Nov. 28, 2010
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By Marc Daniels
UCFAthletics.com
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - In the Football Bowl Subdivision, or as you like to say Division I-A, there are only 10 teams that get to play a 13th game. Five conferences have league title games. UCF is one of the 10 squads that will play a 13th game.
Each season George O'Leary, his staff and players set their goals for the season. As the coach has preached, the only thing you can truly control is winning a conference title. Saturday, UCF gets a chance to reach one of its biggest goals of the season. For the third time in their six year history in Conference USA, the Knights will play in and host the title game. And for the first time UCF will face someone other than Tulsa for the trophy. The SMU Mustangs come to town and will play for their first league crown. More on the Mustangs in a bit, but first the leftovers from the UCF win at Memphis:
Mr. Efficient: Jeff Godfrey was 14-of-17 for 252 yards. He was 13-of-14 after starting the game 1-for-3. He threw for 252 yards and two touchdowns and he also ran for another, his 10th rushing score of the season. Do you know what the number five means in relation to Jeff? The total number of incomplete passes the last two weeks. He is a combined 20-for-25 in wins over Tulane and Memphis.
Super Senior: Jamar Newsome has been superb in the last month. He has three 100-plus yard receiving games over the last four games. Newsome caught touchdown passes of 56 and 23 yards against Memphis and continues to shine in the passing game and has become a weapon on kick returns as well. Along with Quincy McDuffie, the two give UCF one of the nation's best return duos.
Bruuuuuuuuuuuuce: Finally, Bruce Miller is the UCF record holder for sacks in a career. Despite being so close so many times over the last several games, Miller got to Memphis quarterback Ryan Williams twice to move atop the school's all-time sack list.
Derrick Hallman: After hearing it from his head coach, Hallman has stepped his game up the last two weeks. At Memphis, he recorded two tackles for a loss, a sack and posted his fourth career interception.
Yellow flags on the ground: Sorry to bring some bad news. That's 27 penalties over the last three games. Six flags were called against UCF at Memphis, including one that negated a touchdown.
Touchdowns will be key when June Jones' SMU Mustangs come to UCF for the title game on Saturday. SMU advanced to the title game with a dramatic overtime win at East Carolina last Friday, 45-38. SMU trailed 14-0 to start then saw a two touchdown lead evaporate before winning in overtime.
Jones has turned the SMU program around in three seasons. He has gone 1-11, 8-5 and now is 7-5 heading into Saturday's showdown with the Knights. While Jones has put his pass heavy offense that he ran at Hawaii in with the Mustangs, SMU actually huddles once in a while and has also won games in the 30's with perhaps the second best defense in the league behind UCF.
With that, here are some keys heading into the title game:
SMU QB Kyle Padron vs. UCF's front four: Padron played as a true freshman last year and that experience has paid off this season. He has made fewer mistakes and has thrown for 3,306 yards and 28 touchdowns. The Knights must not just pressure the 6-foot-4 sophomore, but also confuse him with their looks and when to drop lineman back into coverage.
Zach Line and Aldrick Robinson must be contained: Line is SMU's leading rusher. He comes into the game with 1,297 yards on the ground and 10 touchdowns. Robinson is one of C-USA's top pass catchers. He has 57 receptions for 1,182 yards and 12 touchdowns and is averaging 20.7 yards per catch. Line must be stopped early and not be allowed to break tackles and turn short plays into big gainers. Robinson vs. Robinson, as in Josh for UCF, will be a matchup to watch. UCF cannot let SMU's Robinson run into open space and hurt UCF with big runs after the catch.
Protect Jeff Godfrey: Jeff has been hit too many times the last three weeks. His footwork and speed has turned additional sacks into big plays, but UCF's offensive line must protect its quarterback. When Jeff has time he has ripped opponents apart. His accuracy has been amazing the last two games and he has the weapons at receiver to trust they will make plays after the catch.
Ball control: Sorry if it's boring, but keeping SMU off the field is huge in this game. Latavius Murray, Ronnie Weaver and Jeff Godfrey need to be able to run. But the Knights have been able to control the ball with the passing game as well. The screen has become a big part of the offensive package for UCF and they are well over 50 percent on third down conversions. Winning time of possession could be a big key in this game.
Make special teams special: People know how good Quincy McDuffie is on kickoff returns but Josh Robinson has become dangerous on punts. He had two key returns at Memphis of 33 and 35 yards. Both gave UCF a short field and led to four play drives that ended in touchdowns. Robinson is yet to break one for a score, but you can feel one is out there.
Knights notes and more: UCF won five of six road games this season. The Knights are 13-3 in C-USA regular season games over the last two years. And UCF is the first team to host three conference title games since the league created the game...If you are trying to guess what bowl game UCF is going to, keep guessing. No one knows. There are many scenarios out there and many depend on what UCF does vs. SMU. Nothing is ruled out, including games not affiliated with C-USA. Bowls have become a lot more open to the idea of cutting deals with each other to get better matchups that will sell tickets, even if it means sending a contracted league team elsewhere. And if you don't think bowls are about selling tickets, I give you the Gator Bowl. The Gator Bowl is likely going to offer a bid to the 7-5 Florida Gators. That New Year's Day bid has nothing to do about a great season and everything to do about Florida's fan base...Sorry playoff advocates, this past weekend is another example of how great the regular season is in college football. See Auburn and Boise State about how big last week was...Yes, we did have Corky's BBQ on Friday in Memphis and did have Rendezvous BBQ Saturday at the stadium. Which is better? Me, for enjoying both, I am a better man...Two big chances for UCF fans to show up this week. The Florida Citrus Shootout Wednesday features Donnie Jones' unbeaten basketball team against the nationally-ranked Gators in the first college basketball game at the new Amway Center. And Saturday's conference title game is as big as it gets. Spread the word, buy your tickets and represent all week... Final thought: I went shopping on Black Friday with my wife. We were out at 2:30 a.m. That has to be worth at least two free days of remote control power in the house, right?
Marc Daniels' From the Press Box runs several times per month on UCFAthletics.com. Listen to Marc during UCF football, men's basketball and baseball radio broadcasts on the UCF-ISP Sports Network. Each weekday, Marc hosts "The Beat of Sports" on ESPN 1080 in Orlando from 9-11 a.m.