Game Notes | Depth Chart
UCF concluded its regular-season non-conference slate with a 3-1 record and will welcome SMU to FBC Mortgage Stadium to open American Athletic Conference play. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 5 on ESPN2.
GAME INFORMATION
Date: Wednesday, Oct. 5
Time: 7 p.m.
TV: ESPN2
Radio: FM 96.9/AM 740 The Game
Spanish Radio: UCFKnights.com/Twitch
Live Stats: click here
A UCF WIN WOULD...
• Be UCF's ninth win over the SMU in the all-time series
• Give the Knights a win in their AAC opener and their third home win of the season
• Give Head Coach Gus Malzahn his first win over SMU in his second meeting against the program
• Be better than a loss
SERIES BREAKDOWN
| Overall | UCF leads, 8-2 |
| in Orlando | UCF leads, 5-0 |
| Last Meeting | L, 55-28 (11/13/21) |
| Streak | SMU won 1 |
KNIGHT NOTES
• UCF is one of only seven FBS teams to play five of their first six 2022 games in their home stadium. The Knights played South Carolina State and Louisville at home, went on the road to play FAU and now play three straight home games versus Georgia Tech, SMU and Temple.
• The Knights defense has been stellar this season, as UCF leads the nation in red zone defense. Opponents have scored on just 40% of their trips to the red zone, converting on 6-of-15 attempts. The Knights have only allowed three touchdowns in the red zone in 15 trips for opponents.
• UCF is also among the top 10 nationally in scoring defense, limiting teams to just 13.5 points per game to rank eighth nationally. The Knights have not allowed a team to score more than 20 points in a game this season and have not allowed a touchdown in the fourth quarter. Dating back to last season, UCF has not allowed a fourth-quarter touchdown since its last meeting with SMU on Nov. 13, 2021.
• Following the first four games of the season, UCF is one of just two FBS teams (Oregon) to surpass 600 yards of total offense in more than one game this season. The Knights recorded a season-high 653 yards in the road win at Florida Atlantic and also tallied 605 yards in the season opener against South Carolina State.
• UCF's 653 yards of total offense against Florida Atlantic are the seventh most by an FBS team in a single game this season.
• UCF is averaging 275.8 rushing yards per game, which ranks third nationally and leads the AAC. Fifth-year running back Isaiah Bowser is 19th in nationally with five rushing touchdowns, which is second in the conference. Dating back to the bowl game last year, Bowser has at least one rushing touchdown in four of his last five games, scoring seven total during that span.
ABOUT SMU
SMU is in its first season under head coach Rhett Lashlee, after two seasons as the Miami Hurricanes' offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. Lashlee played quarterback for UCF head coach Gus Malzahn at Shiloh Christian School. Lashlee worked with Malzahn at Arkansas, Arkansas State and Auburn.
The Mustangs are off to a 2-2 start to the season and Saturday's game will be the conference opener for both teams. In its last outing, SMU was defeated by TCU at home, 42-34. SMU and UCF are two of the nation's top offenses with both tallying 103 first downs this season to rank 18th in the nation and tie for the AAC lead along with Tulsa.
Wednesday's game will be the 11th all-time meeting between the programs, but the first in Orlando since Oct. 6, 2018, when UCF earned a 48-20 win against SMU. The Knights started fast in that game, scoring 21 points in the first quarter and never trailed en route to the win. UCF rushed for 256 yards and passed for 285 to finish the game with 541 yards of total offense.
UCF leads the all-time series, 8-2, headlined by a perfect 5-0 record at home against the Mustangs. SMU won the last meeting between the programs, as the Mustangs put together a strong first half and held off UCF in the second half.
NO. 1 NATIONALLY
The Knights defense has been stellar this season, as UCF leads the nation in red zone defense. Opponents have scored on just 40% of their trips to the red zone, converting on 6-of-15 attempts. The Knights have only allowed three touchdowns in the red zone in 15 trips for opponents.
HOME SWEET HOME
UCF is one of only seven FBS teams to play five of their first six 2022 games in their home stadium. The Knights played South Carolina State and Louisville at home, went on the road to play FAU and now play three straight home games versus Georgia Tech, SMU and Temple.
The others to play five of the first six at home are Auburn (only road game is at Georgia after five at home), Florida (at Tennessee), Ohio State (at Michigan State after five at home), Pittsburgh (at Western Michigan), Syracuse (at Connecticut) and UCLA ( at Colorado).
This is only the fifth time—and first since 1993—that UCF has played five of its first six at home. The Knights competed at the FCS level in '93 when East Carolina was the lone road game and UCF won all five at home. UCF also played five of the first six at home in 1985, 1987 and 1988 while competing at the NCAA Division II level.
