B.T.'s Breakdown: Where it All Went Wrong For UCF Against No. 20 Houston
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It is not very often that the UCF Knights are the victims of a three-score comeback.
However, on Saturday afternoon in Houston, for just the eighth time in program history, the Knights got out ahead by three scores, 17-0, and lost. The No. 20-ranked Cougars ended up scoring 27 unanswered points to come away with the win, 27-17.
It is the first time a UCF opponent has come from behind by more than three scores to win since 2023. However, it is not the first time Houston has come back from a three-score deficit to beat the Knights in Texas. In fact, coach Scott Frost was helming the Knights at the time in a 2016 matchup in which the Cougars scored 28 unanswered points to win, 31-24.
As deep into the game as midway through the third quarter, the Knights looked in control, even if they had the fortune of having a few plays go their way. For example, their defense came up with three stops in the red zone, including two turnovers on downs just shy of the goal line, to maintain a small UCF lead, and bought time for the offense to add to it. However, despite the lead the Knights were able to build, it was not enough to fend off Houston's second-half comeback.
Below are four reasons why, instead of leaving Space City with an upset, UCF has taken one of the most gut-wrenching losses of Frost's second stint:
1. Houston's Rushing Attack
Going against Houston's rushers was always going to be a tall order, especially with them being ranked 12th in the nation and fourth in the Big 12 coming into Saturday's game.
While the Knights did hold the Cougars to an average of 3.5 yards per carry and 154 total yards, fewer than what they allowed against Georgia State, it was less about how much ground they gave up and more about what Houston achieved with those plays. Combined, the Cougars got seven first downs on the ground, and quarterback Conner Weigman carried all three of Houston's touchdowns into the end zone himself.
Frost acknowledged after the game that the defense was "gassed" in the game's late stages, which saw Houston get all 27 of its points. While Houston's offense might not have succeeded early, it waited for its time to pounce and took advantage.
2. Shying Away From the Run
Aside from one run by Keyone Jenkins with 1:08 left in the game, the Knights did not record a single rushing play for the entire fourth quarter. Instead, they relied on Jenkins' arm, which, to be fair, was having a good day. In fact, he completed 10 of his first 11 passes in the second half.
The problem with Jenkins' passes during that stretch, however, is that they resulted in double-digit yards only once and a first down only once, and it was on the same pass: the first pass. On top of that, the only pass during that stretch that did not find a UCF receiver instead found a Houston defender, resulting in an interception that led to a touchdown on the ensuing drive, assisting in the Cougars' comeback.
Even setting the interception aside, however, both Jenkins and Kaleb Annett, who took over under center for a drive, were not able to use their arms to extend drives in a way that could fend off Houston's rally. Frost said that the decrease in carries was due to his use of the run-pass option.
"When they get to many in the box, we're throwing the RPO," Frost said. "So, that led to fewer carries, but it isn't like we didn't call a run play."
3. Another Stout Defensive Line
The fact that the Knights elected to pass as often as it did during this game strikes some similarity to their game against Pittsburgh, and with good reason. Heading into Saturday, the Cougars came just behind the Panthers with the sixth-best rushing defense in the nation, allowing just 2.42 yards per rush. Even in the first half, they could only muster an average of 2.1 yards per carry for 27 rushing yards.
The drive early in the third quarter, during which running back Duke Watson broke through for a 37-yard and a 10-yard carry, were aborrations in what was otherwise a shutdown day for the Cougars' rushing defense. In fact, that one drive alone accounts for 75% of the Knights' total net rushing yards for the entire game. Take the rushing plays on that drive away, and UCF only has 18 net rushing yards.
While the rushing attack might not have been able to break through, the Knights' passing attack with quarterback Keyone Jenkins was able to at least get in scoring position through the air, with the offensive line giving him enough time to do so. Unfortunately for that unit, however, the injury bug struck again.
4. Injuries
UCF was already without four starters going into Saturday's game: quarterback Alonza Barnett III, linebacker Lewis Carter, wide receiver Duane Thomas Jr. and offensive lineman Owen Spell.
During the Knights' game against Houston, three more players went down with injuries: Jenkins, linebacker Jayden Jennings and offensive lineman Jacob Maiava. Jenkins, who Frost said after the game had cramped, returned to the field after one drive. Jennings, however, did not record another tackle after his injury, and Maiava did not return after he required two of his teammates to assist him off the field. It did not help matters that all three injuries came in position units that already had a player out.
Maiava, who Frost said injured his hip but had X-rays come back "okay," is a new face in the Knights' ranks of injured players this season, and his absence may have been the most felt. Following his exit, both of Maiava's replacements at center, Cooper Terpstra and Connor Meadows, had off-target snaps that required Jenkins to reach out for the ball. During the second half, the Knights gave up two sacks, and by the end of the game, the Cougars, who rank 15th in the Big 12 in team tackles for loss, had seven tackles for loss and five quarterback hurries. There was even a fumbled snap.
"Nobody's going to make those excuses, and nobody's going to feel sorry for us, so we got to keep plugging with the guys that are up and ready to go," Frost said.
The Knights have another matchup on the road against a Top 25 team ahead of them next weekend as they travel to Stillwater to take on No. 19 Oklahoma State next Saturday at noon.
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Bryson Turner is a sports journalist who covers UCF Athletics. Turner has contributed to the Black and Gold Banneret, the home for UCF Athletics on SB Nation. He has called the Orlando area home since the age of 8 and received his bachelor's and master's degrees from UCF.
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