Preview 2019: Previewing and looking ahead to the UCF Knights season with what you need to know.
– Contact/Follow @ColFootballNews & @PeteFiutak
– What You Need To Know: Offense | Defense
– Top Players | Key Players, Games, Stats
– What Will Happen, Win Total Prediction
– Schedule Analysis
– UCF Previews 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015
2018 Record: 12-1 overall, 8-0 in AAC
Head Coach: Josh Heupel, 12-1
– CFN Preview 2019: All The Team Previews
5. WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE UCF OFFENSE
– The machine didn’t stop. It wasn’t quite the offense of 2017, but even with the coaching change, and despite the devastating loss of star QB McKenzie Milton late in the year, the O still finished fifth in the nation averaging 523 yards and 43 points per game. With eight starters returning, the fun will continue.
– The quarterback situation is among the nation’s most interesting. Milton is still rehabbing his broken leg, but junior Darriel Mack showed he could handle the work with 619 passing yards, three touchdowns, and 337 rushing yards and six scores when thrown into the fire. Now the 6-3, 230-pounder knows what he’s doing, but he has to hold off Notre Dame transfer Brandon Wimbush. Expect Mack to hang on to the gig … maybe. There’s no real wrong answer.
– The running game should be among the most explosive in college football. There might not be a bruiser, but the home run hitting combination of Greg McCrae and Adrian Killins should combine for close to 2,000 yards, and the quarterbacks will help, too. Also helping the cause …
– The offensive line should be fine with a little bit of work. Losing mainstays Wyatt Miller and Tyler Hudanick off of the left side is a problem, but the three returning starters should be in the mix for All-American Athletic honors.
Jordan Johnson might be the league’s best center, Jake Brown is among the top tackles, and Cole Schneider is an all-star guard. The depth is lacking, but the starting five will be fantastic.
– The receiving corps loses a few parts, but leading pass catcher Gabriel Davis is back after catching 53 passes for 815 yards and seven scores, and Tre Nixon is a baller who can stretch the field. Watch out for the tight ends, with good size and a few options with 6-7 former Wisconsin Badger Jake Hescock and former Notre Damer Jonathon MacCollister combining for the gig.
NEXT: What You Need To Know About the Defense, Top Players, Keys to the Season, What Will Happen
4. WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE UCF DEFENSE
– The defense doesn’t get enough credit or love considering the offense gets all of the attention, but it was solid. The Knights finished 95th in the nation overall, but it only allowed 23 points per game and was strong in the secondary. The run defense, though, was another story, and now with five starters overall needing to be replaced …
– The defensive line has to undergo an overhaul with Titus Davis gone from the end, and AJ Wooten, Joey Connors, and Trysten Hill done. This is where grad transfers Cam Goode from Virginia Tech and Brandon Wilson step in to at least provide a little bit of bulk around sophomore Mason Cholewa and – if he plays inside and not at end – senior Brendon Hayes. The whole group has to be better against the run, but it’s a big group across the front four.
– Four of the top six tacklers are gone overall, but second-leading tackler Nate Evans is back after earning all-star honors with 99 tackles from his spot on the outside, and senior Shawn Burgess-Becker needs to rise up at the other spot. Sophomore Eriq Gilyard – who made 38 tackles – will get the first look to replace Pat Jasinski in the middle.
– Richie Grant is a pickoff machine at one safety job. He came up with six of the team’s 14 from his free safety spot, and he led the team with 109 tackles. Kyle Gibson is gone at the other safety job, but junior Antwan Collier is a veteran, and both corners are back – Nevelle Clarke and Brandon Moore will be All-AAC performers.
NEXT: Top Players, Keys To the Season, What Will Happen
3. TOP UCF PLAYERS
Best UCF Offensive Player
RB Greg McCrae, Jr.
Adrian Killins might be the better all-around back with his return abilities and pass catching skills, a few linemen could make a bid to be here, and the hope is for one of the quarterbacks to rise up and rock in place of McKenzie Milton, but it’s a former walk-on who took over as the star of the offense as the season rolled on.
The 5-10, 175-pound McCrae led the team with 1,182 yards and ten scores, averaging close to nine yards per carry. He ripped apart defense with 99 yards or more in five of the last seven games, crushed Memphis in the AAC title game with 206 yards, and even pushed LSU with 81 yards. He’s not a workhorse, but he’s and explosive playmaker.
