Nov. 7, 2015
Final Stats | Notes
Tulsa - Images by UCF Knights
TULSA, Okla. (UCFKnights.com) - With just under nine minutes left in the game Saturday afternoon at H.A. Chapman Stadium, UCF trailed Tulsa 31-23 and forced a punt. The Knights muffed the punt and Tulsa recovered. Three plays and 44 yards later, the Golden Hurricane was in the end zone, taking a 15-point lead, en route to a 45-30 victory over UCF.
Tulsa's Michael Mudoh capped it for his squad, returning an interception 86 yards for a score with 3:31 remaining. Jordan Franks hauled in a touchdown pass for the Knights with just more than one minute remaining to account for the final score.
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"Two costly turnovers there in the fourth quarter or who knows what the outcome could have been," UCF interim head coach Danny Barrett said. "That (muffed punt) was one that got away from us. We had a chance, eight minutes to go in the fourth quarter. That's as close as we've been all year, especially on the road."
Prior to the muffed punt, UCF had momentum on its side, thanks to a strong third-quarter showing.
Three consecutive third-quarter takeaways led to 17 unanswered points and got the Knights back in the game. Brendin Straubel picked off Tulsa QB Dane Evans. The offense then went 71 yards in nine plays, capped by a Taj McGowan 2-yard run to pay dirt, trimming the Knights' deficit to 24-10. It was McGowan's first career touchdown. Straubel forced a fumble on the ensuing kickoff, which UCF turned into a field goal to make it 24-13. A Chequan Burkett interception resulted in a Justin Holman-to-Tre'Quan Smith 11-yard touchdown pass, which left UCF down by just four, 24-20, heading into the fourth quarter.
"Our guys responded in the second half and made it a game," Barrett said. "You look at the effort that was put forth, you look at some of the things we got corrected from the week before, I think we've got a chance to in these last two games to come out with some W's."
Tulsa took a 31-20 lead early in the fourth quarter. But the Knights pulled back within one score, 31-23, on a 43-yard Matthew Wright field goal with 9:32 remaining.
Tulsa jumped out to a 7-0 lead midway through the first quarter. Evans found Conner Floyd for a 36-yard touchdown pass. The Knights got on the scoreboard with less than two minutes left in the first when Matthew Wright hit a 37-yard field goal. The Golden Hurricane increased its lead to 14-3 on the final offensive play of the first quarter. Evans and Floyd hooked up for a second time, this one from 12 yards out to make it 14-3.
Tulsa added 10 points in the second quarter on a Ramadi Warren 5-yard run and a Redford Jones field goal. The Golden Hurricane led 24-3 at the intermission.
Fab Freshman
- Freshman wide receiver Tre'Quan Smith tallied seven receptions for 131 yards.
- It was the first 100-yard receiving game since D'erren Wilson and Chris Johnson both hit the century mark at Tulane earlier this season.
- Smith now needs just one reception and 13 receiving yards to set the UCF single-season freshman records in both categories.
D is for Domenic
- Senior middle linebacker Domenic Spencer had a busy afternoon in Tulsa.
- He recorded 20 total tackles, with six solo stops and 14 assisted stops.
- Spencer ranks first on the team with 84 total tackles for the season.
Straubel Steps Up
- Straubel, a fifth-year senior, saw his first significant action on defense in Saturday's game. His third-quarter interception and forced fumble sparked a 17-point spurt for the Knights.
- He finished with three tackles and one interception that was returned for 15 yards.
Story by Andy Seeley; Photos by Brad Helton