ORLANDO - On the back of its second-consecutive trip to the ITA Indoor Championship, the UCF men’s tennis team is set to defend its ITA Kickoff Weekend title at home for just the second time in program history.
Named as a host site prior to the draft, the Knights will welcome UCLA, Auburn and Duke to the USTA National Campus from January 22-23, 2027, marking the first kickoff weekend hosted in Orlando since 2022.
The billing follows yet another historic campaign for head coach Lloyd Bruce-Burgess and assistant Kareem Allaf, who guided the Black and Gold to the NCAA Super Regional for the second-straight year.
While prior attempts before their reign fell short, in 2025, in their first trip to ITA Kickoff Weekend since 2023, the pair led the Knights to an upset win over hosts No. 6 Arizona in Tucson, booking the program’s first ticket to the ITA Indoor National Championships.
A month later in Waco, UCF pulled off its second top-10 win of the season, toppling the defending champions, No. 4 Ohio State, to advance to the quarterfinals.
This past season, the Knights went on the road once again and took care of business with wins over No. 21 USC and No. 17 Oklahoma to secure their place back in Waco once again.
UCF will meet Duke in the opening round before playing the winner of No. 19 UCLA and No. 25 Auburn in the second round.
Specific dates and times for ITA Kickoff Weekend will be announced at a later date, along with the rest of UCF’s 2027 slate.
ABOUT UCF ATHLETICS
UCF is a proud member of the Big 12 Conference. Our mission is to positively transform the lives of our students academically, athletically, and personally through a nationally competitive intercollegiate athletics program that enhances the reputation and visibility of the University. We strive to be Florida's preeminent athletic program, representing UCF and our community with distinction on the national stage as "Orlando's Hometown Team". To learn more about UCF and Athletics, please visit our websites at www.ucf.edu and www.ucfknights.com.