(Photo by Adrian J. Hernandez / New Day Review)
ORLANDO, Fla. - As Hurricane Irma ravaged the state of Florida, the University of Central Florida was put in a strange position. As the rest of the country was playing out their respective schedules, the Knights were at home waiting out a hurricane after canceling their second and third games of the year.
For UCF sophomore center Jordan Johnson, the start of Week 4 feels like the start of the season all over again.
“I wouldn’t say it’s frustrating, but, I mean, we’re all just anxious to play a football game again,” Johnson said during the team’s game-week presser on Sept. 18. “It’s been a while. It almost feels like we’re starting the season over. But I would just like to say we’re ready to go out there and play some football.”
UCF has not played a game since Aug. 31, beating Florida International University 61-17 in both teams’ season-opener. The Knights’ Week 2 matchup against the University of Memphis was originally scheduled for Sept. 9 before being moved to Sept. 8. It was ultimately called off and rescheduled, again, for Sept. 30, replacing the game against the University of Maine, because of Florida governor Rick Scott’s order to close all Florida universities in preparation for Irma. Week 3 against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets was also cancelled but has not been rescheduled.
With that long of a break in between games, rust can become a problem. And with UCF traveling to face the University of Maryland and the No. 2 scoring offense in the country on Saturday, adjusting to game speed may become an issue. However, head coach Scott Frost doesn’t think rust will be a problem.
“Well, if [Monday’s] practice is any indication, I feel really good about our players being able to dial back in,” Frost said at the team’s game-week press conference on Sept. 18. “Their desire to play football and their hunger to go out and compete is gonna drive ’em to work.
“Thursday and Friday were a little bit sloppy and a little bit rusty, but today was as good a Monday as we’ve had. So, that speaks a lot to how mature our team is compared to last year and how they handle this whole thing. The rest of this week’s preparation needs to look like today. If it does, we’ll have a good chance.”
Not playing a game in the month of September yet can have its perks, however. The Knights have had a chance to get fresh legs, recovery from Week 1 knocks and, most notably, build team chemistry.
“Nah, it gave us—it was helpful for us, you know, from the first game, injuries or little nicks and knacks,” redshirt senior inside linebacker Chequan Burkett said at the team’s game-week press conference on Sept. 18. “It gave us time to heal. Gave us time to get in our playbook. Gave us time to bond more as a team with the hurricane, everyone being together. Gave us time to lift, get stronger, lift more weights, so it’s just a big plus for us.”
This unexpected break in the action for UCF has also given the Knights a chance to brush up on their playbook and study more tape on Maryland.
“Our coaches just really just been telling us that make sure you get in the playbook and making sure, just, we’re watching film pretty much ‘cause he said Maryland’s gonna be a top-25 team,” junior wide receiver Cam Stewart said at the team’s game-week press conference on Sept. 18. “And so he was like we really need to, you know, focus in on our assignments this weekend and try to take it to ‘em on Saturday.”
The Knights started practicing again on Sept. 14 for the first time in a week. All the time off has given UCF more energy and has the Knights prepared for this weekend’s game.
“Everyone’s looking good,” Stewart said. “We’re flying around, and we’re still shaking off the rust just a little bit, but we’re dialed in this weekend, and we’re ready to take on Maryland.”
For more on the Knights and their preparation for Maryland, follow Ryan Weiss on Twitter at @NDR_RyanWeiss.
