Aug. 22, 2008
The UCF football team made the program's first season playing on campus at Bright House Networks Stadium a memorable one. The Knights rolled to a 6-1 record on their home turf and capped off the year with a 44-27 victory over Tulsa in the Conference USA Championship game on Dec. 1.
The only blemish on the home slate was a 35-32 setback to No. 6 Texas. Longhorn head coach Mack Brown left Orlando impressed with the electric atmosphere inside saying this would be the last time his team would be the visitors for a stadium opening.
Brown's counterpart that day, UCF head coach George O'Leary, called building the 45,000-seat venue on campus the final piece to the puzzle that he has been putting together since his arrival in 2004. The fifth-year head coach was pleased with what he saw and heard inside the venue's first year of existence.
"I thought it was outstanding, I really do," O'Leary said. "The fan base, the student body, they all did a really outstanding job of getting behind the football team. The university and the athletic department made a great game-day situation with tailgating and I think people thoroughly enjoyed themselves. Plus it helps when you pretty much win all the games at home, except for one."
The on-campus stadium rejuvenated a fan base that broke home attendance records for the second-consecutive season as more than 400,000 fans watched UCF play its way to only the second 10-win season in program history. In fact, the Knights played in front of a trio of sellout crowds at BHNS - the first three in school history.
"The stadium has done a number of things for our program," tight ends coach and special teams coordinator Brent Key said. "It has brought the alumni back to campus and for our recruits, they get a chance to come on campus now and see everything else we have to offer besides just a place to play football."
Key, who was the team's recruiting coordinator a year ago, says the impact the new stadium has had on the Knights' recruiting has been immeasurable. "The players arrive on campus and are just overwhelmed with what they see," he added. "The stadium is the central component to what really is an athletics village that we have available to our student-athletes."
Not only are alumni, recruits and long-time UCF supporters finally getting to see what is going on at the East Orlando campus on fall Saturdays, but with the Knights' success on the playing field has come a number of nationally televised contests that is only adding to the exposure the stadium is bringing to the UCF football program.
"I don't think you can beat the exposure your program gets from a nationally-televised game," O'Leary said. "And being able to showcase our new stadium on these television games is only going to help show the great things that are happening on this campus."
The Knights had seven nationally televised games in their inaugural season on campus and the early television schedule for the 2008 campaign has the Knights slated to appear on national telecasts at least five times, and the likelihood is strong that several other games will be picked up throughout the season.
"Now that the stadium is in place, we have to continue with what we have been doing in recruiting and winning games on the field," O'Leary added. "Consistency is the key right now. The fans were great a year ago and in my mind, they helped create one of the toughest environments for an opposing team to play in the country."