As UCF begins Year 2 under Scott Frost, the big question is whether the Knights are ready to move forward after a 5-7 debut season. The record wasn’t pretty, but it also wasn’t disastrous given the turnover Frost inherited and the roster-building hurdles that came with his return. Now he has a year of experience back in the chair, plus general manager Trent Mossbrucker helping navigate the process.
This offseason looked different from the last one. UCF brought in close to 70 newcomers a year ago, but this time the Knights did a much better job keeping players in the program.
More than 50 players are back, and more than 40 newcomers have joined them, giving UCF a roster that looks far more seasoned than the one it rolled out last season. The transfer focus leaned heavily toward experience, with quarterback Alonza Barnett III, receiver Josh Derry and safety Ty Bartrum among the key additions.
That combination, along with a schedule that includes home games against TCU, BYU, Baylor, Arizona State and Iowa State, gives UCF a path to bowl eligibility for the first time since the 2023 season.
The quarterback spot is where the optimism starts to take shape. UCF has spent the last few seasons trying to stabilize the position, and injuries plus uneven play have forced the Knights to start six different quarterbacks over the past 24 games.
Barnett is supposed to change that. The James Madison transfer arrives after a two-year run there, where he was named Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Year and piled up nearly 3,400 yards of offense with 38 total touchdowns.
He went 21-6 as a starter, helped the Dukes win a conference title and reach the College Football Playoff, and he’s expected to be fully healthy by the time the season opens after spending much of spring camp on the sidelines.
UCF also made sure it had options behind him. Keyone Jenkins, a multi-year starter at FIU, is part of the backup mix, along with Kaleb Annett, who spent time at Boise State, and freshmen Rocco Marriott and Dante Carr.
Up front, the most pressure lands on the offensive line. Preston Cushman is the only returning starter, so the Knights are once again piecing together four new spots.
That’s the second straight offseason in which the line has had to be rebuilt, and UCF attacked the problem through the transfer portal. Henry Tabansi, Cooper Terpstra, Brady Wayburn and Tyler Gibson all arrived to bolster the unit.
Tabansi and Wayburn bring the most experience, with both having been multi-year starters at Buffalo and UConn, respectively, and more than 2,200 offensive snaps between them. Terpstra saw time at center at Michigan State, while Gibson was limited at tackle at Georgia Tech.
The returnees who could be part of the rotation are Connor Meadows, Owen Spell, LaParka Langston, Justin Royes and Jacob Maiva. Of that group, only Meadows, with 270 snaps, and Spell, with 202, played meaningful minutes last season. New offensive line coach AJ Blazek now has to get all of those pieces working together quickly, because the group’s chemistry will go a long way toward determining both the run game and pass protection.
On defense, Horace Lockett Jr. is the returning name to watch. He played only 113 snaps last season before a season-ending injury four games into the year, but the 6-foot-6, 355-pound tackle still graded as one of UCF’s best defenders.
Pro Football Focus gave him an 85.2 defensive grade and an 87.8 pass-rushing grade, trailing only Malachi Lawrence in the latter category. With the Knights needing to replace three of their four starters on the defensive front, getting Lockett back should matter.
UCF finished in the middle of the Big 12 in sacks, tackles for loss and rushing defense last season, though pressure up front still helped the secondary finish near the top of the league in passing defense.
Special teams could also look different, and UCF is leaning on two newcomers there. Will Stone, who spent four seasons at Texas mainly as the kickoff specialist, has never attempted a field goal in college, though he did kick a pair of extra points in the semifinals of the 2024 College Football Playoff.
Special teams coordinator Pete Alamar believes the senior can handle the job. At punter, the Knights added Atticus Bertrams, an Australia native who handled punting duties for Wisconsin last season and averaged more than 41 yards per kick.
UCF was near the bottom of the league in punting a year ago, so improvement there is part of the expectation too.
In Other News...
UCF May Have Found A Secondary Answer It Desperately Needed
UCF spent last season looking for more stability and playmaking in the back end, and it may have added an intriguing piece in Ty Bartrum. The safety transferred in after a standout run at Harvard, where he developed into one of the more decorated defenders in the Ivy League and arrives with the kind of rsum that suggests he can help a secondary that needed reinforcement for Big 12 play.
Bartrum was recognized with multiple postseason honors in college and drew strong marks from Pro Football Focus College, giving the Knights a player whose production and reputation both travel well. The next step is the one that matters most in Orlando: turning that Ivy League success into a role against higher-end competition, while pushing for snaps and a spot in a defense still sorting out its answers. [Read more 🡒]
Former UCF Star Keyshawn Hall's Next Move Comes With A Huge Catch
Keyshawn Halls rapid rise has taken him from UCF to the top of the Big 12 scoring race, through a stint with the Miami Heat in Summer League and now to one of college basketballs most recognizable coaches. The former Knights standout has settled on his next stop, a move that fits the kind of player he has become, but it also comes with the sort of paperwork wrinkle that can make the offseason feel a lot longer than expected.
Hall is currently ruled ineligible by the Ohio Court of Appeals, even as recent changes in collegiate athlete rules are expected to open the door to an additional year of eligibility. Until that is sorted out, the rest of the picture remains in limbo, which means St. Johns can circle one of the portals biggest names while still waiting on the one thing that matters most before the deal really becomes official. [Read more 🡒]
UCF Defense Hype Is Rising With Lewis Carter Leading The Way
Lewis Carter keeps popping up on preseason lists, and thats a pretty good sign for a UCF defense trying to build some early-season momentum. The senior linebacker has already drawn multiple nods before the 2026 campaign even kicks off, and the attention reflects how central he is expected to be to the Knights plans on that side of the ball. For a unit looking to establish a clearer identity, having a veteran defender earn that kind of recognition gives UCF a useful starting point.
Carter is also one of the players the Knights will lean on most when they open the season Sept. 3 against Bethune-Cookman in Orlando. Preseason honors do not decide anything once the games begin, but they do signal where the respect is flowing, and UCFs defense appears to be getting some of it through Carter. The bigger question now is whether the Knights can turn that individual buzz into a defense that looks as steady as it sounds before the schedule starts to tighten. [Read more 🡒]