No. 7 UCF beats Memphis for AAC title
Orlando, Fla. — Unbeaten UCF updated its sparkling resume with an impressive come-from-behind victory over Memphis in the American Athletic Conference title game.
Now the seventh-ranked Knights (11-0, No. 8 CFP), who proclaimed themselves national champions last January after finishing as the only undefeated team in the FBS, will see if repeating as AAC champs and having the nation’s-longest winning streak are good enough to get them into the College Football Playoff.
‘There’s been a national conversation for 11 months since UCF won the Peach Bowl and claimed a championship,” athletic director Danny White said after Saturday’s 56-41 victory over Memphis.
“Our football team has now won 25 straight games. They deserve to be in this playoff, and I hope that’s a decision that’s made (today),” White added. “If that does not occur, I think that’s another pretty glaring example a four-team playoff is not adequate for the postseason.”
Darriel Mack Jr. shrugged off two early turnovers to rush for four second-half touchdowns and rally the Knights past the Tigers (8-5) for the fourth time in two seasons.
With the red-shirt freshman filling in for injured quarterback McKenzie Milton, UCF amassed 698 yards total offense and tightened defensively after shaky start to limit Memphis to three points after halftime.
Mack completed 19 of 27 passes for 348 yards and two touchdowns without an interception. He began the Knights’ comeback from a 17-point halftime deficit with a 54-yard TD pass to Otis Anderson and finished the Tigers off with scoring runs of 2, 2, and 5 yards in the fourth quarter.
“Everybody has confidence in (Mack). You saw that tonight,” UCF coach Josh Heupel said. “He has a lot of confidence in himself, too.”
Greg McCrae rushed for 206 yards and one TD for the Knights, who beat the Tigers 62-55 in the 2017 AAC title game and rallied from a 16-point second-half deficit to win 31-30 at Memphis during the regular season.
This time, UCF trailed 38-21 at halftime before scoring touchdowns on five straight possessions in the second half.
“Our locker room was extremely calm at halftime. There was a great belief because this was a situation we’ve already been in with Memphis the first time around. I don’t think anyone blinked an eye.”
Darrell Henderson scored on runs of 62, 12 and 82 yards and also throw a 4-yard TD pass to help Memphis (8-5) build its big halftime lead.
But the nation’s second-leading rusher only gained 3 yards on six carries in the second half, finishing with 210 yards on 16 carries.
“This was a learning experience for us,” Henderson said.
“”It was a hard fought matchup between two really good football teams. They made more plays than we did in the second half,” Memphis coach Mike Norvell said.