Heupel was named head coach of the UCF Knights on December 5, 2017, replacing the departing Scott Frost with an entirely new coaching staff. [25] One bright spot of the season was that Mike Carter became the first Knight to sign with an NFL team, the Denver Broncos. SPORTS ILLUSTRATED is a registered trademark of ABG-SI LLC. Before leading UCF in 1983 and 1984, Lou Saban was a head coach in both the American Football League (AFL) and the National Football League (NFL). The UCF Knights football team represents the University of Central Florida (UCF) in the sport of American football. Heupel comes to UCF after serving as the offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach at Missouri for the past two seasons. Yards passed by Heupel during his two seasons as quarterback at Oklahoma, 92% UFC was ranked No. SPORTS ILLUSTRATED is a registered trademark of ABG-SI LLC. [174] Frost's squad concluded the regular season with losses to Tulsa[175] and archrival South Florida. Other Knights choosing to sit out in 2020 include quarterback Darriel Mack Jr., cornerback Devunte Dawson, defensive back Elijah Benoit, defensive linemen Mason Cholewa and Kendrick Wilson and offensive linemen Allan Adams, Lamarius Benson and Adrian Medley. [195] Frost passed on the Florida job but avoided questions about returning to Nebraska. He got recruiting inquiries from major college football programs at the universities of Houston, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Wyoming, but "it seemed I was always the second or third guy on their list," according to Heupel.[6]. [211], Under head coach Scott Frost, the 2017 Knights completed a 13–0 perfect season. USF took home the trophy by defeating UCF 48–31 and clinching their first 10-win season in school history, only for UCF to take the trophy back from them the following year during their national championship season in 2017. [55] The Marshall game marked UCF's first nationally televised home football game as it was aired on ESPN2. Heupel confirmed Quadry Jones will step into the backup role behind starting quarterback Dillon Gabriel with Mack out. The official Football page for the UCF Knights. They are the Associated Press (AP), American Football Coaches Association (AFCA), Football Writers Association of America (FWAA), Sporting News (TSN), and the Walter Camp Football Foundation (WCFF). The UCF Knights football team represents the University of Central Florida (UCF) in the sport of American football.The Knights compete in the Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the East Division of the American Athletic Conference (The American). [129] The appeal would prove crucial, as in 2013, O'Leary led the Knights to their first twelve-win season (12–1),[130] first perfect conference record (8–0), first win against a Big Ten opponent (Penn State),[131] first win against a Top–10 team (#8 Louisville),[132] third conference title, and the program's first appearance and victory in a BCS bowl game, defeating #6 Baylor 52–42 in the 2014 Fiesta Bowl.