***Quadric Bullard 'irritated' by SMU result last season ⚔🏈
- By Brandon
- The Dungeon - Knights Only
- 7 Replies
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UCF safety Quadric Bullard is thinking a lot about last year's game at SMU while the Knights prepare for this upcoming meeting against the Mustangs, which will be their American Athletic Conference opener.
Last Nov. 13 in Dallas, SMU rolled to a 55-28 victory which included 631 yards of total offense.
"SMU put it on us last year," Bullard said. "Us as a team, we don't take that lightly... What irritates me the most is how many yards and points they put on us as a defense. As we go through film, it's going to bother the whole defense and put a fire under us that we can't let this happen again."
This year's SMU team is coached by Rhett Lashlee as former coach Sonny Dykes is now coaching at nearby TCU. The Mustangs are 2-2 with wins against North Texas and Lamar and losses to Maryland and TCU.
The Mustangs rank No. 14 nationally in total offense averaging 506.2 yards per game. Quarterback Tanner Mordecai is third in the nation averaging 346.25 yards per game.
"Their offense is very fast," Bullard said. "My freshman year I saw Coach (Josh) Heupel's offense and he was fast, but that's nothing compared to SMU."
UCF meanwhile ranks No. 1 nationally in red zone defense, No. 12 in scoring defense (13.50) and No. 30 in total defense (313.0).
Bullard credits their defensive success to being more comfortable in the second year under defensive coordinator Travis Williams and also said the defensive players are much closer as a unit.
Bullard is also a star on special teams. He blocked a punt and scooped and scored in the South Carolina State opener, then scored another touchdown against Georgia Tech thanks to a Jarvis Ware punt block.
What does it take to block a punt?
"On the field from a fan's point of view it might look easy, but there's a lot of moving parts for the blocked punt to happen," Bullard said. "One person has to be the diversion and another person the blocker. In this past game, I was the diversion instead of the blocker. Jarvis Ware blocked the punt. If he doesn't block that punt, the game might be different.
"(When the punt is blocked) I'm hoping I get a good bounce and don't kick it out of bounds or something like that. When it's in your hands, the first thing you're looking for is who's in front of me? Enemy or teammate? When I saw my teammates, I was like I've got a certified touchdown right here.
"That was a huge momentum shift. Georgia Tech was going to have the ball coming out at half. So we were going to be down 7-6. Putting us up (right before halftime) flipped the momentum of the game."
Many UCF players are wearing performance contact lenses this season. Bullard explained the trend.
"We have two pairs (available to us), red and green," Bullard said. "The red ones are more for color enhancement. The green are more like shades. I don't need color enhancement. I just need to block out the sun. The contacts help us in our performance on the field.
"So the green ones work as shades. Say the ball is in the air, the receiver can't see it because the sun is in his eyes. The green contacts block out the glare of the sun and give you a clear image of the ball so you can make the catch.
"I'd say the majority of us use them. I love those contacts. If I had a choice to use them every day I would."
UCF safety Quadric Bullard is thinking a lot about last year's game at SMU while the Knights prepare for this upcoming meeting against the Mustangs, which will be their American Athletic Conference opener.
Last Nov. 13 in Dallas, SMU rolled to a 55-28 victory which included 631 yards of total offense.
"SMU put it on us last year," Bullard said. "Us as a team, we don't take that lightly... What irritates me the most is how many yards and points they put on us as a defense. As we go through film, it's going to bother the whole defense and put a fire under us that we can't let this happen again."
This year's SMU team is coached by Rhett Lashlee as former coach Sonny Dykes is now coaching at nearby TCU. The Mustangs are 2-2 with wins against North Texas and Lamar and losses to Maryland and TCU.
The Mustangs rank No. 14 nationally in total offense averaging 506.2 yards per game. Quarterback Tanner Mordecai is third in the nation averaging 346.25 yards per game.
"Their offense is very fast," Bullard said. "My freshman year I saw Coach (Josh) Heupel's offense and he was fast, but that's nothing compared to SMU."
UCF meanwhile ranks No. 1 nationally in red zone defense, No. 12 in scoring defense (13.50) and No. 30 in total defense (313.0).
