UCF’s draft weekend started with a familiar kind of headline and ended with two more Knights hearing their names called.
Andrew Williamson led the way, going to the St. Louis Cardinals in the second round of the Major League Baseball Draft and landing at No. 68 overall. The outfielder, who spent three seasons with UCF, became just the second Knight ever taken in the second round and the program’s highest pick since 2004.
Williamson put together a strong season at the plate, hitting .322 with 16 home runs, four triples and 58 runs scored. The St.
Petersburg native also finished second on the team in doubles with 13 and RBI with 48. He was the first of three UCF players selected over the two-day draft.
Back in June, UCF coach Rich Wallace sounded convinced Williamson would go early.
“I don’t think there’s any way that all 30 teams could screw that up and not take him where he should be taken,” Wallace said back in June.
The Cardinals weren’t the only club to dip into the Knights’ roster. Right-handed pitcher Braden Smith went in the 15th round to the Baltimore Orioles with the 440th pick, and outfielder John Smith III followed in the 19th round, taken 570th overall by the New York Mets on Sunday.
Smith’s season was shortened by a season-ending injury in April, but he still managed a 3-1 record with a 6.21 ERA across 33.1 innings. He struck out 23 and walked nine. Before arriving at UCF, he pitched at Division II Maryville University.
John Smith III spent one season with the Knights after stops at Pensacola State College and South Alabama. He hit .322, finished first on the team with 49 RBI, added 12 home runs and scored 40 runs.
With those three selections, UCF’s all-time draft total now stands at 134 players.
In Other News...
UCF Suddenly Faces A Huge Frontcourt Question Again
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The argument centers on whether his junior college seasons should count against that limit, and the case matters to UCF because the Knights reportedly have a roster spot waiting if he gets the green light. Stillwell was a productive piece in his lone season in Orlando, so the outcome of the lawsuit could end up shaping not just his future, but the way UCF fills out its frontcourt heading into next season. [Read more 🡒]
UCF History Fans Know Has A Forgotten Offensive Line Chapter
A recent Daytona News-Journal look back at UCFs all-time football greats offered a reminder that some of the programs most important work has happened in the trenches. The paper put together a 105-man roster of Knights standouts and singled out a run of offensive guards who helped define the program after its jump to the FBS, a group that has produced conference honors, pro opportunities and a few careers that stretched well beyond the college game.
Josh Sitton is the headliner in that line of history, but he is hardly alone. The list also points to players such as Jordan McCray and Cole Schneider, whose paths took them from UCF to the pros and, in some cases, to championship runs in other leagues. It is the kind of forgotten offensive line chapter that tends to get overshadowed by quarterbacks and playmakers, even though the Knights rise was built on exactly this sort of steady, physical talent. [Read more 🡒]