UCF's Scott Frost Provides Biggest Concerns About Jacksonville State

UCF Knights coach Scott Frost provided some insight into his scouting of Jacksonville State in his first game week press conference.

With the confirmation of Cam Fancher taking the starting quarterback role for the game, Frost said he wants him to "take care of the ball." The Gamecocks finished last season ranked 22nd in the nation in turnover margin, and since then, they hired a defensive-minded coach in Charles Kelly and returned a few key figures on the defensive line.

"Jacksonville State has had a lot of success lately, and a lot of it is turnovers; they've done a really good job with turnovers," Frost said. "You watch their tape, they have a lot of returners from the last couple of years, and they've done a really good job being aggressive and creating turnovers. So, offensively, it's never going to be perfect in game one, we just have to play hard and take care of the ball."

Meanwhile, on the Jacksonville State side of the ball, Frost was actually already familiar with the Gamecocks' starting quarterback, Gavin Wimsatt, from his time at Nebraska. He said he remembered watching Wimsatt as a recruit, a Kentucky native, as a recruit.

"Big, athletic kid, can really spin the ball, played quite a bit at Rutgers, played a little bit at Kentucky, you know, he's a specimen to watch him run and throw the ball, he's got all the tools," Frost said. "So, we're going to have to be on our game. I know he can run it and he can throw it, so the defense has to be sure to be in the right places and the right gaps with the right eyes, and him and others will challenge us."

The Knights' defense line up against Wimsatt and the Gamecocks at 7 p.m. on Thursday.

UCF Coach Scott Frost Explains Cam Fancher Decision At Quarterback

UCF coach Scott Frost officially named Cam Fancher as the Knights' starting quarterback on Monday afternoon.

CBS Sports' Matt Zenitz first reported the decision on Thursday, though no one from UCF officially confirmed it until Frost's first weekly press conference ahead of the Knights' season-opener against Jacksonville State on Thursday at 7 p.m.

"Cam is going to run out there, and it's his job to begin the game, to begin the season, and we'll go from there," Frost said.

Fancher has been locked in a three-way quarterback battle with returner Jacurri Brown and Indiana transfer Tayven Jackson, which might not be completely settled just yet. Frost said the competition was "neck and neck right until the very end," and that the team "had to make a decision," but it does not mean that Fancher has secured the job for the entire season.

"I trust all three, so I want good things to happen for all three of them," Frost said. "If the situation arises, we'll get some other guys in. We might even have a plan for that, but right now, it's Cam's job."

Fancher has the most in-game experience of the three quarterbacks, having logged 34 total college football games, including 26 starts, between his time at Marshall and Florida Atlantic, compared to Brown's 18 games with five starts and Jackson's 16 games with six starts.

"Cam's done a really good job with just command of the offense, control of everything, doing a good job turning broken plays into positive plays, but all three guys have done well," Frost said. "So it's Cam's job right now."

Thursday night marks Fancher's first start since Nov. 7, 2024, a game in which he sustained a broken collarbone, sidelining him for the rest of the season. He finished his lone season at Florida Atlantic with 126 passes for 1,528 yards and six touchdowns, along with 99 carries for 365 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns.