For those expecting that a new coach and a new season would result in a slowdown for UCF, the Knights might actually be more explosive in 2018
by Dick Weiss
The University of Central Florida defeated SEC power Auburn, 34-27, in the 2018 Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl to finish last season with a perfect 13-0 record. The Knights declared themselves national champions because they had beat the team that defeated both Alabama and Georgia, the two teams that played for the College Football Playoff championship.
The American Athletic Conference champion Knights, who were ranked No. 6 in the final AP poll, struck a huge blow for teams that have never had a team invited to the four-team playoff.
It also caught the attention of influential Wisconsin AD Barry Alvarez, a member of the first College Football Playoff selection committee from 2014-16. Alvarez. possibly as a knee-jerk reaction to a Big Ten team’s being passed over for a spot in the playoff, said recently that he would be open to a six-team playoff, with byes for the top two teams and perhaps an automatic spot to the highest-ranked champion from outside the autonomous conferences. Despite a 12-0 record at the time of the playoff selection last year, the Knights were only ranked No. 12 in the CFP rankings. Western Michigan of the MAC was 13-0 when the field was selected in 2016 and was ranked No. 15.
“Some of those schools that have years like that should have a chance,” Alvarez said. “They could fit in.”
Finally, a voice of reason.
Teams from The American are 2-0 in New Year’s Six games, with wins against Florida State and Auburn. But The American, which had three teams ranked in the final AP poll of 2017, is still hidden in the shadows as another season starts. UCF is ranked No. 21 in the AP poll and No. 23 in the coaches’ poll.
UCF, for one, is tired of being treated like a second-class citizen. The Knights gave us a sneak peak of who they can be last night when they defeated UConn, 56-17, in the 2018 season-opener. Quarterback McKenzie Milton completed 24 of 32 passes for 346 yards and five touchdowns and had 50 additional yards rushing before coming out early in the fourth quarter. The Knights, who are playing at a faster tempo under new coach Josh Heupel, piled up yards 652 yards of total offense in less than 22 minutes of possession time. It might not have been a perfect performance, but it was an impressive first step as they attempt for an encore.
“We didn’t miss a beat,” Milton claimed after the game. “The schematics may be a little different, but I think we can score a lot of points.”
In a hurry. None of the Knights’ eight scoring drives lasted more than two minutes and 40 seconds and the fireworks were highlighted by a 70-yard touchdown run by backup quarterback Darrell Mack and a 101-yard, two touchdown performance by newly minted starting wideout Tre Nixon, an Ole Miss transfer.
The Knights irritated some in the mighty SEC when they called out national champion Alabama after last season. UCF AD Danny White made his initial national championship claims and then punctuated them by suggesting—as everyone in The American knew – that UCF’s 49-42 victory over I-4 rival USF at the end of the regular season and a 62-55 overtime victory against Memphis in The American Championship were more difficult games than Auburn.
White knew that there would be blowback. But he also realized that claiming a national championship would earn his school more national attention than complaining about being left out of the postseason party.
The best Florida college football teams—particularly the Miami teams in the 1980s and the Florida State teams in the 1990s—have traditionally had a swagger to their personality. Last year’s UCF team certainly fit into that category.
This year’s players seem willing to accept the fact that they will have a target on their back after their magical season. Going undefeated for a second straight year will be a lot harder since national coach of the year Scott Frost and his staff left for Nebraska. The Knights have a beefed-up schedule that includes games against two ACC teams(North Carolina and Pitt), in-state opponent Florida Atlantic and two road games against American contenders Memphis and USF.
UCF doesn’t have years of tradition like the blue bloods in the deep South. Just four years ago, the Knights were 0-12. But UCF is the largest school in the country with 66,000 undergrads and a sprawling campus and has shown the potential to make the same lightning-quick progress Miami made when the Canes burst onto the national scene as an independent under Howard Schnellenberger, winning the national championship in 1983.
The Knights have so much offensive firepower, it is safe to assume that they will not be a one-year wonder. Milton is deservedly in the Heisman Trophy conversation after finishing eighth in the voting last year. The Knights have four returning starters on an offensive line that did not give up a sack against UConn; explosive wide receivers Dredrick Snelson, Gabriel Davis and Nixon, all had at least five catches; and have two game-breaking running backs in Adrian Killins and Otis Anderson. The core of this offense was part of a supercharged system in 2017 that produced 80 pass completions of 20-plus yards and 83 runs of 10-plus yards. Their defense was young last year, and even though they lost cornerback Mike Hughes and linebacker Shaquem Griffin to the NFL draft, it should be competitive once it learns how to limit the run.
Expectations are high. UCF has sold more than 8,000 new season tickets, more than double from last year. In addition, they added seven more field cabanas in the north end zone and all 15 loge cabanas have sold out. They have seen the future as has anyone who has taken the time to watch the wide-open, high-scoring American on ESPN.
“We spent eight months preparing for this,” Heupel said of his debut. “It was fun to watch. I was less nervous tonight than I was as an offensive coordinator. We have a lot of good players.”