What Does Does USF Firing Jeff Scott Mean for UCF?
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The enemy is down. Time for the UCF Knights to pounce.
The USF Bulls are now without a true head coach, as Jeff Scott has been canned. While by all accounts a good man, he should have been fired. The Bulls are 1-8 overall and 0-5 in the American Athletic Conference. That’s just this season.
Through three years, Scott provided a 4-26 record, meaning USF won 13.3% of its games. As it relates to the Knights, two points about what this means for them moving forward.
First point, USF is in disarray. When UCF goes to play at USF on Nov. 26, it’s all business. Take to the field and execute. Do not allow the poor season by the Bulls, or Scott’s dismissal, to lead to any form of a letdown.
Take the Bulls seriously. Honestly, it should be a blowout for UCF if the players and coaches are tuned in to the last meeting between the two rivals until…well, whenever they do finally decide to meet again (assuming the rivalry continues at all. Who knows?).
That’s just reality. Off the gridiron, there’s another chance for head coach Gus Malzahn, as well as his coaching and recruit staffs, to improve the UCF Football program.
The second point is straight forward. The Knights should dominate the Bulls on the recruiting trail. That’s even the case with prospects in and near Tampa and St. Petersburg.
USF has gone a combined 15-40 (27.3%) during the past five seasons, so it’s not just like Scott was the lone reason for USF’s failures. Recruits that are learning about USF and UCF have not seen a single successful season for the Bulls, while the Knights are ranked in the Associated Press Top 25 and headed to another quality bowl game before joining the Big XII Conference in July of 2023.
Those facts mean the Knights should hammer the Bulls for recruits. Last year, UCF landed Xavier Townsend and TJ Bullard from Tampa (Fla.) Berkeley Prep. There's reason to believe continued success will be possible.
UCF has already scouted Tampa hard for 2023, 2024, and even 2025 prospects. Some recruits from the greater Tampa and St. Petersburg areas hold offers from the Knights, too. USF’s failures will make enemy territory easier to pilfer top prospects.
The Knights have a chance to take advantage of the Bulls’ failures. Time to make it happen, on and off the gridiron.
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