ORLANDO, FL – College Football is back again and we are in store for a great season. The UCF Knights have been on a rollercoaster of a ride for the past three years, and have developed an enormous reputation along the way. After starting off former head coach Scott Frost’s tenure at 6-7 back in 2016, they rolled to an undefeated 13-0 record the following year and knocked off the Auburn Tigers to win the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl. Frost then departed for Nebraska and was replaced by QB guru Josh Heupel who made the switch from Missouri.
Last year started off equally as impressive for the Knights until the incumbent QB at the time, McKenzie Milton, was lost indefinitely to a gruesome leg injury with the season almost wrapped up. Redshirt freshman Darriel Mack Jr. was now tasked to complete the job, and he held his own along the way. With Mack and the Knights surging for a strong finish and guiding them to a Fiesta Bowl berth, UCF had hoped to knock off another SEC giant in LSU. They came up just short of recreating that magic for the second consecutive year, but made a statement that was equally just as impressive looking forward into this season.
Mack is now indefinitely out with a fractured ankle, and Notre Dame transfer Brandon Wimbush gets the nod for the start. Wimbush was 13-3 as a starter for the Fighting Irish, but was benched last season in favor of Ian Book. Wimbush beat out true freshman Dillon Gabriel for the job, although Heupel is vocally supportive of Gabriel and his ability. Gabriel is also on schedule to play against the Rattlers at some point in the first half of the opener. When asked about just how good this offense can be, Wimbush wasn’t shy with his opinion.
”I think it’s gonna be electric, man”, mentions Wimbush. “I have no doubt that we’ll be able to put up similar, if not better numbers than they did last year. They put up some phenomenal numbers last year. You guys all know about the weapons that we have and then whoever is that quarterback throwing them the ball, just do that, do that simple thing. Get them the ball and they’ll do the rest.”
Otis Anderson, Adrian Killins and Greg McCrae return at the running back position after totaling for over 2000 yards and 18 touchdowns as a group. Receivers Marlon Williams and Tre Nixon will be looking to make an impact with larger roles and Gabriel Davis returns as well after being the leading wideout out of the three.
The Rattlers have high hopes for their season and look to make some more noise in the MEAC. Ryan Stanley remains the starting QB for FAMU and is on pace to finish his career as the all-time passing leader for them. “It feels good”, mentions Stanley of his success. “The hard work and dedication I put in over the years. To be this close at being one of the greats at FAMU is a good feeling,”
Currently, Stanley ranks fifth in Rattler history with 6,071 yards. Quinn Gray tops the list with 7,378 yards. “Those guys having trust me to get us in the right place is big for this team and the offense,” Stanley said. “I know they have a comfort level with me. I have a trust in them. The chemistry is there with my receivers, running backs and offensive line. That comes over time. It’s not like you can hop into a role and have it automatically.”
This will be the second year with head coach Willie Simmons at the helm, and the fanbase is starting to believe in the process. They notched their first winning record in eight years and have brought in key pieces to take even another step. Reports state that FAMU’s fanbase contributed heavily to the sellout of Thursday’s opener, and Simmons is grateful for the growing support.
“If we played a game in Antarctica, you’ll see orange and green in the stands. They support us and it’s a great advantage for us. They’ll be over 40,000 screaming Knights fans. It will be nice to have a few thousand Rattlers there. Win, lose or draw, after the game, I’m looking forward to taking the team to the fan base and singing the alma mater to show our appreciation.”
The Knights take on the Rattlers at 7:30 PM ET at Spectrum Stadium.
Written by Ernie Casanova
