Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Central Florida rolls to victory, moves to 10-0
PHILADELPHIA — Shaquem Griffin was the exclamation point during a statement victory for the No. 15 UCF football team, this one a 45-19 rout over Temple Saturday at Lincoln Financial Field.
Midway through the third quarter, Griffin extinguished any remaining hope for an Owls rally when he caught an interception over his back, turned about face and sprinted 22 yards. It was just the second pick of his career, with his first coming against Houston last season.
Griffin already stockpiled some first half highlights, with a series of monstertruck hits. In one notable case he forced a fumble with his left arm, the side where he is missing a hand. That hit came shortly after another near forced fumble against Temple quarterback Frank Nutile and recovery that was ultimately overturned when the play was deemed an incomplete pass.
“It’s awesome to get turnovers and being able to celebrate with your teammates. Nevelle Clarke dropped the first one and I told him during halftime, ‘If that was me, I would have caught that,’” Griffin joked. “It was crazy because the next half I ended up getting that same exact play and ended up catching it.”
Earlier in the week, UCF’s defense admitted this was a revenge game after falling 26-25 to Temple last season. The Owls scored a last minute touchdown to sting the Knights on homecoming.
This time around, UCF’s defense handed out the crushing blows, forcing a season high five turnovers during Temple’s senior day. The Knights’ win also kept the Owls one win short from qualifying for a bowl game.
In the first half alone, the Knights forced two turnovers in the form of interceptions from linebacker Pat Jasinski (first of his career) and safety Kyle Gibson (his fourth of the season). Temple was only able to convert three of 10 third down opportunities in the first half and was forced to settle for two field goals.
UCF’s defense almost pitched a shutout against Temple in the second half, holding the Owls scoreless in the third quarter. The Knights’ backups gave up a single touchdown — a 74-yard bomb to Temple receiver Adonis Jennings in the final quarter.
“I think the guys that were here and playing last year remember that game and you know there’s always a little bit of hurt coming out of a game like that and probably a little extra motivation for some guys,” UCF coach Scott Frost said. “So much water has gone under the bridge since then that I think these guys are more excited about what’s happening this year than what happened last year.”
UCF entered Saturday as one of just four undefeated Football Bowl Subdivision teams, joining Alabama, Miami and Wisconsin. The Knights are aiming to become the first team in school history to pull off a perfect regular season and make a statement to the College Football Playoff committee.
As UCF’s win total grows, so have the outside distractions.
For the second consecutive game, a small group of Nebraska fans showed up in the stands to woo Frost. His name has repeatedly been mentioned among coaching candidates for the Huskers along with Tennessee and Florida, who recently parted ways with coaches Butch Jones and Jim McElwain, respectively.
UCF quarterback McKenzie Milton said he didn’t notice the Nebraska fans in the stands. Milton and his teammates are more focused on preparing for a challenging contest against rival USF on Black Friday. The War On I-4 game is slated to start at 3:30 p.m. and will be broadcast nationally on ABC.
The winner will clinch the East Division and advance to the American Athletic Conference title game.
“All that kind of stuff is just outside chatter for us,” Milton said. “We don’t really focus on that. As long as coach Frost is our guy, he’s our guy and we’ll go to battle for him every night.”