Knights navigating for ninth Space Game victory

Photo courtesy of Aryah Britt

UCF hopes to stay strong after its historic win over No. 2 BYU; Jenkins will lead the Knights as they face Baylor on Friday at the Acrisure Bounce House for its 10th annual Space Game.

The Knights (4-3, 2-2 Big 12) are coming off a historic 39-31 upset over then-No. 2 BYU, now ranked No. 8 in the AP Top 25 College Football Poll, and hope to carry that momentum into Friday’s matchup.

Both programs will face off for the fourth time in each program’s history.

The last time the Knights took down the Bears (4-3, 2-2 Big 12) was in the 2014 Fiesta Bowl, where then-No. 15 UCF came away with a 52-42 upset against No. 6 Baylor. The upset was also UCF’s highest-ranked victory before last Saturday’s thriller.

The two programs have met each other twice since the 2014 clash. Last season, the Knights suffered an abysmal defeat, losing 30-3 on the road in Waco, Texas.

The last time Baylor made the trip to Orlando on Sept. 30, 2023, the Knights suffered what fans widely regard as one of the biggest heartbreaks in program history. Leading 35-7 in the third quarter, the Bears clawed back with 29 unanswered points in the fourth to win 36-35.

With Baylor returning to UCF for its 10th annual Space Game, the Knights will look to secure their ninth win in its history. UCF held an eight-game winning streak in the annual contest, but that streak ended after a narrow 30-27 loss to Houston last season.

Baylor will head into the matchup with interim head coach Joe Klanderman, the defensive coordinator, after parting ways with former head coach Dave Aranda on Oct. 25.

Despite the turmoil, head coach Scott Frost anticipates the Knights will face a “motivated” Baylor team.

“We got to play with the same intensity that we played with Saturday,” Frost said during Monday availability. “There’s been a lot of teams that have won big games and not played as well the next week. So, that’s a challenge for us.”

After a strong performance from senior quarterback Keyone Jenkins, questions arose about whether redshirt senior Alonza Barnett III would be ready to go and whether Jenkins has shown enough to maintain the starting job.

Frost told the media that Jenkins will start for his sixth straight game, also mentioning that Barnett could play but is not 100%.

“He’s the hot hand right now,” Frost said. “He played a special game on Saturday; made the plays we needed. He’s just capitalized on his opportunity and has used the reps to keep playing better and better.”

Jenkins posted 293 yards and three touchdowns on 25 completions in Saturday’s contest. He also tallied 35 yards on the ground and a rushing touchdown.

Along with Jenkins, true freshman wide receiver Tyren Hornes had a huge impact in Saturday’s upset victory. In his first start, he caught 6 passes for 137 yards, earning him 247Sports True Freshman of the Week.

Hornes spoke about his connection with Jenkins and how they’ve grown closer since Jenkins was handling second-team roles in camp.

He also said the mindset going forward remains the same as the group knows what it’s capable of.

“We come in every day fighting,” Hornes said. “As a team, we all had the same mindset going into the game against BYU that we believed we could win that game.”

The Knights’ poise will be tested as they host the Baylor Bears this Friday at 7:30 p.m. in the Acrisure Bounce House.