ORLANDO – The winningest class in UCF history went out with a bang on Senior Knight in front of over 45,000 fans at Spectrum Stadium, defeating rival South Florida by a score of 34-7 in the annual War On I-4 on Black Friday.
"We talked about finishing - finishing the play tonight, finishing the game the right way," UCF head coach Josh Heupel said. "We talked about our seniors finishing the regular season the right way. To finish (with an undefeated) home record, again, in this fashion was important to us as well.
With 40 wins in four years, it's the most victories for UCF in any four-season span, including going 13-0 in 2017, 12-1 in 2018, and now 9-3 in 2019 heading into an upcoming bowl appearance.
The Knights (9-3, 6-2) got going early, scoring on the first drive for the ninth time this season, and they never looked back.
Dillon Gabriel led UCF 65 yards in 2:33 and finished off the opening drive with a 19-yard touchdown to Gabriel Davis. The duo hooked up again in the second quarter on a 32-yard score, as the Gabriel-to-Gabriel combination was in full effect.
The freshman quarterback finished 23-of-39 for 270 yards with two scores. His now 3,393 passing yards on the season are the fifth most by any UCF quarterback and his 27 passing touchdowns are the fourth most in a season by a Knight signal-caller.
The receiver, who totaled 106 yards and two touchdowns on eight catches, finished the regular season with 1,286 yards, more than any other UCF receiver in history. Davis now has 23 receiving touchdowns in his career, tied for the second most in UCF history.
As effective as the offense was, the defense was even more impressive, holding the Bulls to just 250 yards. It was the least amount of total yards by a UCF opponent all season.
The Knights forced three turnovers, including two picks, and kept up pace with their nation-leading tackles for loss average. UCF recorded nine tackles for loss in the game after coming in averaging 9.4, with nine different Knights recording at least a half a TFL.
"I thought our defense was suffocating the entire night," Heupel said. "The defensive line changed the line of scrimmage; fewest yards – I think – we've given up all year long. (They) did a great job in third down situations as well."
UCF rushed for 232 yards on the ground, led by Adrian Killins Jr.'s 115. It was the senior's second 100-yard game of the season and his first-quarter score gave him 34 total touchdowns in his career, which ranks fourth all-time at UCF.
The Knights, now 9-3 overall, will await the announcement of bowl destinations. It will mark UCF's fourth straight bowl appearance, the first time the program has been to four consecutive bowl games.
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