In the final installment of looking at the Big 12’s four new programs and each program’s challenges and expectations in entering the conference, College Sports Wire looks at the UCF Knights.
The Knights officially joined BYU, Cincinnati, and Houston in entering the Big 12 on July 1. UCF, out of the four programs, is the best setup for success in the immediate and is coming off its fifth season in six years of nine or more wins. Last season, in their second year under head coach Gus Malzahn, the Knights went 9-5, including 6-2 in the American Athletic Conference.
The program has seen quite a bit of change over the last seven years, going through three different coaching changes, and while it hadn’t reached the highest that it did in 2017 when the Knights went 13-0, the program has remained one of the best in all of the Group of Five.
Even before reaching new heights over the last several years, the program has been considered a potential sleeping giant in college football. Located in a talent-rich state with a massive student population and an alum association of over 350,000 – there is plenty of resources for the Knights to take advantage of. Now, the Knights are officially a Power Five program, which will only help the program continue to elevate its status on and off the field.
It’s hard to say what is in store for UCF in the future. The university and program have everything it needs to succeed; it’s now a matter of can the program take advantage of its new surroundings as it joins a conference that will be a wide-open race following the departure of Oklahoma and Texas next offseason.
What will be the challenges for UCF to potentially become the next alpha program in the Big 12, and what should the future expectations be for the program going forward?
First, we dive into the biggest challenges for the Knights