Coming off of a disappointing loss in last week’s challenge against the South Carolina Gamecocks, the Knights(3-1) insist they won’t be hung up over last weeks game. After holding a 10-0 lead, costly turnovers and a late rally fell a little too short to give the Knights the win. This weekend, UCF plans on stopping at nothing to take on the Memphis Tigers at the Liberty Bowl Memorial stadium in Tennessee this Saturday at 4:30 pm (ET) on ESPN3.
As the Knights held the nationally ranked opponents last week scoreless in the first half, O’Leary plans on traveling to Tennessee for the second year in a row and ready to leave the Memphis with another victory.
It’s under George O’Leary’s team that UCF has started the season off with a 3-1 record, including a victory over Penn State just this season. And while Memphis comes off of a bye week after a 31-7 victory against Arkansas State, they still fall a little short against the Knights, with a 1-2 record.
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UCF Junior quarterback Blake Bortles has passed for 1,174 yard just this season, he also averages about 16 yards per completion, throwing a touchdown pass in twelve consecutive games. He will try and shrug off the two interceptions that he threw against South Carolina against a slower Tiger’s secondary.
Junior running back Storm Johnson also poses a huge threat against Memphis, averaging just under 93 yards a game this season.
Knights have been dominating the competition this year, ranking third in the AAC, not only allowing for an average of 16 points a game, but also scoring 25 points or more in the last four. It is the UCF Knights that have been using every player on their offensive line to the best of their ability, most notably Torrian Wilson who held South Carolina defensive end Jadeveon Clowney to only two tackles.
It’s Chris Martin, UCF’s offensive lineman who tells ESPN that UCF “won’t be satisfied till we’re conference champions,” and it is by no surprise that their hard work has been paying off.
And teams are noticing.
Tigers head coach Justin Fuente said about the UCF team, which will lead into the league opener this weekend with a 3-1 record that “they play awfully hard.”
But it’s not just the Knights bringing on the heat this season. Memphis Junior defensive end Martin Lfedi enters this weekend’s game as the nations leader in both quarterback sacks and tackles for loss.
Tigers threaten the field both offensively and defensively keeping defense down to a responsibility defense. One wrong move for O’Leary’s’ Knights could end in Tigers running down the field.
Both teams are striving for victory this weekend and only one will come out swinging in the American Athletic Conference game opener.
For George O’Leary’s team, the Knights are ready to charge on.
