One of the bright spots of the 2023 season was the emergence of defensive end Malachi Lawrence.

He entered the year as an unknown younger player, but quickly emerged as a consistent pass rusher and defensive presence for the Knights.

As the 2024 season looms, Malachi is excited to show all of the hard work he has put in this offseason to continue to develop his game.

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Chris Simmons from Pegasus Podcast joins College Football Addiction.

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Kyle Nash (The Student of the Game) and Drake Toll (Locked on Big 12) discuss UCF year 2 in the XII.

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The 2024 UCF Football team is loaded with talent on the offensive side of the ball.

However, that talent won't be realized without a solid and consistent offensive line. One of the key members of that line, Adrian Medley, shared his thoughts on the upcoming season.

More here from Clay Pasco with the Sons of UCF.

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UCF Transfer DB Shining For MSU Spartans Early

UCF transfer defensive back Nikai Martinez has been an impressive player for the Michigan State Spartans as fall camp is underway.

Key losses - Jason Johnson, Walter Yates III
Top returners - Andrew Harris, So. (6-2/210, former four-star LB from the '23 class), Troy Ford Jr., RS Fr. (6-2/235, former top-30 LB from the '23 class)
New additions - Ethan Barr, 5th yr. (6-3/245, 219 career tackles at Vanderbilt, two-time team captain), Jesiah Pierre, 6th year (6-2/240, played two seasons at Florida & three seasons at Texas Tech, 133 career tackles), Deshawn Pace, 5th year (6-2/220, 247 career tackles at Cincinnati), Xe'ree Alexander, So. (6-2/215, led Idaho in tackles last season as a true freshmen with 75), Ja'Qualin Birdsong, Fr. (6-3/200, four-star LB from '24 class), DJ McCormick, Fr. (6-1/200, three-star LB from '24 class)

What a difference one year makes. Clearly, one of the major points of emphasis for UCF's staff this past offseason was to add experienced P5 depth to the LB room. The Knights were able to do that in a major way with Barr, Pierre, and Pace. In Barr, UCF picked-up a three-year starter (and two-time captain) to quarterback their defense in 2024 (39 starts at Vanderbilt from 2020-23). Pierre is a hometown kid from Mt. Dora, who started his career in Gainesville before transferring to Texas Tech (20 career starts in Lubbock). UCF's program is very familiar with Pace, who played the last four seasons against the Knights as a member of the Cincinnati program (has played both safety and linebacker). Losing Jason Johnson becomes quite a bit more manageable when you add 79 career starts and 599 career tackles to the roster between Barr, Pierre, and Pace.

UCF was also able to quietly add Alexander, who can help the Knights both in the present as well as in the future. The sophomore, who led Idaho in tackles last season as a true-freshmen, will have three more years with the UCF program. And the Knights return highly-touted LB's Andrew Harris (played sparingly in '23) and Troy Ford Jr. (redshirted) from the '23 class. With so much depth now at the linebacker position, I wouldn't be surprised if both Birdsong and McCormick end up redshirting this upcoming season.

There's no question which position group added the most talent since UCF last took the field in December. Now we just have to hope that talent comes together quickly for the Knights in 2024 (and stays healthy).

Prior Positional Previews:
Defensive Line - https://ucf.forums.rivals.com/threads/2024-position-preview-defensive-line.117479/
Offensive Line - https://ucf.forums.rivals.com/threads/2024-position-preview-offensive-line.117554/

This just popped up on my YT feed.



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While UCF dipped into the transfer portal to solidify their defense, they also retained a core group of returners, including DT Ricky Barber.

Coming off a solid season that saw him battle some injuries, Ricky is excited about the upcoming season and is eager to prove himself all over again.

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The Knights made a big splash in the offseason transfer portal by signing QB KJ Jefferson from Arkansas.

Expectations are high for Jefferson and this offense, and he knows that he will have to live up to the billing if UCF wants to compete in the Big 12.

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While UCF dipped into the transfer portal to solidify their defense, they also retained a core group of returners, including DT Ricky Barber.

Coming off a solid season that saw him battle some injuries, Ricky is excited about the upcoming season and is eager to prove himself all over again.

Click here for more from Andrew Cherico from the Sons of UCF.

