ORLANDO, Fla. — The Knights completely overpowered SMU Saturday afternoon as they steamrolled their way to a 53-7 victory over the Mustangs.
“I thought it was a good game all around on offense, defense, and special teams,” O’Leary said about the team overall, slightly understating the dominance displayed on the field.
Consider that SMU only managed to orchestrate four first downs and 116 yards of offense, that UCF held onto the ball for 40:31, and that the Knights were up by 30 at the half – and a clearer picture is portrayed.
It was a fitting farewell for the seniors who have built this program into a conference powerhouse, the last game they will ever play at Bright House Networks Stadium. Time after time the seniors made huge impacts today, everyone getting a little taste of the action.
J.J. Worton hauled in a 58-yard touchdown early in the game to set the tone of this game, saying later that the score had huge emotional impact for him.
“I was fighting back tears. I just looked back and I could see Torian Wilson and all the other seniors that have been with me throughout this long process. It was emotional. I couldn’t ask for a better way to cap off my senior year at home,” Worton said.
His touchdown put UCF up 20-0, and it would be 27-0 before the first quarter was finished, the most points the Knights have scored in any single quarter this season.
When it seemed like SMU might be able to build some momentum by closing the gap to 27-7, the Knights responded with a 95 yard kickoff return for a touchdown. It was the first return for a touchdown in two years, and it came from senior Michael Easton – a backup linebacker making his first return in a game.
“That’s just Super-Mike,” Terrance Plummer said. “He goes out there and works hard every day. He is a great player and a great teammate. He is what UCF stands for, find your role on the team and do it the best you can.”
Even in clock-killing mode for most of the game, the Knights racked up a massive 490 yards of total offense, 236 of it on the ground. Dontravious Wilson scored twice for the first time in his career before losing touches to Micah Reed after an injury.
Reed made the most of his opportunity while churning out 113 yards over 26 carries.
In every sense of the term, this was a total team victory. All units came out fired up for their last game at home and it showed. The first quarter was the most impressive quarter of football that UCF has played this season, and should carry over well in their pursuit of the conference championship.
The Knights will next travel into hostile territory against conference rival USF, the first of a two game road trip.
