Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
UCF, Memphis have been there, done that
The American Athletic Conference championship trophy was just arm’s length away from Memphis coach Mike Norvell during a pregame press conference Friday afternoon, but the coveted prize might as well have been located on Mars.
Norvell and the Tigers were in this same situation a year ago when they arrived in Orlando to take on an undefeated UCF team chasing a College Football Playoff bowl bid, only to see Memphis’ first conference title slip through its fingers as the Knights pulled off a thrilling 62-55 win in overtime.
Memphis is back in Orlando, and this time the Tigers will be facing an undefeated UCF team chasing a College Football Playoff bowl bid.
“We’re excited that we’re in this game,” Norvell said of the challenge his team faces this weekend. “When you’re two of the top programs in the league and if you get a chance to play against each other multiple times, there’s a healthy respect.”
When No. 8 UCF (11-0, 8-0 AAC) and Memphis (8-4, 5-3 AAC) meet again Saturday, it will be for the fourth time in the past 14 months.
These two programs have provided thrilling games for fans during the past 14 months, including last year’s conferencechampionship game, a back-and-forth prize fight that set conference marks for points (117) and yards (1,479), and this season’s come-from-behind regular-season masterpiece that saw the Knights rally from 13 points down at the half to earn a 31-30 win on the road at Memphis.
This time around, however, things are different.
McKenzie Milton’s season-ending injury last week against USF means UCF will be playing without its star quarterback and leader, who is still in the hospital recovering from emergency surgery on his right leg.
UCF was closing in on a sellout late Friday, with fewer than 2,000 tickets available by midday. Milton’s mother was helping spur a social-media campaign to purchase and donate tickets to first-responders.
Fans have been planning tributes to Milton all week, with thousands of leis expected to be worn to honor the elusive playmaker who grew up in Hawaii. There will be signs featuring his nickname “KZ” and his No. 10 jersey. The Knights plan to unveil a new helmet sticker saluting the quarterback. It will all invoke Ohana, the Hawaiian word for family.
The Knights will have to balance the emotions, taking care to use Milton’s absence as motivation but not allow it to throw off their focus.
“We’ve got a tribute for him, just to show him how much he’s done for us and what he’s done for this program. … I just need the crowd, everybody to come out and just show their support for our team and McKenzie,” UCF receiver Dredrick Snelson said.
“We’re going to use that as motivation. Anything for McKenzie. … We’ll use it as motivation. Anything would be positive and uplifting for our team. We just need it all on Saturday.”
Backup quarterback Darriel Mack Jr. will get his second career start against Memphis, which enters this weekend’s showdown having won four consecutive games to capture the West Division and earn a rematch against UCF. The Knights insist they are confident Mack has a strong command of the offense. He got some help this week from Milton, who joined team meetings via FaceTime from his hospital bed.
“A lot of the personnel is the same, but some of it’s going to be different, obviously,” Knights coach Josh Heupel said of the rematch with Memphis. “But the teams have evolved and changed throughout the course of the season.”
UCF senior defensive end Titus Davis is optimistic the Knights can learn from their earlier mistakes against Memphis, especially when it comes to slowing down or stopping elite running back Darrell Henderson.
The hard-nosed Henderson, who leads the league in rushing with 1,699 yards, gashed UCF for a game-high 199 yards in October. However, 172 of those came in the first half.
“So just going back and watching the film and seeing where we messed up, where we didn’t fit and why he did what he did — it helps out a lot,” said Davis.
UCF defensive lineman A.J. Wooten added, “He’s a great back and he’s going to make plays regardless but we just have to make sure we read our keys and make sure we do everything right.”
Despite intense emotions on both sides and frequent showdowns, Norvell isn’t ready to call this series between Memphis and UCF a rivalry.
“To say rivalry, I don’t know about that. I think it’s a game between two great football teams that have done what’s necessary to get to this point,” Norvell said. “I know for the American [Athletic] Conference, this is an exciting game.”