Heupel lauds Knights’ improved secondary

UCF coach said the group that’s impressed him the most so far is on the defensive side of the football.

“I’m really happy about the maturity, the growth and the way our defensive backfield has really attacked every single play, every single day,” Heupel said. “Coming out of spring, I think that was something not a concern but we really wanted to see them mature. [Director of Sports Performance] Coach in the weight room thought that they maybe pushed harder and grew as much as any group that we had and it’s really showcased in the first five days of camp.

“It will be critical that that group continues to mature that way and their ability to handle adversity on game day, their ability to communicate whether it’s going really good or not will be pivotal to our success.” on. We’re healthy. We haven’t had any major bumps in training camp yet. We’re going to try to take care of them as far as how we practice, but we have to work where we need to at the same time.”

Those wanting to share their game day experience in the Swamp soon will not have to wait seemingly forever for photos or videos to upload.

The school announced Wednesday it has begun $6.3 million in upgrades to the stadium’s Wi-Fi system to be fully completed by the 2019 season.

The school’s University Athletic Association has made previous upgrades, but the new system will be state of the art.

“This will truly be a game-changing experience for our fans,” UF athletics director said in a statement. “We are making a significant commitment so that fans will be able to enjoy the game and stay connected with their friends and share all of the great experiences that come with being at the Swamp on a Saturday.”

The UAA has considered a total re-do of its wireless network for at least five years to combat sagging attendance numbers at the Swamp and throughout college football.

In 2017, the SEC led the nation in attendance with an average of 75,074 fans. But this was down from the 2008 peak of 76,844 fans

UF reported an average of 86,715 fans, good for 11th nationally, but down from 90,544 in 2008.

The Gators’ struggles on the field and improved quality of high-definition TV likely has more to do with the declining numbers than struggling Wi-Fi. But UF coach

wants to fill the Gators’ student section every game. Upgraded Wi-Fi should help.

Younger fans would rather stay home than continually lose a Wi-Fi connection to their mobile devices for at least four hours.