Top 25 UCF Knights Football Games of the 21st Century: No. 7
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Note: We define the 21st Century as Jan. 1, 2001, to the time of this series' publication.
No. 7: College Gameday (Cincinnati, 2018)
The UCF Knights' 2018 game with the Bearcats marked the first time they hosted ESPN's College Gameday and their first appearance on ESPN's Saturday Night Football prime time slot.
For a Knights squad that was defending its quest for consideration from the College Football Playoff committee and nationwide popularity as "the team that declared themselves national champions" the previous season, it was a chance to showcase the team to a nationwide audience.
Knights fans made quite a first impression before the game even truly started, not just with their turnout to the taping of College Gameday as the hosts pointed out on the broadcast, but they were also loud enough that Cincinnati was flagged for a delay of game and a false start on their first plays of the game from scrimmage. It set the tone for the night to come.
The Bearcats got on the board first, but it would be one of two scores the entire night. The Knights' defense forced and recovered three fumbles and got a turnover-on-downs in four consecutive Cincinnati drives. One of those forced fumbles was from defensive lineman Titus Davis, who got three of UCF's four sacks of the game.
On offense, quarterback McKenzie Milton's penchant for big plays was on display with a 36-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Tre Nixon and a 42-yard score for running back Adrian Killins en route to 268 passing yards off 13 completions and three touchdowns. He also ran 12 times for six net yards thanks to sacks and a touchdown.
With all the eyes of the college football world looking on, the Knights put on a clinic to beat the Bearcats, 38-13, its win streak dating back to Game No. 1 of 2017 showing no signs of stopping soon.
Catch up on the rest of the list below:
Top 25 UCF Knights Football Games of the 21st Century: No. 25
Top 25 UCF Knights Football Games Of The 21st Century: No. 24
Top 25 UCF Knights Football Games of the 21st Century: No. 23
Top 25 UCF Knights Football Games of the 21st Century: No. 22
Top 25 UCF Knights Football Games of the 21st Century: No. 21
Top 25 UCF Knights Football Games Of The 21st Century: No. 20
Top 25 UCF Knights Football Games of the 21st Century: No. 19
Top 25 UCF Knights Football Games Of The 21st Century: No. 18
Top 25 UCF Knights Football Games Of the 21st Century: No. 17
Top 25 UCF Knights Football Games Of the 21st Century: No. 16
Top 25 UCF Knights Football Games Of the 21st Century: No. 15
Top 25 UCF Knights Football Games Of the 21st Century: No. 14
Top 25 UCF Knights Football Games of the 21st Century: No. 13
Top 25 UCF Knights Football Games of the 21st Century: No. 12
Top 25 UCF Knights Football Games of the 21st Century: No. 11
Top 25 UCF Knights Football Games of the 21st Century: No. 10
Top 25 UCF Knights Football Games of the 21st Century: No. 9
Top 25 UCF Knights Football Games of the 21st Century: No. 8
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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