2. OT Jake Brown, Sr.
3. RB Adrian Killins, Sr.
4. C Jordan Johnson, Sr.
5. OG Cole Schneider, Soph.
Best UCF Defensive Player
S Richie Grant, Jr.
The 6-0, 194-pounder had a good freshman season, setting the tone for a huge sophomore campaign with a team-high 109 tackles with six picks.
With fantastic speed and range, he gets all over the field making big things happen, and he’s tough when he has to step up against the run, too. He came up with 12 tackles of more four times, with 16 stops against Navy.
2. LB Nate Evans, Sr.
3. CB Nevelle Clarke, Sr.
4. DE Brendon Hayes, Sr.
5. CB Brandon Moore, Jr.
NEXT: Keys to the Season, Prediction & What Will Happen
2. KEYS TO THE SEASON
Biggest Key To The UCF Offense
The completion percentage needs to be higher. McKenzie Milton wasn’t the most accurate passer last season, but he hit 67% of his throws under Scott Frost. The Josh Heupel attack was a bit different, and the explosiveness was there, but the passing game wasn’t as sharp.
Darriel Mack is a great prospect who should rise up into the starting quarterback role – if he’s the starter – but he only hit 51% of his throws, and Notre Dame transfer Brandon Wimbush only connected on 53% of his throws last season with four touchdown passes and six picks.
Biggest Key To The UCF Defense
The run defense has to be nastier. As long as it hovers around the four-yard-per-carry mark – it gave up 4.17 in 2017 – after allowing 4.68 per pop last season, it’ll be doing its job.
The plays in the backfield were there. UCF was great at getting behind the line, and it created a decent pass rush, but the run defense gave up 200 yards or more seven times – it allowed that many just three times in 2017 – and now it has to rework the defensive front.
Key Player To A Successful Season
QB Darriel Mack, Soph.
Or Brandon Wimbush. McKenzie Milton was more than just the ultra-successful statistical star over the last two seasons – he was the heart-and-soul leader in the rise of UCF football. However, in terms of upside, Mack might be better.
Unlike McKenzie, Mack has the 6-3, 230-pound size, has a bigger arm, and he can run, too. He proved he was more than ready to step in and produce when he started late in the season, but with the bar set at New Year’s Six Bowl Or Bust, and with the schedule a bit tougher, the quarterback play has to be consistently fantastic.
Key Game To The UCF Season
Stanford, Sept. 14
Here we go, UCF. Here’s the regular season game against the big-name program with an honest shot to win a Power Five conference – nah, Pitt wasn’t winning the ACC last year – and it’s coming to The Bounce House.
The regular season finale against USF should be for the AAC East, and games against Cincinnati and Temple on the road and Houston at home will matter, but beating Stanford would be the street cred moment. Beat the Cardinal, take down Pitt on the road the following week, and then UCF has the resumé wins in the College Football Playoff debate.
– UCF Schedule Breakdown & Analysis
2018 UCF Fun Stats
– Time of Possession: Opponents 34:35 – UCF 25:25
– Red Zone Scores: UCF 53-of-59 (90%) – Opponents 33-of-44 (75%)
– 3rd Quarter Scoring: UCF 125 – Opponents 43
NEXT: What Will Happen
1. UCF WIN TOTAL PREDICTION: WHAT’S GOING TO HAPPEN
The bar is set ridiculously high.
Seriously, even for Alabama, Clemson and Ohio State, demanding and expecting a 12-0 season is unfair, and yet it seems crazy not to expect another unbeaten regular season out of this UCF program.
Can the Knights do it three years in a row?
They can still be amazing and not go undefeated. Remember, they were this close to getting tagged by Temple last season, they should’ve lost to Memphis – at least in one of the two meetings – and they were pushed in 2017 by SMU, USF, and in the AAC title game against Memphis.
This year’s team might not be the same without McKenzie Milton under center, and it might be missing just enough parts on the lines to maybe drop a game or two, but still, it doesn’t feel right to go this low …
Set The Regular Season Win Total At … 10
UCF should at least split the two big Power Five games against Stanford and at Pitt, and factor in a loss somewhere along the American Athletic slate.
The Knights have to go Cincinnati, Temple and Tulane, and they have to deal with Houston and USF, too.
That’s not underestimating what UCF can do, but the schedule is tougher and the team overall should take just a wee step back … and still finish with double-digit wins.
– What You Need To Know: Offense | Defense
– Top Players | Key Players, Games, Stats
– Schedule Analysis
