Keene’s plan: Watch film, put on weight in offseason
UCF quarterback Mikey Keene gets to spend the holidays at home with a big win in his back pocket.
The freshman threw for 144 yards on 14 of 22 passing and one touchdown along with no interceptions leading the Knights to a 29-17 win over the Florida Gators in the Gasparilla Bowl last week.
“I’m very excited to be able to go back home,” Keene, a native of Chandler, Arizona said after the game Thursday.
While he’ll enjoy this win, the work to improve for next year begins soon for Keene. That work includes watching a lot of film — including the good, the bad and the ugly from his first year at UCF.
He specifically mentioned working on third downs and recognizing coverages from opposing defenses. The Knights converted just 38% of their third-down attempts, down from 48% from a year ago.
“I get to be able to watch some film, reevaluate how the whole season went and ultimately get myself ready for next season to be better and lead this team as well,” Keene said.
In addition to rewatching himself play, the 5-foot-10, 180-pound quarterback is aiming to hit the gym and gain muscle.
“Just putting on weight first of all,” Keene said when asked what he’ll work on this offseason. “Getting myself to be a little bit bigger to take some more hits next season.”
The stretch of the offseason between the first year to the second can be critical in the development of a young quarterback.
Take for example former UCF quarterback McKenzie Milton, who went from throwing just 10 touchdowns as a freshman to 37 as a sophomore leading the Knights to a New Year’s Six bowl win after losing in the Cure Bowl the season prior.
But not all quarterbacks improve that much from their first year of starting games to their second. In his first season as UCF’s starting quarterback, Justin Holman threw 23 touchdowns with 14 interceptions, as a sophomore in 2014.
The second season as the starter didn’t go as smoothly while Holman battled injuries. In 9 starts, he threw 14 more interceptions but with only 7 touchdowns, as a junior.
Keene has already shown improvement in his first season. After throwing 6 interceptions in his first five starts, he wasn’t picked off at all in the final five, including the Gasparilla Bowl.
Until the offseason work begins, Keene is going to relish in the win over the Gators.
“I’m super excited about the win for not only myself but our whole team,” Keene said. “It’s a huge win for where this program is going to be.”