The re-invention of Scott Frost

by | Jan 24, 2025 | 1 comment

Home E Features E The re-invention of Scott Frost

Knights head coach settling in back at home, again

A timeout at the 7:59 mark in the first half of a college basketball typically goes by without much fanfare, save for your occasional baby race or find the hidden ball game on the jumbotron. But for the UCF Knights, that very moment at the most recent basketball game against Houston signaled something more important than an update on the 50/50 raffle.

While watching the video above and countless others on social media, I couldn’t help but be struck with a sense of nostalgia and, maybe more important, an appreciation for second chances. A new opportunity to chase an old dream. And in the case of Knights Head Football Coach Scott Frost, a chance to prove he can lead a college football program to success again. Now, it’s totally fair to approach this second act with a healthy amount of skepticism, and it’s also fair to point out that a celebration might be premature as the Frost 2.0 era hasn’t even played a down of football, but it was hard to miss that even Nebraska fans were struck by this moment.

In my recent interview with Mitch Sherman from The Athletic, it was clear that Frost had several missteps during his time in Lincoln. Chief among them, according to Sherman, was his guardedness:

“Scott came in and he was very guarded… I saw some of that guardedness and just the way that his personality worked in that setting where the spotlight was on him and everybody wanted a piece of him, and it’s never really been something that he was super comfortable with.”

Second chances often come with periods of reflection and introspection, and in the case of Coach Frost, the interaction on Saturday just might serve as the avatar for his rebirth into coaching and being the face of a program. The smile, the scruffy beard, the hat pulled low towards his eyes all feel very familiar to UCF fans and somewhat foreign to the folks back in Lincoln.

Sherman offered this perspective: “He didn’t do much out with the people. He definitely did support the other sports… but I don’t recall him sitting in the middle of the crowd like that. He was more likely to sit in a suite.”

So far, the only thing that has been sweet is the beginning of the redemption arc of Scott Frost 2.0. It started with the opening press conference, the accumulation of a familial coaching staff, and now the man of the people public appearance. When you think about it from a logical standpoint, there are likely things in all of our lives where we would want a mulligan. The fact that Coach Frost has that opportunity in front of him and that we all get to go along for the ride has the potential to be special. But it will only work if we get authentic Frost, or as Sherman described him, UCF Scott:

“People who were around him at both places would say like, well there was the UCF Scott, who was like this cool guy who seemed like kind of carefree and at times he just let it all flow”

If Saturday’s appearance is any indication, then maybe Frost can challenge the old proverb by author Thomas Wolfe, who famously said you can’t go home again, which defined means, if you try to return to a place from your past, it won’t be the same as it was.

Who knows, maybe it could be better.

Welcome back Scott.

About Adam
Adam is one of the founding members of the Sons of UCF having started the original podcast in 2018. Since then, Adam has worked with some talented folks to create more UCF content through podcasts, YouTube videos, and the Sons of UCF LIVE. A two time alumnus, Adam enjoys talking all things UCF whenever possible. Follow Adam @SonsofUCF on most social channels, or email SonsofUCFpodcast@gmail.com

1 Comment

  1. dan r cundiff

    Superb!!!!!!!