Knights face Gators on Saturday in Gainesville – UCF Athletics

GAME INFORMATION
Date: Saturday, October 5th
Time: 7:45 p.m. ET
TV: SEC Network
TV Talent: Taylor Zarzour, Matt Stinchcomb, Tori Petry
Radio: FM 96.9/AM 740 The Game
Radio Talents: Marc Daniels, Gary Parris, Scott Adams
Spanish Radio: UCFKnights.com, YouTube.com/UCFKnights
Live Stats: Click here

A win would…
-Give UCF its 14th straight win over a Florida State team
-Give the Knights their second straight win over the Gators
-Give UCF its first win at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium
– Give UCF head coach Gus Malzahn his second win over Florida during his tenure with the Knights
– Be better than a loss

FIRST AND 10
• UCF will make the short trip north to Gainesville, Fla., this weekend to take on the Florida Gators on Saturday at 7:45 p.m. on SEC Network. Taylor Zarzour will handle play-by-play, while Matt Stinchcomb will serve as analyst and Tori Petry will serve as sideline reporter.
• It will be the Knights' third trip to Ben Hill Griffin Stadium and first since 2006.
• Gus Malzahn put an exclamation point on his first season as Knights head coach in 2021 by leading UCF to a 29-17 win over Florida in the Gasparilla Bowl the last time the two teams met. UCF outscored the Gators 20-7 in the second half and didn't allow Florida to score after a touchdown in the third quarter. The Knights held the Gators scoreless for nearly 23 minutes and closed out the game.
• The last time Malzahn was at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium was Oct. 5, 2019, when his Auburn Tigers played Florida – exactly five years from the date of Saturday's contest (Oct. 5, 2024).
• UCF has won 13 straight games against Florida State teams. This list includes the win over Florida in the 2021 Gasparilla Bowl and six straight wins over South Florida. UCF was the only Big 12 Conference newcomer to play in a bowl game last season, as the Knights finished with six wins and played in the 2023 Gasparilla Bowl. It was a record eighth consecutive postseason bowl appearance, the 11th in the last 12 seasons and the 15th in 19 years. The Knights are one of just 13 programs to earn bowl eligibility in each of the last eight seasons and the only team from the state of Florida.
• The Knights have now totaled 1,304 yards on the ground with 14 touchdowns through the first four games of the season. The Knights rank second nationally with 326.0 rushing yards per game, nearly 40 more than the next closest team in the Power Four Conference (Tennessee 290.0).
• UCF is the only team in the country to rush for at least 140 yards in each of the last 17 games, dating back to last season. During that span, the Knights rushed for 200 or more yards 12 times and over 250 yards six times.
• UCF leads the Big 12 Conference in explosive running plays as the Knights have recorded 46 rushing plays of at least 10 yards. Additionally, the Black and Gold have 16 explosive passing plays of at least 20 yards this season.
• In contrast, UCF's defense was stout against the run, allowing just 80.0 rushing yards per game. That mark leads the Big 12 and is the 11th smallest nationally. The Knights have had just 11 rushing plays of 10 yards or more, the fewest in the league.
• Since the start of the 2017 season, UCF has accumulated 68 wins, the 10th most nationally by an FBS program and the most by a Florida State team. The Knights went 13-0 in 2017, 12-1 in 2018, 10-3 in 2019, 6-4 in the Covid-shortened 2020 season, 9-4 in 2021, 9-5 in 2022 and 6-7 in the last season. The Knights join Alabama, Georgia, Clemson, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Notre Dame, Michigan and Appalachian State as the only programs to have won at least 67 games since 2017.

13 STRAIGHT AGAINST FLORIDA STATE TEAMS
UCF has won 13 straight games against Florida State teams. This list includes a win over Florida in the Gasparilla Bowl during the 2021 season and six straight wins over South Florida.

11/26/22 – at South Florida, 46-39
9/17/22 – at Florida Atlantic, 40-14
12/23/21 – vs. Florida, 29-17
11/26/21 – South Florida, 17-13
9/11/21 – Bethune-Cookman, 63-14
11/27/20 – at South Florida, 58-46
11/29/19 – South Florida, 34-7
9/7/19 – at Florida Atlantic, 48-14
8/29/19 – Florida A&M, 62-0
11/23/18 – at South Florida, 38-10
9/21/18 – Florida Atlantic, 56-36
11/24/17 – South Florida, 49-42
8/31/17 – Florida International (FIU), 61-17

Whittemmore has come full circle
UCF wide receiver Trent Whittemore has played numerous games at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, but none of them have been on the visiting team's sideline. After spending his first four years as a member of Florida's football program (2019-22) and earning his degree in sports management, Whittemore transferred to the Knights' program prior to the 2023 season.

His father, Mark, played wide receiver at UCF from 1991 to 1994 and his mother, Missy, played volleyball for UF from 1992 to 1995. Additionally, Trent's wife Jordyn is also a UF graduate.

Whittemore grew up in Gainesville and attended Buchholz High School.

YEARS CALLING
KJ Jefferson is poised to accomplish something Saturday that has rarely if ever happened as the visiting team's starting quarterback in back-to-back years. Because most conference schedules alternate meet locations in consecutive years, and there are very few non-conference meets in the same location in consecutive years, Jefferson may be in a very small group.

After leading Arkansas to its first victory over Florida with a 39-36 overtime victory in Gainesville last season, Jefferson will look to do the same on Saturday as the Knights seek their first win at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.

That's ironic
The last time Gus Malzahn was at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium was on October 5, 2019, when his Auburn Tigers played in Florida – exactly five years from the date of Saturday's contest (October 5, 2024).

BACK WHERE IT STARTED
In addition to Whittemore, UCF linebacker Jesiah Pierre also began his college career at Florida. The Mount Dora native played in two games in 2019 and 11 games in 2020 before transferring to Texas Tech, where he spent three seasons before joining the Knights prior to the 2024 season.

EXPLOSIVE GAMES
UCF leads the Big 12 Conference in explosive running plays as the Knights have recorded 46 rushing plays of at least 10 yards. Additionally, the Black and Gold have 16 explosive passing plays of at least 20 yards this season.

Running back RJ Harvey has recorded 18 explosive rushing plays, leading the Big 12, while quarterback KJ Jefferson is also in the top 10 with 10. Jefferson has 16 pass plays of 20 or more yards, seventh-most in the conference.

Wide receiver Kobe Hudson's eight receiving plays of at least 20 yards are the sixth-most among league players.

UCF has had 29 plays that gained more than 20 yards, ranking second in the Big 12 behind Texas Tech (34).

Defensively, the Knights only had 11 rushing plays of 10 yards or more, the fewest in the league.