UCF coach Gus Malzahn firing his DC isn’t his only coaching change

The UCF football program has suddenly dropped to 3-5 after losing its fifth straight game in Week 9. Things have gone downhill quickly for the Knights despite a 3-0 start to the year.

As a result, head coach Gus Malzahn decided to fire defensive coordinator Ted Roof. On top of that, Malzhan is also switching up the playcalling duties, giving it to Tim Harris instead of Malzahn himself, per Dan Morrison of On3.

‘Amid a five-game losing streak, the UCF Knights are making changes to the coaching staff. Head coach Gus Malzahn announced that Tim Harris Jr. is going to take over the playcalling duties moving forward for the Knights.’

After the news came, Malzahn revealed it was his decision to move on from Roof and to hand over the playcalling duties to Harris.

“Offensively, Tim Harris is gonna take over playcalling duties the rest of the season,” Gus Malzahn said. “Real excited for Tim. He’s a rising star. He’s been waiting on this moment. Gonna allow me to be taking care of more of the head coaching duties, which there is more demands on the head coach this day and time than ever before. It’ll help me be on top of all three phases…Our players have a lot of confidence in Tim.”

The UCF offense has bounced back in recent weeks with 59 combined points. However, in the three games prior, they scored 27 combined with two straight games of 13 points, so it has been a rough go on offense this season.

The UCF football team faces Arizona and then Arizona State before a Week 12 bye, but they need to get back on the winning track if they want any hopes of making a bowl game. UCF finishes the season after the bye with games against West Virginia and Utah, so they have to win at least three to become bowl-eligible.