Orlando's Hometown National Champions

[spenser1058]

CBS Sports’ Dennis Dodd rates Gus Malzahn hire an “A+” for UCF. Interestingly, he’s beat Saban three times, something Gator Coach Dan Mullen can’t say.

OTOH, Gus lost to our Knights last time he played them in an NY6 Peach Bowl, but all is forgiven on that front...

https://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/grades-for-every-hire-in-the-2021-college-football-coaching-carousel-gus-malzahn-to-ucf-gets-an-a/

 

[spenser1058]

Just a few years ago, posters here at UP said that college football would never change (ummm, the status quo). They also said that the dynamic new leadership at UCF Athletics was spinning its wheels in shaking things up.

Fast forward to today and change is coming to the sport like a freight train. UCF is well prepared to prosper from the coming changes.

Meanwhile, just down I-4, South Florida saw no reason to change and became a bottom dweller among the G5. It’s now trying to catch up but is having trouble because their mediocrity has left them without the financial backing they need.

https://www.tampabay.com/sports/bulls/2021/02/25/the-real-reason-why-usfs-facilities-upgrades-are-so-critical/

From The Tampa Bay Times

 

What’s ironic is the leadership in the two regions is exactly the opposite. Here in Orlando, we’re wedded to the status quo (something somewhat unusual for us) and aggressive municipal leadership in Tampa and St. Pete has positioned them well for the future.

 

 

[AmIReal]

2 hours ago, spenser1058 said:

What’s ironic is the leadership in the two regions is exactly the opposite. Here in Orlando, we’re wedded to the status quo (something somewhat unusual for us) and aggressive municipal leadership in Tampa and St. Pete has positioned them well for the future.

What a well reasoned perspective with a perfectly clear line of rational thought. Your brilliant idea of drawing a correlation with how various local Universities manage their sports program to how the local governments and the local voters decide the direction they want to pursue is groundbreaking. Bravo for your contribution to useless discourse. Hopefully you can bring that same "unique" view to your new hometown and help them fix their woes, since the people of Orlando are obviously to backwards to appreciate your genius. 

[spenser1058]

UCF Baseball beats Ole Miss, the #1 team in the country, 3-2. Charge On!

[spenser1058]

Woohoo! Our Knights split a double-header with #1 Ole Miss today, coming up short 6-5 today but showing their stuff tonight with a 7-2 win. That makes us carry the series 2-1. Charge On!

Unlike Buddy’s tired old Orlando, UCF Athletics is on the move again. Amazing what bringing in new talent periodically can do. 
 

 

Edited February 28, 2021 by spenser1058

[spenser1058]

When the playing field’s just a little more level, UCF rules the roost. The SEC: it just means less when it comes to Baseball:

https://twitter.com/ericdesalvo/status/1365857768129900544?s=12

 

Edited February 28, 2021 by spenser1058

[spenser1058]

UCF women’s hoops are going to the Big Dance. #10 seed UCF will play #7 Northwestern in the opening round in San Antonio. Charge On!

[spenser1058]

It’s interesting to note that the American has as many teams going to the Elite Eight as the SEC (“It Just Means the Same?”).

Also, remember how UCONN ditched the American because the Big East was a much better hoops league? It seems that conference has zero among the eight.

Finally, two tidbits: the PAC-10 seems to be done napping with 3 teams(!) and 7 of the 8 teams are from west of the Mississippi, which seems to be a first.

[spenser1058]

UCF gets a school record five players into the 2021 NFL draft. From the players’ perspective it’s all about going to the pros and no reason you can’t do that if you sign on with the Hometown National Champions. Charge On with the Gus Bus!

https://www.orlandosentinel.com/sports/ucf-knights/os-sp-ucf-football-nfl-draft-recap-20210430-iuqtnwrxfnhdfdjosrq2pkjb5u-story.html

From The Sentinel 

[spenser1058]

Our Men’s Soccer team moves on to the Sweet 16. Charge On!

[spenser1058]

UCF now has the 15th most popular affinity plate in the state - we’re 4200 ahead of Da U (we’re still way behind UF and FSU but we’re trending in the right direction). Power6! 

Of course, we own the CFX College E-Pass numbers. Do you have your KnightPass yet?

BTW, the Endless Summer is the #1 affinity plate in Florida - must be all those wannabe surfers.
 

