UCF’s offense looked nothing like the unit that stumbled through a 12-7 loss to Pittsburgh. On Saturday night, the Knights got back to what worked best: run the ball, lean on explosive plays, and let the quarterback settle in behind it.
That formula carried UCF to a 44-30 win over Georgia State, with the Knights piling up 304 rushing yards. The offensive line was the biggest difference. After a rough showing against Pitt, the group controlled the line of scrimmage and created the kind of lanes that let the backfield explode through for chunk gains.
At the center of it all was Duke Watson.
The Louisville transfer has wasted no time becoming UCF’s most dangerous offensive weapon. He opened his Knights career with a 65-yard touchdown, and he followed that up Saturday by finding the end zone twice more while rushing for 177 yards. Watson averaged 12.6 yards per carry, and even with him handling most of the workload, it felt like there were more big runs waiting if he’d gotten more chances.
With starting quarterback Alonza Barnett III sidelined, Scott Frost clearly wanted to keep the game on the ground. UCF threw only 17 passes, and Watson’s production helped the Knights find a rhythm while backup quarterback Keyone Jenkins settled in.
Jenkins did more than just manage the game. The most experienced option at quarterback won the starting job in Barnett’s absence and delivered enough to keep it. The former FIU quarterback threw for one touchdown and ran for two more, using his legs to extend plays and hold things together when the passing game was limited.
Frost said Jenkins will keep getting the starting reps going forward, with Barnett unavailable for UCF’s Big 12 opener against TCU. That’s a tougher test waiting, too. The Horned Frogs have been strong against the run so far, giving up fewer than 80 rushing yards per game.
That means Jenkins will likely have to do more through the air next weekend.
Still, Saturday offered a clear sign that UCF has options. After nine different Knights caught passes through the first two games, only four had a reception in this one. Even so, sophomore wide receiver Waden Charles continued to flash real progress in his second season, finishing with three catches for 46 yards and his second career touchdown.
In Other News...
TCU Gets Timely Boost As UCF Enters Big 12 Opener Shorthanded
TCU is set to get a useful piece back just as Big 12 play begins, with wide receiver Jordan Dwyer expected to return from a foot injury when the Horned Frogs meet UCF. Dwyer missed the first three games of the season, so his availability gives TCU a timely lift as it looks to open conference play with some momentum.
UCF, meanwhile, enters the matchup dealing with a significant change under center. Starting quarterback Alonza Barnett III is sidelined by a hamstring injury, and the Knights are expected to turn to Keyone Jenkins in his place. For a team trying to settle in quickly against a conference opponent, the timing of those injury updates adds another layer to a game already carrying plenty of early-season importance. [Read more 🡒]
Scott Frost Got The UCF Response He Needed Before Big 12 Play
UCF left the field Saturday with more than a nonconference win, it left with a reminder of what a composed second half can look like. After falling behind at halftime, the Knights settled in and pulled away from Georgia State 44-30, a result Scott Frost pointed to as evidence the team handled adversity the right way before Big 12 play begins. He highlighted the defense and run game as the areas that steadied things after the break, which mattered as much as the final score for a team still looking to define itself early in the season.
Duke Watson gave that turnaround a real jolt with a career day on the ground, and Keyone Jenkins added three scores even if the passing game was uneven at times. The bigger picture for UCF is that the pieces looked more connected when the pressure tightened, which is exactly the kind of response Frost wanted to see before the schedule gets more demanding. There are still questions to sort through, but the Knights at least showed they can absorb a punch and finish with some force. [Read more 🡒]
UCF's Defense Is Giving The Knights Real Momentum Into Big 12 Play
UCFs defense looked like the unit that could help carry real momentum into Big 12 play after the Knights came up with three interceptions against Georgia State. The performance was built on steady pressure in the middle of the field, with Tackett Curtis and Lewis Carter active all afternoon and the secondary taking advantage whenever throws drifted off target. Special teams did its part too, as Will Stone was perfect on his kicks and Atticus Bertrams kept flipping the field with punts that averaged more than 50 yards.
Demari Henderson gave the Knights another lift with a career-best outing, showing the kind of playmaking that can change a game in a hurry. Curtis also added an interception to go with a double-digit tackle day, and Carter was right there again as a sure tackler on the back end of the defense. For UCF, the encouraging part is not just the turnovers, but how many different pieces are starting to matter at once. [Read more 🡒]