The UCF Knights are set to take on in-state rival FIU Thursday night at 6 PM. A strong point for the Knights this year is shaping up to be their defense. Five players to watch on the defensive side come Thursday night are DE Thomas Niles, DT Jamiyus Pittman, OLB Chequan Burkett, FS Drico Johnson, and SS Tre Neal.
DE Thomas Niles is a red-shirt senior and has been very productive throughout his Knights career, far from an unknown to the Knights’ fan base. Last year he recorded 49 tackles and 7.5 sacks. Niles has a career total of 16.5 sacks, second behind UCF great Bruce Miller’s 35.5 sacks. Niles is not worried about stats though.
“The object is to win…winning is first,” Niles has said.
Returning on the defensive line is sophomore DT Jamiyus Pittman. Pittman received significant playing time as a freshman and capitalized on every minute. He had 2.5 sacks and 4.5 tackles for loss in 2014. The Knights expect Pittman to be as productive and have a breakout year.
“The strength of our defense is the D-line,” said Niles.
A question mark for the Knights defense is linebacker after losing stalwart defender Terrance Plummer. Establishing a sense of stability for the Knights will be red-shirt sophomore LB Chequan Burkett. Burkett started eight of 12 games last season and has the most playing experience of the three starting linebackers; Burkett even had 12 tackles in the Bitcoin Bowl. He is athletic and at 6’2” has NFL level size.
The Knights have 4 new starters in the secondary this season, but they have a lot of depth. Especially at the safety position.
Red-shirt junior FS Drico Johnson is expected to lead the Knights secondary. Johnson out of Agape Christian in Central Florida is a former 3 star rated wide receiver by ESPN. He brings athleticism and ball skills to the safety position. Expect him to be an impact player this upcoming year.
Another player to watch in the Knights secondary will be red-shirt freshman SS Tre Neal, a stand-out scout player in his first year at UCF. Neal is former 3 star rated recruit by ESPN. He beat out transfer graduate student T.J Mutcherson during the offseason program, who posted 76 tackles for Iowa State in 2014.
The Knights defense is excited to take on the FIU Panthers in a packed Bright House Network Stadium.
“It’s a great atmosphere to play in,” said Niles.
