UCF Football Preview 2025: Knights Season Prediction, Win Total Projection, Top Players

X CFN, Fiu | CFN Facebook | Bluesky Fiu, CFN

2025 UCF Preview
UCF Offense Breakdown
UCF Defense Breakdown 

UCF Knights Key to the Season

Complete more passes and stop the run.
The two went together last year, and it’ll still matter after all the changes.

When you run an offense as fast as last year’s UCF team was, and will be this year under Scott Frost, you’ll never win the time of possession battle. That’s fine, but if you only hit 58% of your passes, that defense is coming back on the field a bit too soon.

UCF was 0-8 when allowing 85 rushing yards or more, 4-0 when it didn’t. The offense also averaged 67% completion in those four wins.

UCF Knights Key Player

Tayven Jackson, QB Jr.
Or Cam Fincher, or JacurrI Brown. This doesn’t work right away without a consistently great quarterback. KJ Jefferson was a wonderful get for UCF, but he missed most of the season. Four different Knights threw at least 16 passes, and there was never any consistency.

Jackson looked like the future of Indiana football early in 2023, but got benched halfway through the campaign. Last year, he stepped up when needed in a win over Washington, but that was about it. Now he’s looking to take over the UCF offense.

UCF Knights Top Transfer, Biggest Transfer Loss

Top Transfer In: Carter Miller, C Jr.
He’s not massive, and there are plenty of other transfers coming in who’ll play huge roles, but he’s a solid all-around blocker who should quarterback the UCF line for the next two years after earning All-Sun Belt honors at ULM. He can play guard if needed.

Top Transfer Out: Lee Hunter, DT Sr.
Texas Tech is buying itself a whale of a team, and the 6-4, 320-pound All-Big 12 tackle is, literally, a big piece of the puzzle. He leaves Orlando having made 131 tackles with five sacks and 22 tackles for loss.

UCF Knights Key Game

North Carolina, Sept. 20
How long will it take for Scott Frost to turn this all around? The third game of the season will be a strong measuring stick.

The Knights will be 2-0 after beating Jacksonville State and North Carolina A&T. They get a week off before Bill Belichick and the Tar Heels come to town. It would be a great win to get before diving into Big 12 play at Kansas State.
- 2025 UCF Schedule Breakdown

UCF Knights Top 10 Players

1. Nyjalik Kelly, EDGE Sr.
2. Phillip Dunnam, S Jr.
3. Carter Miller, C Jr.
4. Keli Lawson, LB Sr.
5. Isaiah Reed, CB Sr.
6. Myles Montgomery, RB Sr.
7. Sincere Edwards, EDGE Soph.
8. Jalen Nixon, RB Sr.
9. Malachi Lawrence, EDGE Sr.
10. Chris Domercant, WR Sr. 

UCF Knights 2024 Fun Stats

- Fumbles: UCF 15 (lost 8), Opponents 10 (lost 2)

- UCF Scoring: 1st Quarter 58, 2nd Quarter 119

- Rushing TDs: UCF. 33, Opponents 14

UCF Knights 2025 Season Prediction, Win Total, What Will Happen

Last year’s team was closer to 6-6 than it was to anything worse than 4-8.

It played Arizona State well, lost to BYU by seven, dropped a date at Iowa State by three, and in all four losses were by a score or less. Three of the four wins were by double digits.

This year’s team has too many moving parts to make a massive jump - UCF isn’t going to party like it’s 2017 - and there’s the issue of the Big 12 being better.

Kansas is stronger. Cincinnati and Baylor are good, and both of those games are on the road. Away dates against Texas Tech, Kansas State, and BYU are all lean-loss, and …

There’s no Arizona State, Iowa State, or TCU this year. All three of those Big 12 teams are terrific. Utah should be a favorite to take the conference title, and it’s off the slate. So is Arizona, and so is Colorado.

UCF will be at least two wins better, and it’ll go to a bowl game. There will be losses to teams that Knight fans won’t give any respect to - really, Baylor, Kansas, Cincinnati, and Houston are dangerous - but it’ll be a step-forward year.

Remember, Frost went 6-7 in his first season taking over in 2016.

Set The UCF Win Total At … 6

Likely Wins: Jacksonville State, North Carolina A&T

50/50 Games: at Baylor, at BYU, at Cincinnati, Houston, Kansas, at Kansas State, North Carolina, Oklahoma State, at Texas Tech, West Virginia

Likely Losses: No projected sure-thing losses 

2025 UCF Preview
UCF Offense Breakdown
UCF Defense Breakdown