It’s been less than two days since the Gasparilla Bowl came to a close, and for some UCF fans, the pain of their team’s defeat is still raw.
Let’s take a closer look at what went wrong for UCF during their game against Georgia Tech in Tampa, where they suffered a 30-17 loss.
In the first half of the game, UCF started strong and led 14-0 going into the second quarter. They scored quickly with a four-play, 51-yard drive that resulted in a touchdown pass from John Rhys Plumlee to Javon Baker. After forcing a three-and-out on defense, the Knights went on a 10-play, 98-yard drive that ended with another Plumlee touchdown pass, this time to Kobe Hudson.
The UCF offense was led by a three-man group consisting of Plumlee with 230 total yards (198 passing and 32 rushing), R.J. Harvey with 120 yards rushing and an average of eight yards per carry, and Javon Baker with nine receptions for 173 yards and a touchdown. However, the team struggled to spread the ball around and only these three players had a significant impact on the game.
UCF lost the turnover battle with a Timmy McClain interception and an R.J. Harvey fumble. The UCF Knights, unfortunately, have been arguably the most inconsistent team in the Big 12.
Georgia Tech made several adjustments on defense and a few on offense during the second half of the game, which helped them shut down JRP and UCF’s explosive offense. Throughout the second half, UCF couldn’t score a single point, and Georgia Tech outscored them 13-0. At the beginning of the second half, UCF and Georgia Tech were tied, but after that, the Yellow Jackets scored and never looked back.
UCF’s inconsistencies caught up with them as they failed to make any adjustments during the second half. The Knights defense is typically smothering, but they couldn’t get to the QB during the game, unlike the Yellow Jackets, who got to JRP three times.
UCF struggled during the game and had to use timeouts, take a delay of game, and suffer accidental penalties in crucial situations, which made things worse for them.
During the game, UCF had many costly penalties and looked lost at times. They failed to make certain adjustments that could have helped them. Additionally, they missed a lot of tackles throughout the game. Despite being in the backfield for most of the game, the Knights were unable to bring down Tech’s QB, Haynes King. Unfortunately, UCF couldn’t get out of their own way, and their inconsistencies caught up to them this week.
UCF had the opportunity to establish themselves as a relevant team, as they would end their first Big 12 season with a 7-6 record. However, they end the year with a 6-7 record, which is not ideal.
Nonetheless, they have extended Coach Gus Malzahn and have had a top-20 recruiting class so far this year. On the other hand, Georgia Tech has ended with a 7-6 record and has aspirations to play in a bowl game next year.