Kim Klement-Imagn Images

Scott Frost Sends Clear Message on Next UCF Quarterback

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Jonathan D Adams | Last updated Feb 13, 2025 7:20 AM ET

UCF Knights head coach Scott Frost broke his silence months after being hired to return to Orlando, Fla. One of the looming questions for UCF heading into the college football season is what the Knights will do at quarterback.

The Knights ended 2024 with Dylan Rizk as the team's starting quarterback and the signal-caller remains on the roster. UCF also made a significant addition by signing former Indiana Hoosiers quarterback Tayven Jackson via the transfer portal.

Frost made it clear that the Knights are heading towards a quarterback competition in the coming months. The UCF coach spoke highly of Jackson and admitted that the signal-caller is a player he had been targeting since his time with the Nebraska Cornhuskers.

Yet, Frost stopped short of naming Jackson as the Knights starting quarterback, adding that the signal-caller will need to "earn his job."

Tayven Jackson takes it in himself to make it 65-0, @IndianaFootball pic.twitter.com/uBHC7LGQCc
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) December 1, 2024

“We're excited to have Tay along with all the other quarterbacks that we have," Frost noted during a press conference on Wednesday. "We've had a few meetings with guys and we're starting to install offense and [have had] very little interaction with him so far.

"Obviously, I was a fan of his going back to when we recruited him out of high school and he's going to have a really good opportunity just like everybody else here to show what he can do and try to earn his job and earn a spot.”

Tayven Jackson to Cam Camper is automatic #iufb pic.twitter.com/Y3KDZCxWGz
— Dan Olinger (@dan_olinger) September 25, 2023

As for what Frost is looking for in the Knights QB1, the UCF coach outlined some of the deciding factors for a quarterback to win the job.

LETS GOOOOOO!!! #GKCO
— DYLAN RIZK (@dylanrizk11) December 7, 2024

“I suppose the number one characteristic is somebody that's just a playmaker and finds a way to win regardless of the situation,” Frost said of UCF's future quarterback.

Jackson was a consensus four-star prospect and the No. 7 ranked quarterback in the 2022 recruiting class, per Rivals.com. The quarterback began his college football career with the Tennessee Volunteers before transferring to Indiana in 2023.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: