South Florida Sun-Sentinel Palm Beach (Sunday)
Fallen Knights
Crushing loss to Cincinnati most likely ends UCF’s hopes of a spot in a New Year’s Six Bowl
CINCINNATI — The UCF offense woke up too late.
The No. 18 Knights struggled to move the ball Friday night against a bruising Cincinnati defense until the final five minutes of the game, at which time UCF trailed by 11 points.
The Knights scored a quick touchdown and added a twopoint conversion, but they couldn’t get the ball back and had to trudge out of Nippert Stadium with their second crushing loss of the season.
UCF saw a season full of promise that began with goals of a third consecutive American Athletic Conference title and possible spot in a New Year’s Six Access Bowl evaporate against the Bearcats.
Much as it had done against Pittsburgh two weeks earlier, UCF (4-2, 1-1 AAC) struggled on offense early. True freshman quarterback Dillon Gabriel turned the ball over four times, including on a pick-six, as Cincinnati (4-1, 1-0 AAC) toppled the Knights 27-24 in front of a raucous home crowd that rushed the field after time expired.
“Obviously, I’m disappointed in the result, but I am proud of how the guys competed,” UCF coach Josh Heupel said. “They never gave up and they competed fiercely to the end. We didn’t do enough to win the football game today.”
The last time UCF lost two games in a season was in 2016.
The Knights’ streak of 33 consecutive weeks being ranked in the Associated Press Top 25 will most likely come to an end when the new poll is released Sunday.
UCF now finds itself chasing Cincinnati in the AAC East Division race, with the Bearcats holding the division tiebreaker.
The Knights were in the red zone six times but only managed three field goals and one touchdown. UCF entered Friday evening’s game ranked eighth in the conference after converting 78% of its red-zone opportunities with 15 touchdowns and three field goals.
“Early in the football game, we had multiple opportunities in the first quarter and we came away with three points,” Heupel said.
“That can, and it did, come back to haunt us.
“Opportunities were wasted and points were there to be had, and we didn’t take advantage of it.”
Greg McCrae scored on a 1-yard run in the final minute of the first half to give UCF a 16-10 lead. It was the fifth rushing touchdown of the season for the junior, who entered the game leading the Knights in rushing yards and rushing touchdowns.
Tay Gowan secured the first takeaway for the Knights after intercepting Cincinnati quarterback Desmond Ridder three minutes into the second quarter. It was the second interception on the season for the junior cornerback and the third takeaway.
Big chunks of yards in the first half and timely defensive stops, however, didn’t translate to UCF points.
As much as Gabriel and the Knights struggled to reach the end zone in the first half, the third quarter was worse. Penalties and turnovers were a big problem for the Knights.
During the third possession of the second half, Cincinnati’s Ahmad Gardner stepped in front of a Gabriel pass and returned it 16 yards for a touchdown to give the Bearcats a 20-16 lead.
“I didn’t do my part,” a dejected Gabriel said following the loss. “The three turnovers [interceptions] on my part — that’s unacceptable. I have to come out and play a lot better.”
One of the bright spots for the UCF offense was receiver Gabe Davis, who finished with a teamhigh 13 catches for 170 yards. It was the junior’s third straight 100-yard receiving game.
Just when the rest of the Knights offense started heating up around Davis, the clock ran out on the Knights.
“A lot of guys are disappointed,” said linebacker Nate Evans, who led the team with a careerhigh 17 tackles. “But I told them we still have plenty more games to go.
“If we beat ourselves up, that’s when the bad things start to happen. We have to keep our heads up.
UCF has a bye week before hosting East Carolina on Oct. 19.