UCF has kicked off the college football season with two wins under its belt, and coach Scott Frost is pleased with the progress of his young team.
He noted the strides made from their narrow 17-10 victory against Jacksonville State to a decisive 68-7 triumph over North Carolina A&T on Saturday. However, he acknowledges that there is still a lot of work to be done moving forward.
“I didn’t know how the team would react when it was live bullets,” Frost said on Saturday. “We played better than we did last week, which is good to see. Now, we’ve got two weeks to get ready for the next one.”
UCF’s next opponent could perhaps be its toughest — itself.
The Knights have an early bye this week before hosting North Carolina and legendary coach Bill Belichick on Sept. 20. It’s one of two bye weeks the team has this season, the other coming in late October.
“We’ve really got to utilize these two weeks,” said Frost. “It can’t just be time off and get away from football. We’re going to rest the guys and make sure they’re right, but we need to come back and attack, taking another step.
“The games are going to get tougher and the opponents are better.”
The week off comes following a dominating performance against the Aggies on Saturday.
The 68 points were the most in a game since the Knights scored 70 against Temple on Oct. 13, 2022, and the 356 rushing yards were the most since totaling 384 yards against Sam Houston State on Sept. 7, 2024.
UCF also scored a touchdown on offense, defense and special teams for the first time since defeating Austin Peay on Oct. 28, 2017.
Running back Jaden Nixon became the first player in program history to have a kickoff return for a touchdown and a rushing touchdown in the same game. Nixon finished with 252 all-purpose yards, which was the most since Rannell Hall’s 277 yards in 2013.
So, with so much momentum on their side, is a bye week exactly what the Knights need right now?
“It’s a good thing getting everyone’s bodies feeling right,” explained quarterback Tayven Jackson, who earned his first start of the year against NCAT. “It keeps us feeling fresh, rolling in two weeks from now and gives us time to watch film on North Carolina. We’ve got to game plan right and attack the week.”
Edge rusher Nyjalik Kelly believes the additional time off will help the team clean some things up.
“This is a good week to have after two games, seeing where everybody is at, seeing who can play, who can do this, what’s this person’s strength or this person’s weaknesses are?” said Kelly, who leads the team in sacks (1.5). “These two weeks, everybody has got to dial in and be together like we already have been.”
As impressive as UCF was in its win over North Carolina A&T, Frost still believes there are plenty of areas where his team can benefit from some additional work.
“Discipline and details are probably what I’m going to hammer home to these guys,” said Frost, who is 2-7 all-time off a bye week according to PhilSteele.com. “It’s got to be team first all the time. Be in the right spot with your eyes, in the right alignment, and you’ll incur fewer penalties. That’s all discipline. Additionally, there are some details that we need to continue to improve in all three phases of our efforts. And if you’re intentional in practice, that’s when it gets better.”
The Knights are focused on one crucial question this week: who will be their starting quarterback?
Cam Fancher began the season as the starter but suffered an injury in the second quarter of the game against Jacksonville State. He was succeeded by Jackson, who stepped in and led the team to victory over the Gamecocks. Jackson earned his first start of the season against the Aggies last Saturday, scoring two touchdowns in the win.
Frost wasn’t willing to name a starter against North Carolina, but he also doesn’t see the situation developing into a quarterback controversy.
“I feel good about three guys. That’s a luxury for us, and we’ll let them keep competing,” he said. “I’m happy with the direction we’re going. Is it another tough decision in the next few weeks? No, I’m not going to create that. We’ve got a bye week to think about it, to see who’s healthy and who’s available and we’ll talk as a staff, but I don’t think it’s going to be tough.”
Find me on X, Bluesky or Instagram @osmattmurschel. Email: mmurschel@orlandosentinel.com. Sign up for the Sentinel’s Knights Weekly newsletter for a roundup of all our UCF coverage.
https://www.sun-sentinel.com/2025/09/08/ucf-knights-see-bye-week-to-heal-fix-mistakes-scott-frost/
