What UCF's Offensive Line Has Gotten Right (And Wrong) in 2026
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The UCF Knights' offensive line is not where the coaching staff wants it to be on some things, offensive coordinator Steve Cooper said during his Tuesday press conference.
The 2026 season has, thus far, been a roller coaster for the Knights' offensive line, from the highs of multi-hundred rushing yard games against Bethune-Cookman and Georgia State to the low of allowing three sacks with 20 rushing yards for UCF against Pittsburgh.
So, with the regular season a quarter of the way done and Big 12 play on the horizon, here is one thing offensive line coach AJ Blazek's unit has gotten right and one it's gotten wrong so far this season:
1. Right: Pre-Snap Discipline
Last season's offensive line was marred by a slew of pre-snap penalties, accounting for about 47.7% of all flags drawn. False starts alone accounted for nearly 29% of all flags assessed to the Knights, with an average of 2.27 per game.
Through three games this season, not counting delay of game penalties that were taken to leave more room for punter Atticus Bertrams, UCF has only been flagged five times before the snap. Four of these penalties were for false starts, with half of them being assessed to right tackle Preston Cushman, a holdover from last season.
"I'm not happy with two false starts in the last two games, and it's not good enough," Cushman said on Monday. "And I know I'll definitely be more detailed and firm-footed during practice this week to fix that, and take that upon myself, but everyone else is doing great in that aspect, and we're doing a lot better."
While the Knights have remained below their average for false starts called from 2025, it should be noted that Big 12 opponents were where they saw that issue become exacerbated last season. When isolated to just the three non-conference games, UCF drew five false starts, just one more than this season's total after three games.
However, Blazek has dealt with correcting pre-snap penalties before, he said back during the team's local media day. He described how he utilizes a mindset shift and the use of cadence to keep other teams honest.
“So when you change the mindset for the big guys, they don't go to the line going, ‘Oh, don't jump, don't jump. Oh, I jumped,’ you know, they go up there, and they're waiting,” Blazek said. “‘Is my guy going to jump, or is he like I'm going to pounce this guy when he gets offsides.’ When you're using it as an offensive weapon, guys are much better at it.”
2. Wrong: Handling High-Movement Defenses
UCF offensive coordinator Steve Cooper pointed out the Knights "handled movement a little bit better" against Georgia State, though he did make the caveat that the Panthers were a team that "didn't move a whole bunch." Such a point is backed up by the fact that Georgia State, as things stand today, is the weakest rushing defense the Knights are going to face the rest of the season.
Meanwhile, Pittsburgh, as things stand today, has the best rushing defense UCF is going to have to face the rest of the season, though there are a few Big 12 teams in Houston, BYU, Baylor and Iowa State that may provide some tests for them later on.
Opponent | Rushing Defense (National Ranking) | Team Sacks (National Ranking) | Team TFLs (National Ranking) |
|---|---|---|---|
Pittsburgh | 7th | 24th | 32nd |
Georgia State | 92nd | 56th | 72nd |
TCU | 19th | 37th | 57th |
Houston | 9th | 56th | 87th |
Oklahoma State | 35th | 96th | 107th |
BYU | 17th | 96th | 46th |
Baylor | 39th | 10th | 13th |
Kansas | 58th | 74th | 18th |
Arizona State | 68th | 74th | 99th |
Iowa State | 21st | 56th | 38th |
Colorado | 62nd | 37th | 13th |
Considering the Knights' rushing success against Georgia State and the running lanes the offensive line was able to open up for running backs like Duke Watson, the less movement an opposing defense shows, the more likely UCF can succeed in the trenches.
Of course, these teams are not going to remain static the rest of the season, meaning the Knights can improve going against mobile defenses. Cooper said as much on Tuesday, saying the unit still had "room to grow," but that they would do that.
The Knights' offensive line's next opportunity to show how much it's grown is coming on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. as they open Big 12 play against TCU.
Catch up on more UCF news below:
B.T.'s Breakdown: Three Takeaways From UCF's Win Over Georgia State
The Pros and Cons of Each Alonza Barnett III Backup
Can UCF Men's Basketball Get Riley Kugel Back?
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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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