HOME-FIELD ADVANTAGE
UCF's all-time record of 75-23 (.765) at FBC Mortgage Stadium ranks in the top 15 in the nation for best win percentage in a current home stadium.
Since 2017, the Knights are 32-3 in home games at FBC Mortgage Stadium.
The Knights finished last season undefeated at home, marking the seventh time in UCF's FBS era, the ninth overall, and the fourth time in the last five years.
Only 22 teams in the nation completed the 2021 regular season undefeated at home.
UCF at Home
2017 (7-0)
W—Florida International (8-31-17)
W—Memphis
W—East Carolina
W—Austin Peay
W—Connecticut
W—#22 South Florida
W—#16 Memphis (AAC Championship)
2018 (8-0)
W—South Carolina State
W—Florida Atlantic
W—Pittsburgh
W—SMU
W—Temple
W—Navy
W—#19 Cincinnati
W—Memphis (AAC Championship)
2019 (6-0)
W—Florida A&M
W—Stanford
W—Connecticut
W—East Carolina
W—Houston
W—South Florida
2020 (2-2)
L—Tulsa (34-26, 10-3-20, ended 21-game home win streak)
W—Tulane
W—Temple
L--#7 Cincinnati (36-33, 11-21-20)
2021 (7-0)
W—Boise State
W—Bethune-Cookman
W—East Carolina
W—Memphis
W—Tulane
W—Connecticut
W—South Florida
2022 (2-1)
W—South Carolina State
L—Louisville, 20-14, 9-9-22, ended eight-game home win streak)
W—Georgia Tech
BULLARD'S SPECIAL
Junior safety Quadric Bullard logged his second blocked punt return for a touchdown this season in the second quarter of the win against Georgia Tech. After Jarvis Ware tallied the block, Bullard scooped up the football and raced 29 yards for the touchdown.
Credited statistically as a punt return touchdown, Bullard is the only player in the country with two punt returns for a touchdown.
In the season opener, he recorded the first blocked punt for UCF since Sept. 7, 2019 with his block in the fourth quarter against South Carolina State in the season opener. He then recovered the punt in the endzone for the first punt returned for a touchdown for UCF since Nov. 12, 2016 against Cincinnati.
It was Bullard's first career touchdown.
COLTON BOOMER
In just his second career game, Colton Boomer turned in a career performance in the win over Georgia Tech. The freshman was a perfect 4-for-4 on field-goal attempts and was 1-for-1 on PATs. His four field goals in a single game match the UCF program record and is the most in a game since 2016. Boomer is the first Knights freshman to accomplish the feat since Matt Prater in 2002.
Boomer's first field goal gave UCF a 3-0 lead in the first quarter from 21 yards and his second was a 31-yarder in the second quarter. His third field goal was a 37-yard kick and his final kick of the evening was a career-best 43-yard field goal. Boomer is now a perfect 6-for-6 on the year, after connecting on both of his attempts in his collegiate debut at Florida Atlantic.
RUSHING ATTACK
UCF rushed for 284 yards in the win against Georgia Tech and the Knights are third in the country in rushing offense, averaging 275.8 per game. UCF has rushed for 200 or more yards in all four games this season and has accomplished the feat in five consecutive games dating back to the win over Florida in last year's bowl game.
UCF Rushing Totals By Game
South Carolina State - 49 attempts, 297 yards
Louisville - 38 attempts, 208 yards
at Florida Atlantic - 56 attempts, 314 yards
Georgia Tech - 56 attempts, 284 yards
FOURTH QUARTER DEFENSE
UCF has not allowed a touchdown in the fourth quarter of a game this season, as the Knights are outscoring opponents, 35-3, in the quarter. The last time UCF allowed a touchdown in the fourth quarter was last year's game against SMU on Nov. 13, 2021.
Dating back to the SMU game from 2021, UCF has not allowed a fourth-quarter touchdown in 105 minutes of action in the fourth quarter.
RICHARDSON ECLIPSES 1,000 YARDS
Junior running back Johnny Richardson entered the Georgia Tech game just 17 yards shy of 1,000 career rushing yards. He rushed for 33 yards in the win over the Yellow Jackets to own 1,016 for his career.
Richardson tallied 65 yards as a freshman, 733 last season and has recorded 218 yards this season.
UCF IN AAC OPENERS
Since joining the American Athletic Conference in 2013, UCF has compiled a 6-3 record in conference openers. Last season, the Knights opened league play at Navy, as the squad came up short against the Midshipmen, 34-30.
In its final year in the American before joining the Big 12 Conference in July 2023, UCF will look to close out its tenure in the AAC similar to how it started in 2013, by winning the conference title.