Knights brace for Cougars’ best shot
The questions about who would replace O’Leary were relentless. Houston could be facing a similar situation should second-year coach Tom Herman leave for a Power 5 school one season after leading the Cougars past Florida State.
No one understands the Houston football team’s struggle right now better than UCF players.
They’ve been through the fight to ignore rumors about their head coach’s future. They’ve struggled to focus on finishing strong even after goals were well past their grasp. The weight of success and failure combined with the uncertainty of what’s next can feel heavy.
“As a college athlete, you always look at the outside noise just because that’s what you’ve known your whole entire life,” UCF senior center Jason Rae said. “But since last year, we’ve come a long way. It’s very hard, but at the same time you have to know that you’re here for a job and if you don’t produce then you’re done.”
UCF and Houston will face off at TDECU Stadium today at noon. The game will air on ESPNU.
The Cougars need to stop the bleeding during a season that has gone awry, starting with the team’s road loss to Navy Oct. 8.
And a little revenge wouldn’t hurt for the Knights. After all, it was UCF’s blowout loss to Houston during homecoming last year that sent the program into a tailspin and triggered former head coach George O’Leary’s resignation midseason.
The questions about who would replace O’Leary were relentless. Houston could be facing a similar situation should second-year coach Tom Herman leave for a Power 5 school one season after leading the Cougars past Florida State in the Peach Bowl.
“It’s very distracting because with social media and all the media outlets, everybody is posting everything on Twitter, Facebook or whatever. It’s constantly around,” said UCF tight ends coach Sean Beckton, one of two assistant coaches new Knights head coach Scott Frost retained. “So if there’s a question mark on whether or not you’re gonna have your head coach or assistant coach or whoever in the program, obviously that affects them. As a staff, [you’ve] gotta try to keep those guys within the circle and keep those guys understanding that this is a team we’re preparing for and we have a game to play and our operation should remain the same.”
A distracted Houston team could serve as an advantage for UCF, which enters the game as a ninepoint underdog.
But UCF players and coaches are doubtful outside noise will be much of a factor Saturday. In fact, many said they’re expecting to get Houston’s strongest punch following a surprising 38-16 loss to SMU.
“They do have some older guys on that football team that do know how to block out distractions,” UCF defensive backs coach Travis Fisher said. “They get a lot of attention over there, mainly because they’re a very good football team. And they get a bunch of attention if they lose a game, like it’s the end of the world. So they get a bunch of attention. I can just imagine those guys over there are really trying to block everything out especially with Greg Ward [Jr.] as the quarterback.”
Ward is undoubtedly one of the UCF’s biggest targets. He is the best quarterback UCF’s defense has seen all season, leading the AAC in total offense with 2,596 yards.
Houston also boasts the No. 1 defense in the conference and is ranked No. 12 among FBS schools. UCF’s defense is ranked No. 4 in the league and No. 35 nationally.
“Every single one of these games in conference is winnable, but every single game is gonna be a battle,” Frost said. “There’s no easy games. There’s no game we can’t win, so we’re going in with that mindset. It’s gonna take our best game and we’re probably gonna need a few breaks but I think our guys excited.”