Inside the Schedule: UCF Knights

UCF Knights

2022 Record: 9-5
2023 FPI Projection: 8-4
2023 Over/Under Total: 6.5

BIGGEST GAME: at Oklahoma (October 21)

If there was ever a chance for UCF to make a real statement in their first year in the Big XII it's getting a win at Oklahoma. The Sooners are coming off of a 6-7 season and will be making their final run through the Big XII before heading to the SEC. They struggled in Brent Venables first season as head coach, losing to West Virginia, Texas Tech and Baylor among others. Oklahoma will be tough on offense with Jeff Lebby stepping in to run the offense and the Sooners always among the biggest teams in the nation. The defense is concerning. Oklahoma lacks size up front and that could play into UCF's hands. Venables is rebuilding the defense and might have to play quite a few freshmen from his top five recruiting class. Oklahoma SHOULD win, but this is the biggest game on UCF's schedule.

TRAP GAME: West Virginia (October 28)

In a new conference where all the teams are built to a power five level there are no traps. But West Virginia is a game that I think most UCF people feel like a solid 75-80% percent chance of winning at home. The Mountaineers have struggled and it feels like Neal Brown is on his way out. That being said West Virginia will score and they've always got some Florida talent on that roster ready to perform. And this game comes a week after Oklahoma, so UCF could be a little spent physically and emotionally.

POTENTIAL UPSET: Kent State (August 31)

I like Kent State's head coach Sean Lewis and the Golden Flashes got considerably better last year as the season went on. They played Washington, Oklahoma and Georgia in three of the first four weeks last year. But somehow they managed to survive physically and played Georgia pretty damn tough before going on to win half their conference games. Three of the four conference losses were by seven points or less, so a bounce here or there and they are in a bowl game. Kent State is going to come out to play ball. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

2025 FTBL Preview: The All-Florida HS Team (Power 4 Edition)

By this point most of you know the rules, but things changed a little bit. Instead of putting out a team of 46 (23 on each side of the ball), we've just got 24 players -- 12 on offense and 12 on defense.  The Group of Five All-Florida HS Team MIGHT be here in a few days. There's a damn good chance I'll be adding FCS players to it because many of the good G5 kids last season have transferred into the power four.  Anyway, the offense is 11 personnel with an extra RB and the defene is a 4-2-5 with a extra linebacker. Basically sticking to my formations over the past couple years.  OFFENSE Quarterback : Rocco Becht, R-Jr., 6-1, 210, Iowa State (Wiregrass Ranch); 3,606 yards, 26 TD, 9 INT, 8 Rush TDs Running Back : Isaac Brown, So., 5-9, 190, Louisville (Homestead); 165 carries, 1,173 yards, 11 TDs; 152 receiving yards. Running Back : Desmond Reid, Sr., 5-8, 175, Pitt (Miramar); 183 carries, 962 yards, 5 rush TDs; 52 catches, 579 yards, 4 TDs; punt return TD and fifth in AP-...
Read more

2021 Transfer Portal Class Breakdown (Florida State Seminoles)

One of the many offseason projects I will be working on is a breakdown on transfer portal classes two years in the rear.  In 2021 the transfer portal was still a bit of a new thing and coming out of pandemic there were a lot of moving parts in college football, so I don't think student-athletes and coaches realized the true power of the portal.  Two years out allowed the full impact of a transfer class to be felt. More transfers aren't going to be at their new program for more than two years without making some sort of a mark.  Anyway first team up is FSU. Florida State Seminoles 2021 head coach:  Mike Norvell Transfer Class:  12 (four offense, eight defense) Cortez Andrews, LB (Maryland Marcus Cushnie, Edge (Alabama A&M)) Dillan Gibbons, OG (Notre Dame) Jermaine Johnson, DE/OLB (Georgia) Joe Lang, S/DB (Holy Cross) Jarques McClellion, CB (Arkansas) McKenzie Milton, QB, (UCF) Brandon Moore, CB (UCF) Andrew Parchment, WR (Kansas) Jammie Robinson, S (South Car...
Read more

2021 Transfer Portal Class Breakdown (FIU Golden Panthers)

Butch Davis came out the gate pretty strong at FIU. He was 23-14 with three bowl appearances in his first three seasons. Then the pandemic came and he lost 16 of his final 17 games. FIU was fading a tad before COVID-19, so maybe Davis had already peaked. I am curious how he could have managed the portal if he knew how it was going to work. It's an interesting "what if" to think about. FIU Golden Panthers 2021 head coach: Butch Davis Transfer Class Size: 6 (three offense, three defense) Tyrese Chambers, WR (Sacred Heart) Api Mane, OL (Kansas) Jeremy Passmore, DL (Indiana) Isaiah Velez, QB (Eastern Kentucky) Hal Vinson, LB (Texas State) Pierce Withers, S (Texas State) 2021 Record: 1-11 2021 Starts (40): Chambers (12), Mane (12), Passmore (9), Withers (7) 2022 Starts (22): Passmore (12), Chambers (10) Currently on Roster: Passmore Transferred Out: Chambers (Maryland), Velez (Coffeyville CC) 2021 All C-USA: Chambers (2nd team) Recap: Chambers was so good he flipped S...
Read more