Any football coach worth his salt had to love the X-and-O possibilities Saturday when UCF traveled to Philadelphia to face Temple.
The Owls had allowed 421 rushing yards the previous Saturday against South Florida (on 73 rushing attempts), outrageously large figures for any level of football. And that had to leave now-fully-healthy Knight running back Isaiah Bowser salivating a bit about his chances.
Yet UCF head coach Gus Malzahn had to think Temple would change something about its defensive approach
"Offense, get ready to adjust," he told his players Saturday morning at the team hotel. "They gave up 400 yards rushing last week, and I promise you there's going to be a new wrinkle. It may take us a series or two to figure out exactly what they're doing, but we will adjust as we go.
"Offense, it's time to break out. Our freshman quarterback has been getting better every single week. What break out means is hitting one or two of those shots--and it will change the whole complexion of the deal."
So Bowser did exactly what he needed to do (83 rushing yards in the first half), rookie quarterback Mikey Keene had a career day, the UCF defense came within a minute of a shutout—and the Knights recorded their first road win of 2021 in comfortable fashion.
The final score was 49-7.
UCF allowed a touchdown or less in consecutive games for the first time since 2014.
And all the sudden Malzahn's plan to treat the second half of the season as its own entity is looking like gold.
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"Defense, play with an edge," Malzahn reminded his charges on that side of the bowl in that Saturday morning meeting.
"We're getting to the point where we're really good defensively, I can confirm that. But we've got to disrupt the quarterback
"Physically get after these guys—I challenged you on that a couple of weeks ago, that we've got to be more physical. And we've done that, not just the offensive and defensive linemen. Just impose our will on these guys.
"Another key is championship mindset—it's that time of year. There will be ups and downs and I can't tell you exactly how it's going to be.
"We're probably going to get the best version of their team. But I don't really care--it's about us. It's about us doing what we do—being disciplined, no selfish penalties, hustling off the field.
"We need to be the team that's getting better. I've said this to you the last few weeks. Very few teams do that this time of year—we need to be the exception.
"Let's get our first road victory today, and let's have fun."
Maybe Malzahn had an inkling of what the day would provide for Keene and his receiving corps.
"Our offense is fixing to take that next step. I can't wait to watch you play today," he said in the locker room just prior to kickoff.
"We're the team that's getting better."
The UCF defense set the tone quickly with a fourth-down Justin Hodges sack to end Temple's first possession—then Bowser's 11-yard scoring run (after another of his 11-yard runs began the drive) made it 7-0.
The Knights' next chance with the football turned into its longest scoring drive of 2021 (5:19 on 10 plays covering 80 yards). Bowser contributed 32 of those yards on the ground and caught a pass as well for another eight. Tight end Alec Holler found the pylon from 13 yards out to make it 14-0.
Keene threw an interception with less than two minutes until halftime—but intended receiver Johnny Richardson knocked the ball loose, Brandon Johnson recovered and three plays later Johnson's 18-yard grab in the end zone made it 21-0. Johnson's eight TD catches in 2021 lead the American Athletic Conference and rank seventh nationally.
The Knights posted a 10-3 advantage in second-period first downs and limited the Owls to 54 second-period yards.
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"Do not let up," Malzahn yelled at halftime. "We're the team that's gonna get better. So have your game face on.
"Let's put these guys away."
If Temple had any thoughts of a comeback, UCF flushed them almost immediately.
Holler found himself wide open streaking down the middle of the field—and a 33-yard fling from Keene made it 28-0 less than three minutes into the second half.
Temple fumbled the ball away on its first play of the third period—and Keene responded in a single play with a toss to Ryan O'Keefe for 12 yards to paydirt.
It was 35-0 less than three minutes into the second half--and the romp was on.
Keene completed all six of his third-period throws for 133 yards. The Knights outgained the Owls 182-27 in the third quarter and led 42-0 after 45 minutes after Keene again found O'Keefe alone, this time for 46 yards and six points.
The Knights substituted liberally throughout the final period. Johnny Richardson added one more rushing score—and the lone Temple points came on its longest play of the afternoon in the final half-minute.
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"How about that defense?" inquired Malzahn to a roaring UCF locker room.
"How about the offense?
"I told you we were that close to breaking out and we did that today
"And how about those special teams?
"It is official—we're one of the few teams in the college football that's getting better."
Keene's career-best 229 aerial yards featured five TD throws (that matched his entire 2021 total before Saturday) and solid 15-of-21 accuracy. Even more noteworthy in Malzahn's mind was UCF's seven-of-12 conversion rate on third down.
The Knight defense accounted for four sacks, six tackles for loss, five passes broken up and three forced fumbles—and suddenly UCF is ranked 16th nationally in turnovers gained this season (16). Quadric Bullard is now tied for the national lead with his three fumble recoveries.
Malzahn may have wondered where his team stood after allowing 56 points at Cincinnati and enduring a laundry list of injuries—leaving him little choice but to approach the second half as a start-from-scratch plan.
Now the Knights play three of their final four games at home.
That, combined with added doses of confidence for Keene and the UCF defense, gives Malzahn's second season a legitimate chance.