Freshman heading into fire
Keene likely to take over for injured Gabriel as Knights’ starting QB
When the first UCF depth chart was released ahead of the seasonopener, quarterback was of little concern.
That’s changed following Dillon Gabriel’s collarbone injury.
Although UCF did not provide a timeline for Gabriel’s recovery after he went down on the final play in a 42-35 loss to Louisville on Friday night, some clavicle fractures in adults can take 10 to 12 weeks to heal and may take longer depending on the situation, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine.
Ten weeks from Saturday is one day after UCF’s regular-season finale versus South Florida.
With Gabriel potentially done for the season, the Knights (2-1) turn to true freshman Mikey Keene, who had served as the primary backup. The Arizona native had his first taste of college football last week at home against Bethune-Cookman.
Keene entered with 3 minutes, 41 seconds left in the third quarter and completed 4 of 7 passes for 55 yards, throwing his first touchdown pass to wide receiver Kaedin Robinson.
“It was great that Mikey got in there,” coach Gus Malzahn said last week. “Mikey’s done a real solid job. He threw the ball well.”
Malzahn emphasized that while Keene has looked good in practice, there’s nothing like game experience.
“I thought he did a good job managing the offense when he was in there,” Malzahn said.
Keene led Chandler High School to a 10-0 record in 2020 and a second straight Arizona Open Division state title in his senior season. He completed 154 of 218 passes for 2,069 yards and 22
touchdowns with only two interceptions.
Keene enrolled early at UCF and took part in spring practice, which gave him an advantage in fall camp compared to other freshmen who arrived over the summer. He ultimately was named Gabriel’s backup.
Behind Keene is Kentucky quarterback transfer Joey Gatewood, who has yet to throw a pass with the Knights despite rushing four times for 35 yards on designed run packages. Gatewood played in six games last season for Kentucky after transferring from Auburn. In limited action, he ran 25 times for 62 yards and completed 17 of 35 passes for 109 yards.
After Gatewood, there are three more quarterbacks on the roster: redshirt junior Quadry Jones, redshirt freshman Parker Navarro and redshirt senior Andrew Brito, who walked on after transferring from UMass during fall camp.
Jones, an Orlando native, has only thrown one pass this season, a 14-yard completion to Stephen Martin late in the game against Bethune-Cookman.
At UMass, Brito appeared in 10 games and started six times. He completed 94 of 171 passes with seven touchdowns and six interceptions for the Minutemen over two seasons.
While Gatewood and Brito may have the most college football experience and Jones has been at UCF the longest, the Knights likely will rely on the true freshman to lead the way.
Before the season, Gabriel spoke about the depth behind him.
“For the most part with our QB room, it’s been a great competitive energy,” he said in August. “When you have a healthy camaraderie inside the QB room, it helps. Those guys are great at competing.”
Keene will have about two weeks to prepare. UCF is off this week before traveling to face Navy on Oct. 2.