Box Score (PDF) | Postgame Notes
MEMPHIS – Headlined by forcing three red zone stops, the 25th-ranked UCF football team earned a hard-fought 35-28 road win at Memphis Saturday afternoon at Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium. The Knights moved to 7-2 on the year and 4-1 in American Athletic Conference (AAC) play, earning the first conference road win of the season, while Memphis falls to 4-5 and 2-4 in league action.
As the nation's top red zone defense, UCF came up big again on Saturday forcing a turnover on downs, interception and a missed field goal. In 36 trips to the red zone for opponents this season, the Knights have only allowed 12 touchdowns (33%).
With the score knotted at 21-21 heading to the fourth quarter, UCF capped a nine-play, 61-yard drive to take a 28-21 lead after quarterback Mikey Keene connected with Kobe Hudson for the second time on the day for a 13-yard touchdown.
On Memphis' next drive, Divaad Wilson picked off quarterback Seth Henigan to give the Knights the ball back with their second turnover of the day to have a chance to add to their lead. It was Wilson's third interception of the season and second interception of the game for UCF.
After the teams traded possessions with both ending in punts, Keene found wide receiver Javon Baker in the back of the endzone for his third touchdown pass of the day, extending the UCF lead to 35-21 following the extra point from Colton Boomer.
The Tigers answered with a six-play, 61-yard drive to cut the deficit to 35-28 after a 14-yard touchdown pass from Henigan to Joe Scates. Needing a few first downs to continue running the clock and retain possession, Alec Holler made one of the biggest plays of the day on third down to keep the drive going. He caught the pass at the UCF 19-yard line, made the first defender miss and then leaped across the line to gain to pick up the first down.
After Memphis used its final timeout, Isaiah Bowser burst through the middle for 19 yards to give UCF another first down and the ability to run out the clock for the win.
After winning the toss and electing to receive, UCF marched down the field on its opening possession to grab a 7-0 lead after a 22-yard touchdown run from RJ Harvey. He took the handoff from Keene and bounced it to the sideline to score his fourth touchdown of the season.
The Tigers countered on their first possession with a 10-play, 75-yard drive to even the score at 7-7 after a seven-yard touchdown run from Brandon Thomas.
UCF's second score of the day came on one of the squad's special plays, as Bowser took the direct snap, faked the run and found wide receiver Stephen Martin in the endzone for the touchdown. It was Bowser's first career passing touchdown and Martin's first career receiving touchdown to put the Knights in front 14-7.
Hudson turned in one of his best performances of the season, catching six passes for 85 yards and a pair of scores. He gave UCF a 21-14 advantage right before halftime, reeling in a 24-yard pass from Keene. It marked the seventh time this season that UCF has led at halftime.
Memphis scored in the third quarter on a one-yard rush from Jevyn Ducker to tie the game at 21-21 heading into the fourth quarter, setting up an awesome finish. It marked the first time this season that UCF has been tied heading into the final quarter.
Keene finished the game 22-for-28 passing for 219 yards with three touchdowns and Harvey led all players with 17 rushes for a career-high 151 yards and a touchdown.
Jason Johnson led the Knights with 13 tackles, the fourth time this season that he has recorded at least 10 tackles in a game. Jeremiah Jean-Baptiste and Corey Thornton each had eight tackles. Davonte Brown recorded his first interception of the season and second of his career, as both picks have come against the Tigers with his first in last year's matchup with Memphis.
UCF will return to action next weekend when the Knights travel to No. 19 Tulane. Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. ET/2:30 p.m. CT on ESPN2 or ESPNU from Yulman Stadium.