GAME INFORMATION
Date: Saturday, Oct. 12
Time: 3:30 p.m. ET
TV: ESPN2
TV Talents: Mike Monaco, Kirk Morrison, Dawn Davenport
Radio: FM 96.9/AM 740 The Game
Radio Talents: Marc Daniels, Gary Parris, Scott Adams
Spanish Radio: UCFKnights.com, YouTube.com/UCFKnights
Live Stats: click here
A WIN WOULD...
- Give UCF its third consecutive win over Cincinnati and sixth all-time against the Bearcats
- Give the Knights their second Big 12 win of the season and first at home
- Give UCF its 299th all-time win as a program
- Give UCF head coach Gus Malzahn his third win against Cincinnati
- Be better than a loss
FIRST AND 10
• For the 10th consecutive season, UCF and Cincinnati will meet on the gridiron. Saturday’s matchup is slated for a 3:30 p.m. kickoff on ESPN2 from FBC Mortgage Stadium. Mike Monaco will handle play-by-play, while Kirk Morrison will be the analyst and Dawn Davenport is the sideline reporter.
• The Bearcats are coming off a bye week, as UCF will play a team coming off an open week for the second consecutive game.
• Saturday’s matchup will feature the Big 12 Conference’s top-two offenses, as the Knights lead the league and rank 11th nationally with 489.2 yards per game and the Bearcats are 12th in the nation with 485.0.
• Last season, UCF earned its first Big 12 win against Cincinnati, 28-26, when the teams met at Nippert Stadium on Nov. 4. Running back RJ Harvey rushed for 164 and three touchdowns, both career highs at the time, to lead the Knights to the victory.
• The Black and Gold have won the last two meetings against Cincinnati, claiming a 25-21 win against the 20th-ranked Bearcats in their last trip to FBC Mortgage Stadium on Oct. 29, 2022.
• The Knights have now rushed for 1,412 yards with 15 touchdowns on the ground through the first five games of the season. The Knights are fourth in the nation with 282.4 rushing yards per game, which is nearly 20 more than the next-closest Power Four Conference team (Tennessee 267.2).
• UCF is the only team in the nation that has rushed for at least 140 yards in 17 of its last 18 games, dating back to last season. During that span, the Knights have rushed for 200 or more yards 12 times and 250 plus six times.
• UCF leads the nation in explosive running plays, as the Knights have recorded 49 rushing plays of at least 10 yards. Additionally, the Black and Gold own 19 explosive passing plays of at least 20 yards this season.
• In contrast, UCF’s defense has been stout against the run, allowing just 90.0 rushing yards per game. That mark leads the Big 12 and is the 14th-fewest nationally. The Knights have yielded just 13 rushing plays of 10 yards or more - the fewest in the league.
• Since the start of the 2017 season, UCF has accumulated 68 wins, tied for the 11th-most nationally by an FBS program and the most by a team from the state of Florida. The Knights went 13-0 in 2017, 12-1 in 2018, 10-3 in 2019, 6-4 in the Covid-shortened 2020 season, 9-4 in 2021, 9-5 in 2022 and 6-7 last season. The Knights join Alabama, Georgia, Clemson, Ohio State, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Michigan, Appalachian State, LSU, Oregon and Penn State as the only programs to win at least 68 games since 2017.
FIRST TWO FOR REDDICK
Redshirt freshman kicker Grant Reddick was ready when his number was called on Saturday against Florida, as the Orlando native was a perfect 2-for-2 on field goal attempts and converted his only PAT attempt.
He split the uprights from 27 yards out on his first career field goal attempt in the first quarter of the contest and he made a 37-yard field goal in the third quarter.
SAME MATCHUP, NEW SIDELINE
UCF linebacker Deshawn Pace and running back Myles Montgomery have played in the UCF-Cincinnati series previously, but Saturday’s matchup will be the first time both players are on the Knights sideline. Last year, Pace led the Bearcats defense in the game with nine tackles, including two tackles for loss with two quarterback hurries and a pass breakup. Montgomery had six rushes for 16 yards in the contest.
CINCINNATI TIES FOR HINSHAW, INGRAM
A pair of UCF coaches have ties to Cincinnati, as co-offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Darin Hinshaw was the passing game coordinator at Cincinnati from 2013-15 and defensive ends/rush coach Kenny Ingram was the defensive line coach for the Bearcats in 2015 and 2016.