[spenser1058]

Was this week’s Charge On! Tour in Orlando for the local stop? Ummm, no, it was in BEAUTIFUL Oviedo!

[spenser1058]

Wayne Densch UCF Football Facility update:

https://ucfknights.exposure.co/wayne-densch-ucf-football-facility-update

From UCF 

Let’s all chug a Bud in memory of dear departed brother Wayne!
 

[spenser1058]

Central Florida is a hotbed of high school football talent (arguably #3 after South Florida and Tampa Bay in a state that is second in the country after Texas for recruits).

For whatever reason, Coach Heup let most of our talent slip away to other schools during the last few years. The Gus Bus is working hard to fix that (should we note both Blake Bortles and Daunte Culpepper were local guys?)

Here’s a story of one incredibly talented local, Zane Durant, a student at Lake Nona, who the new staff is trying hard to keep in town:

https://www.si.com/college/ucf/.amp/university-of-central-florida-football-recruiting/zane-durant-updates-his-recruitment

From Sports Illustrated 
 

[spenser1058]

I remember back in 2017 when this all started to get moving in the Bounce House and so many folks here at UP and elsewhere said, “nahh, it’ll never happen. it won’t change.”

Now, it’s well on its way to a 12-team playoff (even more than I expected). It’s a good moment to remember that if someone wants to make change (in that case new AD Danny White), it’s mostly a matter of will.

It’s something folks in Orlando need to recognize more often rather than getting stuck in 18-year ruts.

UCF coach Gus Malzahn calls possible Playoff expansion a “game-changer” for Knights
https://www.orlandosentinel.com/sports/college-gridiron-365/os-sp-college-football-playoff-expansion-20210610-mzqzgajitnci7k5oyjqc5c5lty-story.html

From The Sentinel 

 

 

Edited June 11, 2021 by spenser1058

[spenser1058]

I also maintained that the bottom dwellers who occupy the P5 would encounter a rude awakening as time goes by. Former UCF Head Coach George O’Leary often referred to the schools who were mostly there to “collect a check”.

It seemed to me that the sports networks like ESPN would push to change conference affiliations and depose of those schools in marginal media markets.

Of course, the rise in streaming will change that metric for the networks. Now, the teams that have the strongest fan bases may be the ones who prosper.

There’s a new wrinkle, however, as pointed out Bianchi in the Sentinel. NIL legislation is going to make the school’s location even more important as the players seek to build their brand.

If you’re trying to do that, are you really more likely to choose to play in Starkville than Orlando?

Especially with the proposed CFP expansion. Schools like UCF will now be more likely to snag a spot and prosper than the Vanderbilts. That’s a huge change.

Don’t get me wrong - the top SEC contenders, B1G Clemson and ND will still have the advantage,  The G5, however, can build teams. In 2020, for example, just based on the six highest-ranking champions, Cincinnati and Coastal Carolina would have cleared the threshold and the PAC-12 would not have.

Of course, the at-large spaces still leave plenty of room for the tomfoolery for which the CFP is infamous, but it will matter a lot less. For that matter, so will the artificial division between P5 and G5.

’Bama will still be ‘Bama but also-rans like Vandy will only have a leg up on money that somehow they have managed to squander all these years. Meanwhile, UCF, Cincy and Boise State all do much more with a lot less. Knowing how Disney (ESPN) works, over time I expect they’ll address that as well.

Edited June 13, 2021 by spenser1058

[AmIReal]

11 hours ago, spenser1058 said:

I also maintained that the bottom dwellers who occupy the P5 would encounter a rude awakening as time goes by. Former UCF Head Coach George O’Leary often referred to the schools who were mostly there to “collect a check”.

It seemed to me that the sports networks like ESPN would push to change conference affiliations and depose of those schools in marginal media markets.

Of course, the rise in streaming will change that metric for the networks. Now, the teams that have the strongest fan bases may be the ones who prosper.

There’s a new wrinkle, however, as pointed out Bianchi in the Sentinel. NIL legislation is going to make the school’s location even more important as the players seek to build their brand.

If you’re trying to do that, are you really more likely to choose to play in Starkville than Orlando?

Especially with the proposed CFP expansion. Schools like UCF will now be more likely to snag a spot and prosper than the Vanderbilts. That’s a huge change.

