How To Watch UCF's Homecoming Matchup vs. West Virginia
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Venue: Acrisure Bounce House (Orlando, Florida)
Kickoff: Saturday, Oct. 18, 1:00 p.m. EDT
TV/Streaming: TNT/TruTv/HBO Max (Play-by-Play: JB Long, Analyst: Mike Golic Jr., Sideline: Lauren Jbara)
Radio (English): FM 96.9 FM / AM 740 (Play-by-Play: Marc Daniels, Analyst: Gary Parris, Sideline: Scott Adams)
Radio (Spanish): UCF Knights YouTube Channel (Play-by-Play: Carlos Bohorquez, Analyst: Alfonso Mirabel)
Live Twitter/X Updates: @itsBrysonTurner
Weather Forecast: 80 degrees with 0% chance of rain at kickoff with winds blowing east at eight mph, according to AccuWeather.
Odds: UCF is favored by 7.5, per BetMGM.
Series History: West Virginia Leads Series, 4-0
Quick Facts:
1. Blasts From The Past
Saturday's matchup in Orlando features a pair of coaches back at old stomping grounds. This season marks Frost's return to the Knights after coaching them in 2016 and 2017, while Rodriguez is back in Morgantown 18 years after his first stint ended in 2007.
Frost led UCF to a 19-7 record during his first stint, including its undefeated 2017 season in which it won the American Conference title.
Meanwhile, Rodriguez led the Mountaineers to at least a share of the Big East Title four times and a pair of BCS Bowl appearances during his seven-year stint from 2001 to 2007, which included two BCS Bowl appearances.
Frost thanked Rodriguez during his press conference on Monday. In the wake of offensive line coach Shawn Clark's passing, Frost said he received a big envelope from West Virginia containing letters from, he thinks, everybody in its athletic department, all individually written and signed.
"We received a lot of notes and messages, but I opened the envelope and all the cards fell out, and it's a lot of them, and I thought that was a really high character thing to do," Frost said.
2. A Pair of Quarterback Carousels
Both the Knights and Mountaineers have dealt with cases of the injury bug this season, most notably in the quarterback room.
Quarterback Cam Fancher was ruled out for Saturday's game on Wednesday, a contradiction from when Frost said he was "all hands on deck" at quarterback on Monday. Jacurri Brown's availability is also in question, with him getting labeled "questionable" in Friday night's availability report. Though Frost did say the program was trying to get him back healthy in his radio interview on Wednesday.
This leaves Tayven Jackson as the team's apparent starting quarterback for Saturday.
As for the Mountaineers, they initially began their season with Nicco Marichiol behind center, but a foot injury he sustained against Kansas has likely ended his season prematurely, according to Richard Johnson of CBS Sports. Backup Jaylen Henderson took the start against Utah, but an injury that took him out of that game held him out of West Virginia's game two weeks ago against BYU. Both quarterbacks were ruled out once again this week on Wednesday.
The Mountaineers went with freshman Khalil Wilkins as their starter for their last game against BYU two weeks ago. However, Rich Rodriguez has not named a starter for this Saturday, so freshman Scotty Fox Jr. or Charlotte transfer Max Brown are also options he could consider.
3. Who else is out?
The quarterback room is not the only place West Virginia has caught the injury bug. It will also be without two of the team's leading rushers, who aren't quarterbacks, in running backs Tye Edwards and Jahiem White.
The Mountaineers also lose some defensive depth with linebacker Ashton Woods and defensive lineman Hammond Russell IV being ruled out.
As for the Knights, offensive lineman Paul Rubelt is the only other UCF player to join Brown with a "questionable" tag. As for players ruled out, defensive end Sincere Edwards is missing his second game after sustaining an injury to his left leg that required surgery, and defensive back Jayden Williams is missing his fourth consecutive game thanks to a broken thumb.
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Catch up on more UCF News below:
UCF Quarterback Ruled Out Against West Virginia
Scott Frost Both "Disappointed" And "Encouraged" After Cincinnati Loss
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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