UCF’s annual October tune-up will come with no shortage of pressure points.
Johnny Dawkins is sending the Knights on the road for exhibition games against LSU and Kentucky, two SEC names that have already had UCF’s number. LSU and UCF are meeting for the third straight time, while Kentucky is on the schedule for the second time in 20 years. Both programs own unbeaten records against the Knights.
That backdrop only sharpens the value of these games for a roster that looks very different from last season’s group. UCF has been rebuilt through the transfer portal, and only three returners are back: Carmelo Pacheco, John Bol and Elijah Hulsewe.
The first exhibition offered both promise and the kind of late-game lesson Dawkins wanted his team to feel. UCF came out firing against LSU, hitting 8 of 15 from three-point range and using that hot shooting to fuel a 10-0 burst nine minutes into the first half. The Knights carried a 36-29 lead into halftime.
But LSU answered through Dedan Thomas Jr., who controlled the second half. He scored or assisted on 29 of the team’s 46 second-half points, steering the comeback and handing UCF a loss that dropped it to 0-2 in exhibition play. The Knights’ other exhibition defeat came against Duke, in Dawkins’ return to his alma mater.
Now Dawkins has to prepare for Thomas again, only this time with the matchup coming against a conference rival. Thomas transferred from LSU to Houston, stepping into a role after the departures of NBA talent Kingston Flemings and Emanuel Sharp.
The Kentucky trip also carries a familiar flashback. In 2006, UCF nearly pulled off the upset against then-No.
19 Kentucky and NBA legend Rajon Rondo. Josh Peppers led the Knights with 15 points, while Justin Rose added a 12-point, 10-rebound double-double.
UCF scored 31 points in the second half, but a seven-point first-half hole proved too much, and Kentucky escaped 59-57.
For Dawkins, that’s exactly the point of these exhibitions.
"That's what exhibition games are for," Dawkins said after the loss to LSU. "To learn about your team, learn about your chemistry and your rotations. It gave us a great job to do that."
The Knights are trying to replace last season’s scoring while tightening up on the defensive end. North Carolina A&T transfer Lewis Walker and Tarleton State transfer Dior Johnson, back for a second stint, bring scoring punch from previous stops.
Florida Gulf Coast transfer Isaiah Malone and New Orleans transfer Churchill Abass fit the defensive profile Dawkins wants to build around. Malone was the ASUN Defensive Player of the Year and finished with the second-most blocks in a single season in program history.
Abass had a career-high six blocks against Stephen F. Austin last season.
In Other News...
UCF Suddenly Has A Real Shot To Bring Back Two Former Standouts
A Dallas courts temporary restraining order has suddenly reopened the door for a pair of former UCF standouts, giving the program a possible path to bring back players who had appeared headed elsewhere. Safety Phillip Dunnam and guard Riley Kugel were both notable performers last season, and the ruling has created a real possibility that each could regain college eligibility after disputes had clouded their next steps.
For UCF, the timing makes the situation especially intriguing because both athletes are positioned to return to college sports, and the Knights now have a chance to be part of that next chapter. Dunnam has already entered the transfer portal, while Kugel had been there since early August, so the legal development has changed the conversation around two familiar names whose futures had been uncertain only days ago. [Read more 🡒]
UCFs First Opponent Is Carrying More Momentum Than Usual
Bethune-Cookman is heading into its fourth season under Raymond Woodie Jr. with a bit more buzz than the Knights may be used to seeing from an opening opponent. After finishing 6-6 a year ago, the Wildcats have been trending upward, and the programs preseason recognition reflects it, with offensive lineman Christian Loving and linebacker Stephen Sparrow among the players drawing attention before the first snap.
The early schedule gives Bethune-Cookman a chance to show whether that momentum is real right away, with a Sept. 3 trip to UCF setting the tone before a later date with Florida A&M in the Florida Classic on Nov. 21. For the Knights, it is the kind of opener that can look routine on paper but comes with a little more substance than the average first-week tune-up. [Read more 🡒]
UCF Is Counting On Two Breakout Candidates In Crucial Roles
As UCF turns the page toward the 2026 season opener, two names are drawing a lot of attention in the buildup: EDGE Isaiah Nixon and wide receiver RicDarious DayDay Farmer. Nixon has already shown up in game action, appearing in 11 contests in 2025, and the next step for him is an expanded role off the edge. Farmer arrived as a transfer in 2025, giving the Knights another explosive skill-position option to develop, and the staff has made it clear both players sit near the center of the conversation about what this offense and defense could become.
The intrigue comes from how much each one still has to prove once the season arrives. Nixon is poised to move into a far more prominent pass-rushing job, while Farmers path back into the rotation depends on getting his game legs under him after a lost season. For a UCF team that is always chasing speed, depth and upside, their progress in camp and into the fall could shape more than just a couple of position battles. [Read more 🡒]