Don’t get me wrong - the top SEC contenders, B1G Clemson and ND will still have the advantage,  The G5, however, can build teams. In 2020, for example, just based on the six highest-ranking champions, Cincinnati and Coastal Carolina would have cleared the threshold and the PAC-12 would not have.

Of course, the at-large spaces still leave plenty of room for the tomfoolery for which the CFP is infamous, but it will matter a lot less. For that matter, so will the artificial division between P5 and G5.

’Bama will still be ‘Bama but also-rans like Vandy will only have a leg up on money that somehow they have managed to squander all these years. Meanwhile, UCF, Cincy and Boise State all do much more with a lot less. Knowing how Disney (ESPN) works, over time I expect they’ll address that as well.

I'm not only excited about what this means for UCF (and other deserving schools), but also what it means for the Citus Bowl (oops Camping World) and the downtown businesses. Wouldn't you think our stadium would be high on the list to host additional bowl games.

[spenser1058]

13 minutes ago, AmIReal said:

I'm not only excited about what this means for UCF (and other deserving schools), but also what it means for the Citus Bowl (oops Camping World) and the downtown businesses. Wouldn't you think our stadium would be high on the list to host additional bowl games.

Probably too early to tell but I’m all for it.

[jack]

15 hours ago, AmIReal said:

I'm not only excited about what this means for UCF (and other deserving schools), but also what it means for the Citus Bowl (oops Camping World) and the downtown businesses. Wouldn't you think our stadium would be high on the list to host additional bowl games.

It will always be the Citrus Bowl. But I still refer the where the dolphins play as Joe Robbie. 

[spenser1058]

So, it seems Free Shoes University likes the idea of a 12-team CFP also:

https://floridastate.rivals.com/news/clark-anything-is-better-than-current-college-football-playoff-format
 

From The Warchant

(I promise I’ll get their name right when they figure ours out. Proper nomenclature for us is UCF, NOT Central Florida.)

[spenser1058]

CBS Sports ranks DG a Top Tier quarterback and #3 of those ranked:

https://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/ranking-the-2021-college-football-quarterbacks-in-tiers-from-heisman-contenders-to-up-and-comers/
 

Imagine what he can do this year with a good coach - Charge On!

(I like that we’re sending our faltering coaches first to the B1G and now the SEC)

[spenser1058]

12-team CFP clears another hurdle:

'Summer review phase' to test prospects, timing of 12-team College Football Playoff
https://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/31687454/summer-review-phase-test-prospects-timing-12-team-college-football-playoff

From ESPN 

 

Before you know it, @jrs2 will be ready to Charge On!

[spenser1058]

Is UCF the new Miami? SI thinks so:

https://www.si.com/college/ucf/.amp/university-of-central-florida-football-recruiting/ucf-versus-miami-recruiting-battles
 

Charge On!

[spenser1058]

WWE Star Titus O’Neil’s son TJ Bullard has created a bit of a celebrity stir by committing to UCF. Best of all, we coaxed him over from the Cows’ own backyard - he’s a Tampa lad (Berkeley Prep):

https://www.blackandgoldbanneret.com/football/2021/6/28/22553467/tj-bullard-commit-ucf-football-titus-oneil-terry-crews-plies-ken-jeong-wwe-knights-recruiting

From Black & Gold Banneret/SB Nation

Charge On!

 

Edited June 28, 2021 by spenser1058

[spenser1058]

As predicted, with the departure of AD Moos from Nebraska, Coach Frosty is on the hot seat.

How far he’s fallen since he led UCF’s National Championship team.

At the time, I predicted that schools like Nebraska no longer made sense for recruits. Further, taking a ride in a storied conference ain’t gonna pay the bills in the world of NIL and bottom-dwelling in the B1G. Truth is, Nebraska no longer offers players anything they can’t get in a much better place.

Sure, there will be exceptions. The Ohio States and ‘Bama of the world will be fine. But a program in a state with miserable weather and whose population is barely growing is not the future, no matter how outstanding its legacy once was. 

College football is changing and the schools that don’t change with it won’t be on anyone’s screens for long.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/ncaafb/embattled-nebraska-coach-scott-frost-should-have-taken-gators-job-or-stayed-at-ucf-commentary/ar-AALytkd

From The Sentinel