ORLANDO – Highlighted by six home matches, the UCF men's soccer team has announced its 2022 regular season schedule. The 14-match slate includes five out-of-conference contests, one of them at Wake Forest, as well as a nine-match conference schedule, including new opponents in the American Athletic Conference for the Knights' final year as part of the conference.
The American added FAU, FIU, UAB and Charlotte in men's soccer ahead of the 2022 season, bringing the league to a total of 10 teams, joining UCF, SMU, South Florida, Temple, Tulsa and Memphis.
"We are excited to reveal the schedule for our 2022 season," said head coach Scott Calabrese. "The American's realignment has made this year's schedule so interesting. The additions of Charlotte, UAB, FIU and FAU will make the conference even more challenging."
All UCF regular season home matches will have kickoff times of 7 p.m. ET., a one hour later shift from previous seasons.
BY THE NUMBERS
8 matches against RPI Top 100 teams
6 regular season home matches
5 matches against in-state foes
4 matches against RPI Top 50 teams
4 matches against new conference members
3 matches against NCAA Tournament teams
THE SCHEDULE
The Knights begin their 2022 campaign with a pair of exhibition matches at home. They'll host the University of Tampa on Aug. 13 before facing Jacksonville on Aug. 17.
UCF will begin the regular season on the road against Wake Forest on Aug. 25 at 8 p.m. The Demon Deacons made it to their seventh-consecutive Sweet 16 in last year's NCAA Tournament before falling to fourth-seeded Notre Dame, a team that was one of the final four at the College Cup. The Knights are 0-3 all-time against Wake Forest but played them close in their last appearance, falling 2-1 on the road in 2019. The Demon Deacons finished 2021 ranked 17th in the United Soccer Coaches Poll.
"Opening up against Wake is always a good way to measure yourself early," said Calabrese. "I think we are all excited to get going."
The Knights will play their home opener on Aug. 29 as they host North Florida. UCF beat the Ospreys 5-0 last season to take an 8-5 all-time series lead. It was the first time since 2016 that the two sides had squared off.
UCF will travel to face another in-state foe, visiting FGCU in Fort Myers on Sep. 2. The Knights beat the Eagles 6-2 last season and have won three straight matches against FGCU.
The Knights return home to host UC Riverside on Sep. 5 in what will be the first meeting in program history between the two sides. The Highlanders finished last season with a 9-7-3 record and a heartbreaking loss in penalty kicks against UC Irvine in the Big West Tournament.
UC Irvine is the next opponent on UCF's schedule as the Knights will travel to the West Coast to face the Anteaters on Sep. 9. It will be the first time since 2012 that the Black and Gold will play a match on the West Coast after losing at Cal 4-1 and beating UC Davis 3-1 in September of that year. UC Irvine fell in the championship match of the Big West Tournament, finishing the year with an 8-8-4 record.
UCF will begin their 10th and final American conference slate on the road against Temple on Sep. 17. The Knights improved to 8-2-2 all-time against the Owls after winning both contests last season. The Black and Gold have won six straight matches against Temple, outscoring them 19-1 over that stretch.
The Knights will pay Memphis a visit on Sep. 24. The two sides split their regular season matchups in 2022 before UCF beat the Tigers 6-0 in The American Championship semifinal.
The Black and Gold will play their first home conference match of the season against one of The American's newest members, hosting FAU on Sep. 30. UCF holds a commanding 23-8-3 lead in the all-time series over the Owls. The two sides haven't played since 2019, a match which saw the Knights earn a 3-2 overtime victory at home.
UCF renews its rivalry with SMU on Oct. 5 in Orlando, the only part of the season in which the Knights play back-to-back home games. The Knights and Mustangs have played in a number of intense matches throughout the years, creating one of the biggest rivalries in college soccer. The Black and Gold won a thrilling 2-1 contest on the road while the Mustangs were ranked 24th in the country but saw SMU spoil senior night later that season.
The Knights will play two straight road matches against new American members FIU and UAB, visiting the Panthers on Oct. 9 followed by a visit to Birmingham on Oct. 14. The trend of playing new conference members continues with a matchup with Charlotte in Orlando on Oct. 22.
UCF will travel to Tulsa for an Oct. 28 contest with the Golden Hurricane, a team they played closely in all three meetings last season. The Knights triumphed in a 3-2 win over the then No. 6 ranked Tulsa squad before falling 2-1 on the road in the regular season finale. The two met again at The American Championship, again being edged 2-1 after Tulsa tallied a goal in the final 10 minutes to take the tournament title.
The regular season concludes with the War On I-4 as long-time rivals South Florida pay a visit on Nov. 2. It's the first time since 1998 that the Knights will play the Bulls in a regular season contest in November. The last six War On I-4 meetings have been won by the road team, a trend the Knights will be looking to snap on Senior Night.
With the four added teams to The American, the league will return to its six-team playoff format, with the top two seeds earning a bye into the semifinals at the host site. The three seed will face the six seed and play the two seed in the semifinals while the four and five seeds will face each other to play the host in the semis. The quarterfinals will be held on Nov. 6 at the site of the three and four seeds, followed by the semifinals on Nov. 10 and the championship match on Nov. 13, all at the home pitch of the No. 1 seed.
TICKETS
Season tickets are on sale now for the 2022 season! Click here to purchase season tickets.
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