Georgia Tech Football: Three Offensive Players on UCF to Watch in Week Four Matchup
Georgia Tech is going to travel to the Bouncehouse in Orlando to take on UCF in week four and it is going to be an interesting matchup. UCF is a different team from an offensive standpoint than when they faced Georgia Tech in 2020, Geoff Collin's second year with the program and that is one of the many angles of the game that make it so interesting.
In 2020, UCF was led by head coach Josh Heupel and quarterback Dillon Gabriel. Now, Heupel is the head coach at Tennessee and Gabriel is the quarterback at Oklahoma. UCF hired former Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn after Heupel's departure and that signaled a move from the pass-heavy, air-raid, type of offense to one that focuses on running the ball more.
UCF's quarterback competition is going to grab the headlines, but whoever is the quarterback is going to have a deep array of weapons at his disposal. So who are the UCF players on offense that Georgia Tech should be ready for in week four?
Let's take a look.
Johnny Richardson- Running Back
UCF Running Back Johnny Richardson
Malzahn loved having deep backfields at Auburn to wear defenses down as the game went on and he has something similar, yet different at UCF. UCF does not have a big, bruising tailback that is going to wear out defenders, but they have guys that are home-run threats any time that they touch the ball and one of those guys is Johnny Richardson.
Richardson is a smaller back in stature at 5-7 170 LBS, but he gained over 700 yards on the ground last season and averaged 7.0 yards per carry. He is a home-run hitter from anywhere on the field and is dangerous in the open field. Add in that he had over 200 yards receiving and averaged nine yards per catch, you have a multi-purpose back that Georgia Tech should be game-planning heavily for.
Mark-Antony Richards- Running Back
UCF Running Back Mark-Antony Richards
Richardson is not the only home-run hitter in the Golden Knight's backfield. His running mate, Mark-Antony Richards, has blazing speed and is also a threat to score from anywhere on the field. He had over 300 yards rushing for UCF last season and averaged over six yards per carry with five touchdowns as well.
Having two guys in the backfield that can take it the distance as either a runner or receiver makes this offense dangerous. While the passing game is a question mark heading into the season, UCF is going to rely on their big-time players at running back to help shoulder the load early in the season.
Tackling in space is going to be vital facing a backfield of Richardson and Richards. This is going to be a huge test for the defense in week four.
Ryan O'Keefe- Wide Receiver
UCF Wide Receiver Ryan O'Keefe
Whoever wins the starting job at quarterback for UCF is going to have a reliable target to throw to in last year's leading receiver Ryan O'Keefe. O'Keefe is another player on the UCF offense that might seem a little undersized, but he plays great in space and is a threat whether as a receiver or as a runner.
O'Keefe is going to be relied upon pretty heavily at this point in the season because UCF is going to have plenty of new faces at receiver. Knowing where he is lined up is going to be key for the Georgia Tech defense and making sure there are no coverage busts in the secondary that would allow the dangerous UCF wide receiver to break a play open.
Overview
Tackling on defense is going to be vital in this game for Georgia Tech. UCF is not going to wear you down with physicality, they are going to try and break a game open with big plays and speed. These three players are the most explosive on the team and stopping them will be key to Georgia Tech's defense having a good day.
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