The UCF Knights defeat the USF Bulls 58-46 at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa on Friday, with vacancies in the starting lineup on both offense and defense.
Despite speculation heading into the game of UCF quarterback McKenzie Milton possibly taking a few snaps — after sophomore quarterback Dillon Gabriel said that fans should “sit back and see” what happens earlier in the week — only one man saw action under center.
About an hour before kickoff, news broke that Milton would not play against the Bulls. In a quote aired on the ESPN broadcast, Milton told ESPN he isn’t yet 100%.
“I haven’t suited up all year and I don’t see the point in going out there today for sentimental reasons,” he said in the statement. “For me, I don’t want to go out there until 100 percent and playing at a high level. So there’s no rush for me to get back out there on the field. That’s been the basis of me suing up all year — am I 100 percent and right now I am not.”
UCF found its way to victory without starting senior wide receiver Marlon Williams and senior running back Otis Anderson, Jr., as well as starting redshirt junior defensive lineman Stephon Zayas.
During the postgame press conference, UCF head coach Josh Heupel said the team has the next man up mentality and guys were able to step up in their absence.
“Otis we found out the final verdict towards the later part of the week,” Heupel said. “Marlon we knew we couldn’t have earlier in the week. Next man up mentality. Next guy comes in and makes some plays.”
First Quarter
After deferring the opening kickoff, UCF’s defense bent but did not break against South Florida on its opening possession.
USF lined up on special teams acting like they were going to kick a field goal, but shifted formation and attempted a fake that was unsuccessful on the Bulls’ opening drive.
The Knights were able to set up shop at their 25-yard line after the debacle and had a nice 15-yard run by senior running back Greg McCrae to start the game. The run moved McCrae to sixth place in UCF rushing yards after finishing the game with 130 yards.
The Knights’ offense came to a halt later in the drive as Gabriel got sacked and also threw two incompletions.
South Florida continued to have the Knights on their heels early, averaging 7.0 yards per play on their first 16 snaps on offense.
USF capped off the promising drive with a 23-yard touchdown pass to redshirt senior wide receiver DeVontre Dukes as the Bulls scored the first touchdown of the game.
A contested 28-yard catch by redshirt sophomore receiver Jaylon Robinson provided a much-needed spark for the Knights’ offense. UCF was able to cash in a 27-yard touchdown on third-and-2 courtesy of redshirt junior running back Bentavious Thompson.
Following a three-and-out by USF, Jaylon Robinson came roaring right back with a 42-yard reception. Within the first three drives, Robinson averaged 26.3 yards on his three catches.
Jaylon Robinson finished up the contest with five grabs for 81 yards.
A pass interference penalty toward redshirt senior wide receiver Tre Nixon helped set up a two-yard touchdown toss from Gabriel to redshirt senior tight end Jake Hescock, giving the Knights their first lead of the game, 14-7.
Second Quarter
After putting together a competent drive, USF’s offense stalled and missed a 47-yard field goal attempt.
UCF responded with a 51-yard deep shot to Nixon, followed by a 23-yard touchdown to redshirt senior wide receiver Jacob Harris. It took the Knights two plays to go on a 74-yard scoring drive.
The touchdown pass moved Gabriel past former UCF QB Blake Bortles for fifth all-time in passing touchdowns in school history, with 57.
UCF redshirt senior defensive back Aaron Robinson was able to recover a fumble from South Florida’s sophomore running back Kelley Joiner, qualifying for the first turnover of the game.
UCF was able to catch a break after South Florida committed a pass interference penalty that awarded them a first down by fourth-and-4, extending the Knights drive.
Four plays later on a fourth-and-2, Harris was able to score his second touchdown of the day, this time from 25-yards out.
Gabriel’s third touchdown of the day tied his career-high of 29, which was accomplished during his true-freshman campaign last year.
USF sped up the tempo on the ensuing drive and was able to cash in a 5-yard touchdown, making it a two-possession game with 2:29 left to play in the first half.
A 23-yard field goal by sophomore kicker Daniel Obarsky extended the Knights lead 31-14 with a few seconds left to spare before intermission.
UCF capped off the first half of action with 306 yards of total offense.
Third Quarter
On UCF’s opening possession of the second half, sophomore offensive lineman Lokahi Poole was flagged for fighting and ejected for the remainder of the game.
UCF’s offense fluttered, running seven plays for just 16 yards and two punts. USF was able to capitalize and score a 3-yard rushing touchdown with USF sophomore quarterback Jordan McCloud, cutting the Bulls deficit to just 10 points.
Three plays later, UCF struck with a 47-yard touchdown to Harris for his third score of the evening, elevating the Knights’ lead 38-21.
The score broke Gabriel’s career-high, accounting for 30 touchdowns through the air this season.
The Black and Gold’s defense continued to struggle and gave up a 14-yard score.
Despite the defense looking shaky, redshirt sophomore defensive lineman Landon Woodson stood tall totaling three sacks against USF. The last UCF defender to record three sacks in a game was Titus Davis in 2018.
When asked about his performance during the matchup, Woodson said he stuck to the game plan.
“Well, really, it was just the game plan we came in with,” Woodson said during the postgame press conference. “Me, I just kept my head down and made plays.”
After a failed onside kick attempt by the Bulls, UCF took advantage of the favorable field position and scored on a 12-yard read-option run by Gabriel.
“Growth was exponential. He just understands defenses and what we’re doing offensively, run game, protections, we opened up some things we weren’t able to do a year ago. He has the ability to change the protections and hot routes, just a ton of growth,” Heupel said when asked about Gabriel’s season. “If you look at his numbers … pretty remarkable but the best is yet to come.”
Fourth Quarter
Entering the final quarter of play, both teams combined for an offensive explosion of 991 yards. UCF gained 24 first downs, while USF picked up 31.
USF remained committed to the running attack, tallying 200 total rushing yards before kicking a 30-yard field goal, bringing it back to a 14-point game.
An uncharacteristic interception by Gabriel instilled hope in South Florida, as the Bulls capitalized off of the turnover and cashed it in for a 1-yard score.
The Knights only held on to a seven-point lead after the series of events.
After allowing 574 yards of offense, UCF’s defense came up big forcing their second turnover of the game. Divaad Wilson was able to make the play on the fumble recovery.
Ryan O’Keefe converted a crucial fourth-and-7 following the turnover before McCrae sprinted to the end zone on a 20-yard rush. UCF regained a two-possession lead, 52-38 following the score.
The Knights defense rose to the occasion once again, stuffing USF on a fourth-and-1 attempt with 5:31 remaining in the game. True freshman defensive lineman Josh Celiscar was credited with the stop.
Contrary to the lead, UCF ran up the score on their rival South Florida, as Thompson bulldozed his way across the plane for a 2-yard touchdown.
A late touchdown by USF made the final score 58-46.
UCF evened up the all-time series against South Florida 6-6 following this matchup, with the Knights emerging victorious in the last four meetings.
“It makes me happy. Get to keep the trophy for a whole 365 days, it stays in our building, every day we get to see it, and it’s staying here with us,” McCrae said after the victory. “It’s a lot of guys over there from my hometown that choose to go there, so it just makes me happy to brag to them for another 365.”
The Knights will finish the regular season with an overall record of 6-3, including 5-3 performance in the American Athletic Conference.
Heupel said he doesn’t think this will be the last game for the Knights when asked about UCF’s possibility of qualifying for a bowl game.
