The UCF Knights offense went AWOL for the second straight week as they fell to the in-state rival Florida Gators 24-13. As a consolation, this game was buried on the SEC Network, but the result was still an L. It’s knee-jerk reaction time.
The Non-Conference Schedule is Complete
The Big 12 has nine conference games and three non-conference games. With this game completed, UCF’s non-conference slate is done. The Knights went 2-1. UCF’s wins were against FCS New Hampshire and Conference USA’s Sam Houston while losing to Florida from the SEC. The Knights won comfortably in the first two but were completely outclassed in the third. UCF athletic director Terry Mohajir has a schedule formula where UCF will host an FCS school, a Group of Five school, and sign home-and-home games with power conference schools. This is great and all for the budget, but it does not allow the team to have many road tests.
Second Verse, Same as the First
Nothing went right for the Knights. UCF’s offensive line was absolutely manhandled by the Florida defensive front. As a result, the team could not generate any offensive consistency. In the first half, UCF had a third and one and failed to convert with an RJ Harvey run. They went for it on fourth and one and failed to convert with a KJ Jefferson run. It doesn’t matter how big or talented your skilled players are. If the offensive line is ineffective, the offensive will fail. In the first half, the Knights averaged 1.6 yards per rush, which is 2.9 yards when adjusted for sacks. That’s a season-low for UCF. It’s also worth noting that Florida had one of the worst defenses in the country coming into this game.
The rushing numbers in the second half improved some, but with 108 total yards in the game, the Knights were not going to win the game without some turnover takeaways. Spoiler: There were no takeaways. The second half reminded fans of how bad UCF’s red zone offense has been over the last two games. Both field goals were the results of drives that stalled in the red zone. Last week, UCF was two out of five in scoring any points in the red zone. At least the Knights avoided the turnover bug that plagued them last week.
A Tale of Two Defenses
UCF’s defense made Florida’s offense look like rock stars. The Gator coaching staff watched the film from the Colorado game and saw how bad UCF’s pass defense is. They are very susceptible to the short pass game and Graham Mertz was able to take full advantage of it. One joke about the Big 12 is that it is a place where defenses go to die. UCF’s defense fits right in as their tackling, or lack of it, allowed Florida to move at will. Mertz was able to dink and dunk to establish the passing game and then freshman DJ Lagway aired a 37-yard strike to Chimere Dike, who took it to the UCF one-yard line. The Gators would score a touchdown on the following play.
UCF’s defense did a much better job in the second half, shutting Florida out, but the Gators’ offensive philosophy changed. In the first half, Florida was more aggressive in the passing game with 172 passing yards and 79 rushing yards. In the second half, Florida focused more on running the clock down and the ball more. They had 108 yards of total offense in the second half and were one out of six on third down. Mertz still completed more than 80% of his passes. That’s not a recipe for winning if your offense can’t get out of their own way.
UCF’s Special Teams Handled Adversity
UCF had some special teams issues coming into the game and those issues were handled. Return man Xavier Townsend decided to take his ball and go home, declaring he was redshirting and transferring during the week. This required the Knights to make some changes. RJ Harvey and Randy Pittman helped with kickoff coverage and Trent Whittemore for punts. Also, kicker Colton Boomer was injured and did not play. Kicker Grant Reddick did a good job filling in by hitting both of his field goal attempts. Evan Morris, a backup tight end, was the kickoff specialist and he did a very good job. Morris was a kickoff specialist as a freshman at Michigan State before moving to tight end in 2020. The Gators were not able to get beyond the 25-yard line on Morris’ kickoffs. Punter Mitch McCarthy was efficient, averaging 46.3 yards on his three punts.
Now What?
Fans will be looking for something or someone to blame, but it’s worth noting that UCF was voted to finish eighth in the Big 12 for a reason. The first target is head coach Gus Malzahn. The team’s lack of a sense of urgency through most of the game falls on the coaching staff. The playcalling was a bit repetitive at times. KJ Jefferson never looked comfortable and made some bad decisions. Blocking was a problem as the offensive line had more holes than Swiss cheese and UCF’s vaunted running game was outgained by Florida. Like last week, Jefferson was sacked five times. None of these issues will be solved this season, so take your pick.
Going into the game, it seemed like this could have been Florida head coach Billy Napier’s last game. Instead, UCF fans will be sharpening the pitchforks and lighting the torches, and screaming into the void to replace Malzahn.
Uniform Review
UCF tried to recreate history by wearing the same combination from the 2021 Gasparilla Bowl. The combination was a black helmet with gold block UCF, white tops, and black bottoms. It’s a good look as the gold logo compliments the black helmet. The pants matching the helmet looked good too. I wouldn’t mind seeing this as a road combination down the road.
The predicted score was 27-21 UCF. If the second half UCF played in the first half as well, this might have worked. The remainder of UCF’s schedule are conference games and the season is far from over.
Stat Leaders
Passing:
UCF: KJ Jefferson: 12/22 for 165 yards, 0 TD, 1 Int
FLA: Graham Mertz: 19/23 for 179 yards,13 TD, 0 Int
Rushing:
UCF: R.J. Harvey: 16 carries for 75 yards, 1 TD
FLA: Montrell Jonson Jr: 10 carries for 54 yards, 1 TD
Receiving:
UCF: Johnny Richardson: 5 catches for 38 yards, 0 TD
FLA: Tank Hawkins: 7 catches for 60 yards, 0 TD
Game Notes:
- Florida leads the series 3-1.
- Kobe Hudson has caught a pass in 28 consecutive games
- Sorry, it’s not my best, but I was too busy watching all those AP-ranked team upsets.
