979 to 2013 was known as the Big East Conference. Cincinnati is currently the only member of The American that is located in the Midwestern United States, all other members are in the Northeast or South. The Bearcats were previously members of Conference USA, a conference of which they were a founding member. The creation of Conference USA was the result of a merger between the Great Midwest Conference (of which Cincinnati was a member) and the Metro Conference (whom Cincinnati had previously been a member) in 1995.