UCF rallies in 4th quarter to beat ECU

Running back transfer Mark-Antony Richards made himself known Saturday night at the Bounce House, helping UCF come from behind and win 20-16 over East Carolina.

The former Auburn player caught a 12-yard pass from true freshman quarterback Mikey Keene, then picked up 19 yards on the ground two plays later, setting up the Knights at the ECU 8-yard line.

Two plays later, Richards scored from the 1 on third-and-goal with 23 seconds remaining, giving UCF the go-ahead touchdown to help the Knights (3-2) avoid a third straight loss.

The Pirates had one last possession but the final effort came up short as a multi-lateral pass play did not work.

Richards carried the ball six times for 58 yards. Sophomore back Johnny Richardson led the team with 104 rushing yards on 16 carries and one touchdown as well.

Up 13-10 entering the fourth quarter, ECU extended its lead to six with just over seven minutes remaining as Owen Daffer nailed a 34-yard field goal.

Richardson caught a screen pass from Keene, turned and gained 49 yards after the catch. Trusting his defense, Knights coach Gus Malzahn decided to kick the field at ECU’s 22-yard line, and Daniel Obarski’s 40-yard field goal cut the deficit to 16-13 with 5:06 left.

Malzahn had said earlier in the week that his defense would perform better against a traditional offense similar to ECU’s offense.

The Knights limited ECU freshman Keaton Mitchell back to just 65 rushing yards one week after he totaled over 200 yards on the ground vs. Tulane.

As for UCF’s freshman quarterback, Keene finished the game 23 of 35 for 194 yards with one interception. ECU quarterback Holton Ahlers threw one touchdown while completing 20 of 32 passes for 208 yards with one interception as well.

In a less than ideal opening to the second half for the Knights,

Keene was picked off on third down by ECU safety Juan Powell. UCF’s defense was able to limit ECU to just a field goal, however, as the Pirates led 6-3.

On UCF’s second drive of the third quarter, the Knights relied on Richardson, who broke free for a 38-yard rush before punching the ball in from 4 yards out for the first touchdown of the game. UCF led 10-6 with 7:59 remaining in the third quarter.

ECU needed just five plays to go 53 yards thanks to UCF’s Keenan Hester jumping offsides on a critical third-and-short at the Knights’ 33-yard line. Ahlers then hit Audie Omotosho for a 27-yard touchdown as ECU regained the lead at 12-10 with 2:43 left in the third quarter.

Neither team had success on offense in the first half as both sides each converted just three of eight third downs. The first half marked the first time since 2015 that UCF didn’t score a touchdown before the break.

UCF’s best drive of the opening half came late in the first quarter when Keene guided a 62-yard, 12-play drive that culminated with Obarski’s 35-yard field goal.

The Pirates responded with a short field goal before the teams exchanged punts on four consecutive drives. The game was tied at 3-3 at halftime.