Stay informed about the C-USA Championship game with constant, live updates from Matt Fontana and Ryan Bass:
First Half Recap:
A late unnecessary roughness penalty and a no-call penalty on a horse-collar tackle halted the Knights from finding the endzone late in the half, but a Nick Cattoi 29-yard field goal sailed through the uprights as UCF took a 10-0 lead into the half.
Defensively, the Knights were able to contain the SMU offense in the first half, as the Mustangs totaled just 142 total yards in the half. However, they did struggle to contain Conference USA’s rushing leader, Zach Line, who rushed for 46 yards on 9 carries in the first half.
UCF dominated the time of possession in the first quarter 13:21 to just 1:39 for SMU, but the Mustangs used a combination of quick screens and run plays in the second quarter to break the gap in possession time, trimming the UCF advantage to 17:43 to SMU’s 12:17 at the half.
The Knights were led by Jeff Godfrey in the first half, as he compelted 11-of-15 passes for 126 yards and the only touchdown of the half, a 5-yard strike to Latavious Murray on the opening possession of the game.
