ORLANDO, Fl. – It’s finally time for the Bounce House to live up to its name on the UCF campus. After a year without fans, changing schedules, and canceled games, the Knights welcome the Broncos of Boise State to town.
In the ” Group of Five” movement, the two programs have been something of a ‘golden child’ in their own ways. From Boise States’ undefeated season that saw them upset Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl back in 2007 to the Knights’ more recent National Title claim in 2017.
Now they will battle each other with conference realignment in full swing, and both have been in murmurs of chatter surrounding possible Big 12 expansion. Both teams enter this one with new head coaches at the helm, with Gus Malzahn coming to the Knights from Auburn and Andy Alvos leading the Broncos after leaving Oregon as the defensive coordinator.
Last season the Knights went 6-4, while the Broncos went 5-2. Boise averaged 33.9 points per game, while UCF averages 42.2. These prolific offenses will return their quarterbacks for the 2021 season, with Hank Bachmeier leading the boys from Idaho and Dillon Gabriel leading the offense in Orlando.
Bachmeier completed 96 of 156 passes for an average of 230 yards per game. Whereas Gabriel completed 248-418 passes for an average of 357 yards per game. In addition, the UCF QB is on nearly every national award watch list for quarterbacks and has his eyes set on a dominating season.
Looking at the running game, the Knights love to get the ball moving on the ground. They averaged 210 rushing yards per game last year, compared to just 107 by the Broncos. Boise allowed an average of 163 yards per game on the ground to opponents last season. On the flip side of that, though, the Knights allowed opponents 192 yards on the ground per game.
A lot of this information is sporadic and should be taken with a grain of salt as you consider the effects the pandemic had on each program. It’s almost like a clean slate and a chance to start anew for both.
A lot will ride on this first game for the two, as the winner will put themselves in a good position for a run at a New Years Six Bowl. We say good, not great, because UCF will still need to get past Cincinnati, who has been touted as the post child for the American this offseason. However, as stated previously, much is still to be determined as we get back to “normal” football.
Kickoff is set for 7 pm in Orlando, Florida, with the game on ESPN.