Bullard credits their defensive success to being more comfortable in the second year under defensive coordinator Travis Williams and also said the defensive players are much closer as a unit.
Bullard is also a star on special teams. He blocked a punt and scooped and scored in the South Carolina State opener, then scored another touchdown against Georgia Tech thanks to a Jarvis Ware punt block.
What does it take to block a punt?
"On the field from a fan's point of view it might look easy, but there's a lot of moving parts for the blocked punt to happen," Bullard said. "One person has to be the diversion and another person the blocker. In this past game, I was the diversion instead of the blocker. Jarvis Ware blocked the punt. If he doesn't block that punt, the game might be different.
"(When the punt is blocked) I'm hoping I get a good bounce and don't kick it out of bounds or something like that. When it's in your hands, the first thing you're looking for is who's in front of me? Enemy or teammate? When I saw my teammates, I was like I've got a certified touchdown right here.
"That was a huge momentum shift. Georgia Tech was going to have the ball coming out at half. So we were going to be down 7-6. Putting us up (right before halftime) flipped the momentum of the game."
Many UCF players are wearing performance contact lenses this season. Bullard explained the trend.
"We have two pairs (available to us), red and green," Bullard said. "The red ones are more for color enhancement. The green are more like shades. I don't need color enhancement. I just need to block out the sun. The contacts help us in our performance on the field.
"So the green ones work as shades. Say the ball is in the air, the receiver can't see it because the sun is in his eyes. The green contacts block out the glare of the sun and give you a clear image of the ball so you can make the catch.
"I'd say the majority of us use them. I love those contacts. If I had a choice to use them every day I would."
***Matt Lee looking for complete offensive game against SMU ⚔🏈
- By Brandon
- The Dungeon - Knights Only
- 2 Replies
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UCF center Matt Lee knows the offense wasn't hitting on all cylinders against Georgia Tech.
The Knights won 27-10, which is the most important thing. They did rush for 284 yards, but only scored one offensive touchdown. Freshman kicker Colton Boomer made sure they didn't leave the field without points, nailing all four of his field goal attempts.
"Just aware of the mistakes we made and knowing we've got to execute," Lee said. "Like Coach (Malzahn) said, I can think of five plays off the top of my head where if one thing is done different or we execute it's a long touchdown or we score without having ot kick a field goal. Knowing the mistakes we made across the board, and that's for the whole unit, we can all improve and make the plays when the time comes."
Overall, Lee said it's been a good first month for the offensive line.
"In the big picture, I think we've done a lot of good stuff and mostly done well," Lee said. "There's little stuff in protections that are easily fixable. When that moment comes in the game, we need to be able to seize it as a unit across the board."
He said the returners have jelled with the new transfer tackles.
"It's been good," Lee said. "Whenever you get new guys on the offensive line, there's a little bit of an adjustment in the communication. Through camp and these first four games I think it's been 100 percent good."
The running game has been stout, whether it's John Rhys Plumlee from the quarterback position or the top three running backs - Isaiah Bowser, Johnny Richardson and R.J. Harvey. He said their team goal is to rush for 250 yards per game, which they accomplished in every game except Louisville (208 yards).
Harvey has been a standout in the last two games.
"R.J. is a tough runner," Lee said. "He hits holes, breaks tackles and runs hard, gives his all out there. R.J. last year before he hurt his knee I think would have gotten a bunch of carries. So it's not a surprise now that he's healthy. He's been able to grow a little bit these past couple weeks. He's doing a great job."
Plumlee has integrated well within the team, Lee said.
"He's a tough guy. He's a real leader in his heart. Once he came in, he didn't have a problem getting into a leadership position. He says the right stuff around the team. He's been great. He's getting better every week, getting more comfortable in the position."
UCF recently made changes with their specialists. Colton Boomer is the new kicker and is a perfect 6-of-6 on field goals the past two games, which includes a long of 43 yards.
"He's freaking awesome, man," Lee said. "Boomer is a young dude that has been kicking good the whole time. He's gotten his opportunity and seized it. He was 4-for-4 (against Georgia Tech) and doing a great job."
