Sept. 18, 2011
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By Brian Ormiston
UCFAthletics.com
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - UCF wraps up its non-conference schedule with a Friday-night meeting at BYU (1-2) on ESPN at 8 p.m. ET. The Black and Gold has won five-straight games when it airs nationally on either ESPN or ESPN2.
Game Details:
Friday - Provo, Utah - 8 p.m. ET
2011 Records:
BYU - 1-2 Overall, Independent
UCF - 2-1 Overall, 0-0 C-USA
Stadium:
LaVell Edwards Stadium (63,725)
Series:
First Meeting
Live Coverage:
740-AM, UCFAthletics.com and Twitter.com/UCF_FootballSID
Television:
ESPN
Team Notes
READY FOR THE LONG JOURNEY
? Head coach George O'Leary will be looking for career-win No. 100 this Friday.
? UCF won all three games last year after it suffered a loss. And the Knights carry a 10-game winning streak overall following a defeat.
? The trip to Utah is the Knights' farthest journey West since 2005 when it took on Nevada in the Sheraton Hawai'i Bowl.
? It also is the farthest West they have traveled for a regular-season game since Oct. 27, 2001, when UCF tangled with Utah State. Provo's longitude is 111 deg, 39', 28" W, while Logan's longitude is 111 deg, 50', 1" W.
CRAVING A 3-1 NON-CONFERENCE RECORD
? UCF enters its final non-conference regular season game vs. BYU with a 2-1 record. The two non-conference victories ties a school-record equaling the number of non-conference regular season win totals from 2010 (2-2) and 2007 (2-2).
Season - Non-Conference Record*
2010 - 2-2
2009 - 1-3
2008 - 1-3
2007 - 2-2
2006 - 1-3
2005 - 1-2
2004 - 0-3
2003 - 1-3
2002 - 1-3
* - Regular Season Only
? Last year's win over Georgia in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl gave the 2010 team four non-conference victories for the season, most by any UCF team since it first began conference play (MAC) in 2002. That included the C-USA Championship Game win over SMU which did not affect UCF's league record.
GOTTA GET DOWN ON FRIDAY
? The Knights went 2-0 last year on Fridays, defeating Houston on the road, 40-33, and clipping Georgia, 10-6, in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl.
? They are 6-4 all-time on Fridays.
FAR AND AWAY THE BEST IN C-USA
? UCF has produced 102 points this year while allowing only 20 for a point-differential of plus-82. That ranks first in Conference USA, ahead of second-place Southern Miss at plus-42.
1) UCF - +82
2) Southern Miss - +42
3) Houston - +30
4) Tulane - +25
5) SMU - +12
6) UTEP - +2
7) Rice - -23
8) East Carolina - -26
9) Tulsa - -31
10) Marshall - -52
11) Memphis - -68
12) UAB - -78
Offense Notes
FINDING THEIR RECEIVERS
? Jeff Godfrey and Blake Bortles have not thrown an interception this year, combining to go 51-for-72 for a 70.8 completion percentage. That percentage ranks 15th in the nation.
? It marks the first time in school history that UCF has not thrown a pick in its first three games of a season.
BATTLE OF THE SOPHOMORE QUARTERBACKS
? UCF's Jeff Godfrey quickly made a name for himself as a true freshman in 2010, ultimately being voted as the C-USA Freshman of the Year.
? Now a sophomore, Godfrey is going up against his third team which features a quarterback who had a remarkable true freshman campaign last year.
? Jake Heaps broke every freshman quarterback record at BYU in 2010, and finished 219-for-389 with 2,316 yards, 15 touchdowns and nine interceptions.
-Godfrey-Heaps Comparison with 2011 Statistics:
Jeff Godfrey - 5'11"/182 - 43-62, 468 YDS, 0 INT, 0 TD, 156 rushing yards
Jake Heaps - 6'1"/194 - 73-126, 722 YDS, 4 INT, 3 TD, -56 rushing yards
? Charleston Southern and Boston College also boasted sophomore quarterbacks against UCF this season:
-Godfrey vs. Dixon (CSU), 9/3/11, UCF won 62-0
Jeff Godfrey - 6-for-10, 100 YDS, 3 Rush TD
Malcolm Dixon - 6-for-15, 50 YDS, 0 Rush TD
-Godfrey vs. Rettig (B.C.), 9/10/11, UCF won 30-3
Jeff Godfrey - 20-for-25, 187 YDS, 2 Rush TD
Chase Rettig - 10-for-23, 70 YDS, 0 Rush TD, 2 INT
GODFREY'S TOUCHDOWN CHART
? Quarterback Jeff Godfrey is second in C-USA only to SMU running back Zach Line (eight) in rushing touchdowns with six.
? Godfrey has at least one rushing TD in all three games, including a 1-yard sneak at FIU after he perfectly read the defense, which lacked a nose tackle on the play at the goal line.
? The sophomore now has 16 rushing touchdowns in just 17 games with the Knights, while UCF great Daunte Culpepper had 24 in 44-career games.
1) Daunte Culpepper - 24 TDS in 44 GP
2) Jeff Godfrey - 16 TDS in 17 GP
? In the 30-3 victory over Boston College, Godfrey had 13 carries for 69 yards. He rushed for a first down on four of those attempts, while reaching the endzone on two more.
MORE ON THE QUARTERBACK
? Godfrey set a career-high with 20 completions as he went 20-for-25 for 187 yards and no interceptions vs. Boston College. He has thrown for at least 100 yards in 13-consecutive games including 181 at FIU Sept. 17.
? The signal-caller hooked up with nine-different teammates on at least one pass completion vs. the Eagles, and eight different receivers against the Panthers.
? After UCF suffered a loss last year, Godfrey bounced back to lead the Knights to a victory in their next game.
-Godfrey's Three Performances Coming Off a Loss
at Buffalo 9/11/10 - 15-for-24, 0 INT, 0 TD, 130 YDS
UAB 10/6/10 - 9-for-11, 0 INT, 0 TD, 137 YDS
at Tulane 11/20/10 - 6-for-8, 0 INT, 2 TD, 133 YDS
? His role was limited vs. UAB (42-7) and Tulane (61-14) because the Knights built a huge lead early.
A QUARTET OF 100-YARD RUSHERS
? In 2011, UCF was the only FBS school in the country which returned four players with at least 500 rushing yards in a single-season.
? And the Knights remain in a small group this year as they are one of only six FBS programs which have four or more players with 100 rushing yards or more. Georgia Tech has five, while UCF joins Army, Illinois, Navy and Wyoming with four.
RB Ronnie Weaver - 28-160-1 TD
QB Jeff Godfrey - 39-156-6 TD
RB Brynn Harvey - 29-140-0 TD
RB Latavius Murray - 22-121-3 TD
A BRAND NEW FLOCK OF WIDEOUTS
? UCF's receiving corps was led by three seniors a year ago:
Brian Watters - 47-651-2 TD
Jamar Newsome - 37-616-3 TD
Kamar Aiken - 32-486-2 TD
? Now in 2011, Jeff Godfrey's go-to receivers are Quincy McDuffie and A.J. Guyton along with tight end Adam Nissley. Guyton (102) is the only Knight with at least 30-career receptions, however McDuffie and Nissley are on the verge of career-highs in receptions and yards.
-Jr. WR Quincy McDuffie
2009 - 13 games - 8-126-1 TD
2010 - 14 games - 13-144-2 TD
2011 - 3 games - 13-125-0 TD
-Sr. TE Adam Nissley
2008 - 12 games - 1-12-0 TD
2009 - 13 games - 10-159-0 TD
2010 - 14 games - 6-59-1 TD
2011 - 3 games - 9-140-0 TD
JUST GET INSIDE THE 20
? UCF is tied for first in the nation in converting red-zone chances into points as it is a perfect 16-for-16 inside the 20.
? The Knights have produced a touchdown on 12 of those trips.
? While 26 total programs have scored points on 100 percent of their adventures into the red zone, UCF and Stanford lead all schools with 16 overall drives inside the 20 (both schools have 12 touchdowns and four field goals).
? By comparison, UCF's opponents are just 2-for-4 in the redzone with only one touchdown.
Defense Notes
CONSISTENTLY AT THE TOP
? Ranking first in C-USA in all five major defensive categories (rushing, passing, total, scoring and passing efficiency), UCF also sits pretty high in the entire country in those statistical groups as well.
-Passing Defense
1) UCF - 93.67 yards per game
2) Kansas State - 100.00
3) Michigan State - 104.33
- Total Defense
1) Kansas State - 164.00 yards per game
2) UCF - 166.00
3) Alabama - 170.00
-Passing Efficiency Defense
1) Kansas State - 58.76 rating
2) Alabama - 62.60
3) UCF - 74.09
-Scoring Defense
1) Kansas State - 3.50 points per game
2) Alabama - 6.00
3) UCF - 6.67
-Rushing Defense
1) Florida - 30.67 yards per game
...
12) Rutgers - 70.00
13) UCF - 72.33
? UCF, Kansas State, Western Michigan, Texas Tech, Navy and Temple are the lone six schools that have not allowed a passing touchdown in 2011.
? Of teams which have played three games, Western Kentucky (24) and San Diego State (29) have surrendered fewer completions than the Knights (35).
? C-USA scoring defense leaders:
1) UCF - 20 points
2) Southern Miss - 49
3) Rice 56 (two games played)
EVEN MORE HIGH MARKS
? Three weeks into the regular season, the UCF defense leads C-USA in a league-high eight defensive categories. For more details on how the 2011 defense stacks up against former UCF defensive units during the Bright House Networks Stadium era (2007-present), click on the PDF version of the game notes.
A WILD ANIMAL
? Last season's starting running back, Jonathan Davis is enjoying life as one of UCF's starting outside linebackers.
? Davis was the state of Georgia's 4A Defensive Player of the Year as a senior for Tucker High School, and it is showing this year for the Knights' defense. He is currently tied with middle linebacker Josh Linam with 18 tackles.
? More impressively, Davis is seventh in the nation with 6.0 tackles for loss as he has notched 2.0 TFLs in each of UCF's three games.
THE STREAK IS OVER, BUT IT'S STILL IMPRESSIVE
? The Knights' defense went a school-record 14-straight quarters without allowing a touchdown before FIU got into the endzone in the third quarter Sept. 17. However that drive started on the UCF-8 after a fumble.
? Kansas State (one), UCF (two), Alabama (two) and Texas Tech (two) are the only four schools which have surrendered two touchdowns or less this year. But one of those touchdowns the Knights permitted was on a fumble recovery, so only the defenses of KSU and UCF have given up just one touchdown all season.
? In the previous five games, opponents have scored only 33 points on the Black and Gold.