Three UCF Football Offensive Players to Watch for 2025 Season

The UCF Knights offense put up some great numbers in key areas last season, even as they were unable to secure a bowl bid. 

Here was how the UCF offense ranked last season in FBS:

Points per game: 30.4 (No. 49)

Rushing yards per game: 248.1 (No. 5)

Passing yards per game: 199.7 (No. 97)

Total yards per game: 447.8 (No. 14).

Scott Frost is back in the saddle at UCF, but he only has one returning starter from last year’s offense.

Here are three offensive players to keep an eye on for the UCF Knights.

QB Tayven Jackson

The Knights don’t have a returning starter here, but they do have a returning player in Jacurri Brown. That most preview publications see Jackson as the favorite to start the season should tell you how highly those publications respect Brown.

For the record, Brown threw for 398 yards last season. Jackson, who transferred in from Indiana, threw for 349 yards last season in mop-up duty for a team that made the College Football Playoff. He did start one game against Washington.

Like Brown, he’s a dual-threat quarterback. He by no means has a lock on the job, but many preview publications see him as the player with the highest upside in offensive coordinator Steve Cooper’s offense.

With all the new-ness in Orlando, he’s as good a bet behind center as anyone else.

RB Jaden Nixon

Assuming Cooper remains as committed to the run as the Knights were a season ago, then Nixon chose his transfer destination wisely. The former Western Michigan Bronco rushed for 921 yards and 12 touchdowns last season.

That came when he transferred to the Kalamazoo Mich.-based school after three seasons at Oklahoma State where he was stuck behind some guy named Ollie Gordon III.

So, he understands the Big 12 on a basic level. That’s good news. He’s 5-foot-10, 185 pounds, so Cooper must work get him out into space. But at least he has a track record of production.

RT Paul Rubelt

Rubelt is the only returning starter from a season ago and, goodness, he can block out the sun. He’s 6-foot-10 (not a typo) and 330 pounds. It’s rare an offense has a lineman the quarterback must throw around as opposed to over.

He graded out at 78.7% in pass blocking, the second best among starters. He helped make RJ Harvey a star, who is now in the NFL. Now, Rubelt get a chance to impress NFL scouts as he starts his senior season.

He also gets to bring along an offensive line that will have at least three transfers in the starting lineup.