Oct. 30, 2011
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By Marc Daniels
UCFAthletics.com
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - One play was all it took. One fake and run brought the much-needed flashback. One race to the end zone was that was needed and Jeff Godfrey took all of us back to 2010. It was 2010 when Godfrey dazzled in many ways. The true freshman did things veteran college quarterbacks were supposed to do. He threw, he ran, he led and he played with a determination that no matter the situation, he and his team would find a way.
That one play was the 29-yard option on the opening drive of UCF's 41-0 homecoming win over Memphis in which Godfrey faked the pitch and streaked past two defenders and outran the rest of the defense to the end zone. It was his first rushing touchdown in four games after his eight in the first four. But it was more than just a great run by a quarterback. It was Godfrey looking like that guy who ran as a weapon last year and it looked like he was having fun again.
Despite the numbers saying his performance was still solid, Godfrey was missing the "it" factor he had after taking over the job last season. He just didn't seem like the same guy. His passes deep floated. His sacks began to mount. He missed hot receivers and big plays were few.
Losing three senior receivers from last year's squad should not go unnoticed. His adjustment took time, but Godfrey seemed to be pressing the last few weeks, but not against Memphis. Against the Tigers, Godfrey was precise and in rhythm. He ran like the rookie he was last year and had fun like the guy who guided his team to a conference title and bowl win last season. Godfrey was 14-of-17 for 200 yards and ran for 97 yards.
Pressure was on the sophomore after Blake Bortles had shown an ability to not just move the ball down the field but had moved himself into position to make the coaches make it clear to Godfrey there was another option.
Godfrey responded. Memphis may have been the perfect opponent to get a quarterback's confidence back. And confidence is something Godfrey will need. UCF embarks on a challenging month with hopes of winning the Conference USA East Division and getting a chance to repeat as conference champs. That challenge can be easier if Godfrey can continue to show flashes of what he did in 2010 as UCF tries to make another title run in 2011.
Knights notes and more: Basketball season is here. The men play an exhibition game on Saturday and the women on Sunday before the real season begins. While much attention for Donnie Jones team is on Marcus Jordan and Keith Clanton, the player who may hold the key to a big season is sophomore Isaiah Sykes. The 6-foot-5 Detroit native showed flashes during his rookie campaign but Sykes may have had the best off season of any Knight player. Now he picks up minutes as a point guard and gives UCF the option of using a big lineup. Sykes ability of breaking the press and driving to the basket might go a long way to for UCF...Baseball coach Terry Rooney's team finished up fall practice with their Black and Gold World Series. Rooney added some solid pitching to a team that should contend in Conference USA. However, my guess is the highlight of Rooney's week was defeating me in another 80s music showdown on my radio show. Series is now even at one. The rubber match will take place before the season begins...A lot of the national college sports media have had fun picking on a certain conference that has been affected by defections while planning expansion. They question that league's ability to survive and whether it will keep an important place in one sport's postseason (can I dance around naming names any more than this?). Remember, that group of national media types do not make decisions that actually matter. They ridicule everything without knowledge of very little. Keep this in mind, the number of broadcast companies bidding for league television rights has increased. NBC, FOX and CBS Sports have all committed resources to expanding their secondary channels and sports outlets. Those networks need programming, especially programming in large television markets. Some leagues with existing television deals do not have the luxury of increasing their media revenue and that will be challenging for their members. Another point in relation to recent NCAA news, the NCAA voted to give conferences the option of increasing scholarship money by $2,000. Remember, that is a conference option. If your conference chooses to not vote in favor of that because the majority of its members cannot afford to, how do coaches handle that question on the recruiting trail?... Final thought: For Halloween, I dressed up like a replay official.
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 Sports Network. Each weekday, Marc hosts The Beat of Sports on ESPN Radio 1080 in Orlando.