UCF

The UCF Knights football team represents the University of Central Florida (UCF) in the sport of American football. The Knights compete in the Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and are a member of the Big 12 Conference in July of 2023, making UCF the youngest school among the Power Five conferences. Their head coach is Gus Malzahn. The Knights play their home games at the 45,301-seat FBC Mortgage Stadium, which is located on UCF's main campus near Orlando, Florida, United States. UCF first fielded a varsity football team in the fall of 1979 as an NCAA Division III program and subsequently completed their ascension to Division I–A, now known as the Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), in 1996, becoming the first program in NCAA history to have played in all four divisions of football (and the only one until James Madison joined FBS in 2022). As a Division I–AA program, the Knights made the 1990 and 1993 playoffs, and were picked as the preseason No. 1 team to start the 1994 season. As of the end of the 2021 season, UCF has compiled 278 victories, six division titles, six conference championships, and an undefeated season in 2017. The Knights claim a national championship for the 2017 season despite being excluded from that season's College Football Playoff, as they were chosen as the #1 team by the Colley Matrix. The Knights have made 14 postseason appearances since joining the FBS, including winning two New Year's Six bowls: the 2014 Fiesta Bowl and the 2018 Peach Bowl. The program has produced one Consensus All-American, Kevin Smith in 2007, and three Heisman Trophy candidates, Daunte Culpepper (QB) in 1998, Kevin Smith (RB) in 2007, and McKenzie Milton (QB) in 2017 and 2018. UCF has produced a long line of accomplished NFL players, including Blake Bortles, A. J. Bouye, Gabe Davis, Shaquill Griffin, Charley Hughlett, Brandon Marshall, Latavius Murray, Matt Prater, Asante Samuel, and Josh Sitton. UCF has had four first-round picks in the NFL Draft, 16 Super Bowl players, and seven pro-bowlers. The Knights' main rivals are the South Florida Bulls.