A new era is beginning in Central Florida basketball. After 17 years of leading the reigns, Kirk Speraw was relieved of his head coach duties in the offseason and replaced by Donnie Jones. Speraw compiled a 279-233 record and was the most winning coach of all time at UCF, but after a 15-17 finish last season, the Knights decided it was time for a change.
Jones, who helped guide Florida to two national titles as an assistant coach, left Conference-USA rival Marshall after three years as their head coach. Now, he takes over a Knight team that is loaded with talent and on the brink of being real competitors in C-USA.
Jones, who is known for his exceptional recruiting abilities, got to work immediately after being named the Knights new head coach. There will be seven new faces on the UCF roster this season as Coach Jones was able to add five prominent transfer students, as well as nab two highly sought after high school players in Isaiah Sykes and Jarvis Davis. Davis, who spent a postgraduate year at Hargrave Military Academy, is a freshman point guard that will be looked to back up AJ Rompza. Sykes, who received offers from Arkansas and Michigan, was one of the top unsigned seniors in the country before Jones got him to sign his letter of intent with UCF. Scout.com listed him as the 39th-best small forward in the nation.
Dwight McCombs, Tom Herzog Josh Crittle, Jeffrey Jordan and Tristan Spurlock are the big-time transfer students that will make a huge impact and bring a new dynamic to the team. Due to NCAA transfer rules, Crittle, Jordan, and Spurlock will have to wait until next season to suit up.
However, McCombs and Herzog are set to make an immediate impact on this reloaded Knights squad. McCombs was a highly sought after junior college player from Moraine Valley Community College. At 6’8”, McCombs adds some much needed size to the UCF roster and should make a huge bang after a great sophomore season where he averaged 22.5 points and 13.3 rebounds per game.
Herzog is the most notable transfer as he comes to UCF after spending four years under Tom Izzo and the perennial powerhouse Michigan State Spartans. Herzog, who experienced two Final Four appearances, is a 7-footer that will undoubtedly make the Knight’s frontcourt a force to be reckoned with.
As for the ineligible newcomers, their debut next season is highly anticipated. Crittle is a transfer from Oregon with two years of eligibility remaining, while Spurlock is a transfer from Virginia that was ranked as a top-75 player in high school. And Jeff Jordan, as you would guess, is the son of the great Michael Jordan and older brother of current Knight guard Marcus Jordan. Jeff Jordan transfers to UCF after playing at the University of Illinois and looks forward to reuniting with his brother.
These new athletes join an already strong roster that returns the core of the lineup, including the top eight scorers from last year’s team (95.2 percent of its scoring) that went 15-17 overall and 6-10 in the league. Headlining these players is team captain A.J. Rompza, deep-threat Issac Sosa, Marcus Jordan, senior A.J. Tyler, Keith Clanton, and Dave Diakite.
Rompza is entering his junior season and poised to become a very vocal leader on this Knights team. He ranked ninth nationally in steals at 2.6 per contest.
Sosa, who was one of the top three-point threats in the nation last season, looks to develop his game to become a more complete player. He led the Knights in scoring last year with 10.3 points per game and led all of C-USA in 3-point field goal percentage.
“I’ve worked on my weaknesses such as my ball handling and all the things coach wants me to do because the offense is different this year. So, I got to be able to handle the ball better than I did last year,” Sosa said.
Jordan had a stellar rookie campaign with the Knights after cracking the starting lineup and finished with eight points and 3.1 boards per game, while leading the team in conference game scoring at 10.8 points per game.
Tyler was the Knights most dangerous presence in the post last season, averaging 10.3 points and five rebounds per game and should benefit from the additions of McCombs and Herzog.
Clanton, a Conference USA All-Freshman Team pick in 2009-10, is on the brink of having a breakout year. The forward is an outstanding athlete that led the team in boards last year with 6.8 per game.
UCF undeniably has the talent, focus, and confidence to make some noise in the conference this year and make a potential tournament berth.
“The team is more focused this year. We’ve been working a lot on our game. We’ve known from the very beginning what are weaknesses were, so that’s something we have been working on to improve a lot,” Sosa said.
The Knights are ready to eliminate the stigma that has surrounded them for the last few years that they are a young team that needs time to mature. They have overhauled their roster, bringing in a plethora of talented players and are poised to take their game to the next level.
“That was kind of last year, we were all young. We all pretty much have two or three years under are belt now. It’s time we start putting that to work and start winning more games,” Rompza said.
UCF has a strong schedule this year that includes a matchup with the in-state former national champion Florida Gators, as well as two tough matchups against C-USA powerhouse Memphis. The #19 Tigers will come to Orlando in a highly anticipated game on February 9. In addition, the Knights will play a school-record 17 games at home.
Time will tell if all the new pieces will fit and if the Knights can become the team that they want to be. Either way, there is unquestionably an abundance of talent that will give the UCF basketball a real shot at doing something special.
“We just want to win. At the end of the day that’s what everyone wants to do. I think we have the right mindset ever since coach got here and that’s what we are working on,” Sosa said.
