Knights’ poise draws praise from Heupel
Coach likes team’s refusal to panic in face of adversity
Time and time again, UCF coach Josh Heupel has preached the importance of handling adversity well. The Knights’ ability to respond in the face of trouble will determine just how far the team will go this season.
Heupel witnessed it firsthand Friday night.
After jumping out to a 14-0 lead, UCF watched as FAU rallied to tie the game before eventually taking the lead on a 32-yard field goal with 1:34 left in the first half.
It was the first time the Knights have trailed in a game this season and the first time they have faced a deficit since midway through the third quarter against Auburn in the Peach Bowl on New Year’s Day — a little more than 10 quarters of play.
“I like the way we handled that,” Heupel said Monday. “There was no panic on the sideline. Really mature and calm.”
UCF showed poise marching 78 yards down the field during just five plays in 1:03, reclaiming the lead with a 21-yard touchdown pass from McKenzie Milton to Marlon Williams.
The Knights never trailed again, going on to earn a 56-36 win over the Owls.
“They went out and played the next play in the two-minute drive and were really efficient. They just came back and played the next play,” Heupel said.
UCF players said they weren’t rattled.
“It’s football. It happens,” redshirt senior defensive end A.J. Wooten said of the brief deficit. “Competition is always going to be great and everybody is going to give you their best shot so we know we’ve got to go out and compete every day and every snap and make sure we do all the small stuff and keep focusing on the big goals that we have.”
Heupel added, “We talk about it all the time, you’re only as good as your next performance. The only play that matters is your next play through the course of a football game too. I like the way we handled that.”
Heat edge
For the first time this season, UCF will play a game during the day, with Saturday’s kickoff against
Pittsburgh set for 3:30 p.m. In typical Florida fashion, temperatures are expected to be in the low 90s with 72 percent humidity at game time.
Many of the Knights see this as an edge, especially coupled with the torrid pace of the UCF offense.
“We use this [pace] element and the Florida heat as our advantage, I think,” redshirt senior tight end Michael Colubiale said. “We practice every day at nine o’clock in the morning in the 100-degree heat and I think we’re going to be ready to play this weekend.”
Heupel added, “When your down here, you stress hydration every day. We will stress it, but that’s something we talk about every day.”
Substituting players will be key to avoiding issues like cramping according to Pittsburgh coach Pat Narduzzi.
“We want to sub as much as we can sub,” Narduzzi told reporters Monday. “We’ve got two-deep guys that we think — we’ve got the guys that we think can go in there, and we’re going to continue to do that.”
Narduzzi said the challenge is simulating UCF’s tempo this week.
“Our scout team will probably have wristbands,” the fourth-year coach said. “We’re going to try to bang, bang, bang, bang, bang. It’s not going to look like them. Just like Georgia Tech’s offense didn’t look like it.”
Etc.
Milton was named the American Athletic Conference Offensive Player of the Week after the junior quarterback accounted for 389 yards and six touchdowns while leading the Knights to a 56-36 win over FAU Friday. UCF has now won 16 consecutive games, a conference record. It was the second time this season and the sixth time in his career that Miilton has been named player of the week. He earned the honor after Week 1.