Freshman Mitch McCarthy, a freshman yet older Australian, has taken over the punting duties. He's averaging 44.3 yards per punt with a long of 54 yards.
"The other day I was watching him and he was getting some far ones, truly flipping the field," Lee said. "Fans don't realize it, but it's a really good deal having a good kicker and punter. The kicker will get you points and the punter can do a lot for the defense."
UCF is still on to play SMU this weekend, now scheduled for Sunday at 1 p.m. The Mustangs pounded the Knights last season in Dallas to the tune of 55-28.
"They put it on us pretty good," Lee said. "They've got most of their guys back in the front seven. They have an older experienced group of veterans. Good players who play sound defense, hit their gaps right. We've got to be on our stuff making sure we're getting hats on hats and giving our backs the best opportunity."
UCF center Matt Lee knows the offense wasn't hitting on all cylinders against Georgia Tech.
The Knights won 27-10, which is the most important thing. They did rush for 284 yards, but only scored one offensive touchdown. Freshman kicker Colton Boomer made sure they didn't leave the field without points, nailing all four of his field goal attempts.
"Just aware of the mistakes we made and knowing we've got to execute," Lee said. "Like Coach (Malzahn) said, I can think of five plays off the top of my head where if one thing is done different or we execute it's a long touchdown or we score without having ot kick a field goal. Knowing the mistakes we made across the board, and that's for the whole unit, we can all improve and make the plays when the time comes."
Overall, Lee said it's been a good first month for the offensive line.
"In the big picture, I think we've done a lot of good stuff and mostly done well," Lee said. "There's little stuff in protections that are easily fixable. When that moment comes in the game, we need to be able to seize it as a unit across the board."
He said the returners have jelled with the new transfer tackles.
"It's been good," Lee said. "Whenever you get new guys on the offensive line, there's a little bit of an adjustment in the communication. Through camp and these first four games I think it's been 100 percent good."
The running game has been stout, whether it's John Rhys Plumlee from the quarterback position or the top three running backs - Isaiah Bowser, Johnny Richardson and R.J. Harvey. He said their team goal is to rush for 250 yards per game, which they accomplished in every game except Louisville (208 yards).
Harvey has been a standout in the last two games.
"R.J. is a tough runner," Lee said. "He hits holes, breaks tackles and runs hard, gives his all out there. R.J. last year before he hurt his knee I think would have gotten a bunch of carries. So it's not a surprise now that he's healthy. He's been able to grow a little bit these past couple weeks. He's doing a great job."
Plumlee has integrated well within the team, Lee said.
"He's a tough guy. He's a real leader in his heart. Once he came in, he didn't have a problem getting into a leadership position. He says the right stuff around the team. He's been great. He's getting better every week, getting more comfortable in the position."
UCF recently made changes with their specialists. Colton Boomer is the new kicker and is a perfect 6-of-6 on field goals the past two games, which includes a long of 43 yards.
"He's freaking awesome, man," Lee said. "Boomer is a young dude that has been kicking good the whole time. He's gotten his opportunity and seized it. He was 4-for-4 (against Georgia Tech) and doing a great job."
Freshman Mitch McCarthy, a freshman yet older Australian, has taken over the punting duties. He's averaging 44.3 yards per punt with a long of 54 yards.
"The other day I was watching him and he was getting some far ones, truly flipping the field," Lee said. "Fans don't realize it, but it's a really good deal having a good kicker and punter. The kicker will get you points and the punter can do a lot for the defense."
UCF is still on to play SMU this weekend, now scheduled for Sunday at 1 p.m. The Mustangs pounded the Knights last season in Dallas to the tune of 55-28.
"They put it on us pretty good," Lee said. "They've got most of their guys back in the front seven. They have an older experienced group of veterans. Good players who play sound defense, hit their gaps right. We've got to be on our stuff making sure we're getting hats on hats and giving our backs the best opportunity."
Good Article on Space U
- By lawknight
- UCF Fan Forum
- 3 Replies
UCF Celebrating Win By Watching SpaceX Rocket Launch Is Unreal
After beating Georgia Tech at the Bounce House, UCF football celebrated its win by watching Elon Musk's SpaceX rocket launch.
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