In three seasons under Cincinnati head coach Tommy Tuberville, Hinshaw helped guide the Bearcats to a bowl game each year, with Cincinnati collecting 25 combined wins. In 2013, the Bearcats led the American Athletic Conference in total offense (472.1) and rushing offense (168.3). Those marks were surpassed in 2015—as Cincinnati amassed 537.8 yards per game. The Bearcats ranked sixth in the nation in passing offense (359.9) and total offense in 2015. The 2014 Cincinnati squad won a share of the AAC championship along with UCF and Memphis, each with 7-1 records against league opponents.
Ingram led a defensive front that improved 15 spots in the NCAA FBS rush defense rankings, 16 spots in scoring defense, 58 spots in team tackles for loss and 24 spots in sacks. He also coached a pair of All-AAC defensive linemen during his tenure with the Bearcats, Cortez Broughton and Silverberry Mouhon.
EXPLOSIVE PLAYS
UCF leads the Big 12 Conference in explosive running plays, as the Knights have recorded 49 rushing plays of at least 10 yards. Additionally, the Black and Gold own 19 explosive passing plays of at least 20 yards this season.
Running back RJ Harvey has logged 20 explosive rushing plays to rank second in the Big 12, while quarterback KJ Jefferson is just outside the top 10 with 10. Jefferson has 19 passing plays of 20 or more yards to tie for the eighth most in the conference.
Wide receiver Kobe Hudson’s eight receiving plays of at least 20 yards are the seventh most among league players.
UCF has run 32 plays that have amassed 20+ yards, tied for the third most in the Big 12 behind Texas Tech (38), Oklahoma State (33) and tied with Baylor (32).
Defensively, the Knights have yielded just 11 rushing plays of 10 yards or more - tied for the fewest in the league.
RUNNING WILD
After ranking among the nation’s top 10 in rushing offense the past two seasons, UCF is in the midst of another strong year on the ground in 2024. UCF has now rushed for 1,412 yards with 15 touchdowns on the ground through the first five games of the season.
The Knights are fourth in the nation with 282.4 rushing yards per game, which is nearly 20 more than the next-closest Power Four Conference team (Tennessee 267.2).
The Black and Gold rushed for 454 yards in the season opener against New Hampshire, the second most in program history. Additionally, UCF’s 8.4 rushing yards per carry were the second most in a single game in program history.
The Knights were fourth nationally in rushing offense with 228.2 rushing yards per game last season. UCF rushed for 200 or more yards in nine of its 13 games in 2023 and has picked up where it left off, rushing for at least 200 yards in three of its five games of 2024.
HARVEY CLIMBING THE PROGRAM RECORD BOOKS
UCF running back RJ Harvey tied the program record and set a career high with four rushing touchdowns in the Knights’ 45-14 victory against Sam Houston on Sept. 7 and has continued to etch his name in the Knights’ record books. The Orlando native finished with 126 rushing yards on 19 carries, finding the end zone four times – the first UCF player to do so since Isaiah Bowser in 2021.
After scoring a rushing touchdown at Florida last weekend, Harvey has taken over sole possession of fourth (30) on UCF’s career list. UCF Hall of Famer Latavius Murray is third on the list with 37.
In addition, Harvey has 2,815 career rushing yards to rank fourth all-time behind Willie English with 3,131.
BARR TABBED CAMPBELL TROPHY SEMIFINALIST FOR SECOND CONSECUTIVE YEAR
For the second consecutive year, UCF linebacker Ethan Barr has been named a semifinalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy. The award recognizes an individual as the absolute best in the country for his combined academic success, football performance and exemplary leadership, and the candidates also comprise the pool of nominees for the 2024 NFF National Scholar-Athlete Awards Presented by Fidelity Investments.
Barr, who joined the Knights in January after spending his first four seasons at Vanderbilt and earning his undergraduate degree in human and organizational development, is currently pursuing a master’s degree in educational leadership with a 3.91 grade-point average and has earned all A’s through the first month of this fall’s academic coursework.
MARSHALL NAMED TO JASON WITTEN MAN OF THE YEAR WATCH LIST
UCF senior Marcellus Marshall has been tabbed to the eighth annual Jason Witten Collegiate Man of the Year Watch List. The award is presented annually to student-athletes that demonstrate a record of leadership by exhibiting exceptional courage, integrity and sportsmanship both on and off the field.
Marshall has started all five games for the Knights this season at right guard and has led a stellar offensive line unit that has paved the way for one of the nation’s top rushing offenses.
Voted a team captain prior to the season, Marshall is a vocal team leader and has also displayed his leadership in the community. Most recently, he was heavily involved in UCF’s Childhood Cancer Awareness Game, interacting with the patients and helping them design the helmet decals that wore worn against Sam Houston.