The UCF Knights left the Florida A&M Rattlers bruised and battered Thursday night, scoring an unanswered 62 points in their season kickoff game in Spectrum Stadium.
The Rattlers could not find an answer to stop, or even slow, the Knights’ high-tempo offensive firepower. UCF went on to finish the night with 694 total yards — 356 of which came through the air.
FAMU’s troubles continued on the other side of the football. The Rattlers’ offense closed out the night less than 100 yards — 92 yards through the air and four on the ground — and averaged 0.2 yards per rush.
Seemingly unable to move the football, FAMU earned only 8 first downs.
UCF’s runaway victory was led by redshirt-senior quarterback Brandon Wimbush. The Notre Dame transfer finished the night 12-for-23, on 168 yards and two touchdowns.
Throughout the game, Wimbush shared snaps with freshman Dillon Gabriel and redshirt freshman Quadry Jones — both of whom finished with touchdowns under their name.
While each QB stood tall on their own, it was Gabriel’s performance which made clear that the starting quarterback battle is far from over. He finished 9-for-13 on 127 yards with three touchdown passes to three different receivers.
The Knights ground attack proved just as potent, as the Knights finished with 338 rushing yards.
Senior running back Adrian Killins was UCF’s ground attack leader, closing the game with 108 yards. ‘AK’ averaged 7.6 yards per carry and rushed for a touchdown in the second quarter — the 27th of his career.
Killins is now ranked for the sixth most touchdowns in UCF history.
UCF was also able to put to rest their nation-leading turnover streak.
The Knights victory lap was cut short late into the third quarter when redshirt junior cornerback Brandon Moore suffered an apparent leg injury while being tackled out of bounds. Medical staff attended to Moore for several minutes before bracing his leg and carting him off the field.
While being transported by on-field medical staff, Moore waved back to the crowd as they applauded him off of the field.
“Players and coaches need to get around him, there’s not a better kid in our program,” said UCF Head Coach Josh Heupel during the postgame press conference.
UCF will now focus on their matchup against Florida Atlantic University on Sep. 7, at 7:00 p.m.
