Knights’ offense can’t get out of its own way

By ADAM EATON | Sons of UCF

In the third quarter of the UCF Knights’ matchup with the Cincinnati Bearcats, the Knights’ offense pulled off a feat that had many people asking if it had ever happened before:

17 plays. 40 yards. 9:02 minutes. Punt.

It basically serves as a microcosm for the entirety of the game for the Knights. After possessing the ball for almost 40 minutes of game time, the offense could only muster 11 points, with 8 of them coming in the final two minutes of the game. That output was not able to really challenge the Bearcats, who won the game 20-11.

Quarterback Cam Fancher returned to the starting lineup in place of an injured Tayven Jackson, and had one of the more interesting stat lines you’ll ever see: 49 pass attempts, 222 passing yards, 20 carries, 108 rush yards, and one touchdown. With all due respect to Fancher, that level of Superman status would be tough for any quarterback to handle, let alone one getting his most significant amount of playing time in the season. 

The most significant issues the Knights faced on Saturday were once again penalties and mistakes. From dropped passes and misjudged yardage on fourth down passing routes to the concerning trend of penalties, UCF continues to find ways to self-sabotage even the best-looking of drives. Head coach Scott Frost continues to remind people that his team is still immature and learning together, but even he acknowledges that they have to find ways to clean up the mistakes. 

Simply put, the Knights have enough challenges playing against tough Big 12 opponents each week; they cannot compound that by having to play against themselves as well. 

Next Up

The Knights (3-3, 0-3) will celebrate homecoming by welcoming the West Virginia Mountaineers (2-4, 0-3) to Orlando. The obvious connection in this matchup is at the head coach, as both UCF and West Virginia have coaches in their first year of their second stint with their program. Another not-so-fun fact for the Knights is that they have never beaten the Mountaineers in their four previous matchups. 

Kickoff is scheduled for 1 pm EST, airing live on TNT.