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Welcome to The Knighted One’s Podcast, Episode number 50. FIFTY!!!! We are the ONLY podcast that features a former UCF National Champion, a former UCF radio host, an ESPN Analyst and Hoops Player, a INfamous rapper, Our Resident Influencer, and an IG star, shooting the breeze, talking UCF Sports. Remember to like and follow us Youtube, IG, and check out the 70+ teams and conferences on the College Huddle.

This week we take an early look at the offense and share our projected depths at each position, discuss who might be QB3, where a Hulkly RJ Harvey sits amongst the all-time RB greats, and breakdown some highlights from our first camp scrimmage.


Please comment for subjects that we should cover in our Intern Re-Education segment!


Introductions
Offensive Preview - 00:04:39
QB Who? - 00:05:06
- A Clear QB1
- QB3 Still Up In The Air
- QBs In An NIL World
- Tre Drops In w/ His Two Cents
- The Expectations Are Warranted
RB - 00:23:22
- Weapons All Around The RB Room
- Hulked-Out Harvey
- Trickling Down The Knowledge
- Is Harvey Already One of The Greats?
- Where Does He Rank?
- Roger Gets Blasphemous
- The Legendary Kevin Smith
Wide Receiver U? - 01:10:10
- A 1-2 Punch and Promising Depth
- Allen Isn't Convinced
- Much Better Than Before
- Some Solid Pass-Catching TE's
Offensive Line - 01:37:40
- Strategic Rotations
- Keeping a Stable Center
- Getting Continuity
- The Highly Touted, Tooted & Recruited
- Who's The True WR3?
- Breaking News: A 4-Star WR Recruit Flips To UCF!
- Will/Could Waltclaire Flynn Jr Step Up To Center Plate?
- Already A Top Prospect
Camp Update - 02:03:49
- Gus' New Motto
- 1st Scrimmage Highlights
- Some Standout Players
- Let's Get Physical
- ESPN Big 12 Preview Ranks UCF Low
- Pre-Season Honors
Listener Love - 02:18:47
Allen's Oxymoronic Stats Of The Week - 02:19:06
- Lot of Transfer Knights
Final Thoughts - 02:20:22

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Let’s assume you have $100M sitting around and decide to donate it to UCF or UCF Athletics. Which building or area would you want to put your name on?

Sons pod with Adam Eaton and @UCFMike1 where we discuss the scrimmage, the new slogan, and make player stat predictions that will surely be wrong.

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Sons pod with Adam Eaton and @UCFMike1 where we discuss the scrimmage, the new slogan, and make player stat predictions that will surely be wrong.

Enjoy here.

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The 2024 UCF Football team is loaded with talent on the offensive side of the ball.

However, that talent won't be realized without a solid and consistent offensive line. One of the key members of that line, Adrian Medley, shared his thoughts on the upcoming season.

More here from Clay Pasco with the Sons of UCF.

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I was pondering this with my son the other night, and he was wondering what coach Gus could have done with someone like Culpepper as QB. My counter was, I wonder what coach Gene McDowell could have done with the resources on and off the field we have today. Given that, using past UCF coaches… what would be your ideal coaching staff? For instance:
HC. Gene McDowell
DC. George Oleary
OC. Scott Frost
QB coach. Mike Kruzek. Etc etc etc..,.

QSR:

On the heels of opening a corporate restaurant in the market, Kamar Aiken, current NFL free agent and former UCF football star, will become Miami Grill’s next franchisee in the Orlando market.

Aiken, who emerged from UCF in 2011 undrafted and has gone on to an eight-year NFL career, plans to open multiple Miami Grills. Several sites are currently being considered.

“I’m very excited about this business opportunity,” says Aiken, who has had playing stints with the Buffalo Bills, New England Patriots, Baltimore Ravens, Indianapolis Colts and Philadelphia Eagles. “I’ve been thinking about franchising for quite some time. As I thought about different options, I can tell you that Miami Grill ultimately checked all of the boxes. It was a no brainer.”

“It was a pleasure taking Kamar through the qualification process and showing him first hand all of the support and guidance that we provide to our franchise partners,” said Robert Haar, Vice President of Franchise Development.

Aiken’s “love affair” with Miami Grill (formerly Miami Subs) actually goes back to his childhood when his mother used to take him for grilled wings at the local restaurant by his home in Miami, Florida.

“I just remember how great the grilled wings were and the food, overall,” he says. “I kind of lost touch with Miami Grill after leaving for college, but would visit when I was back in town. The taste was still consistent after all of those years. It was pretty amazing.”

More:

https://www.qsrmagazine.com/news/fo...lJzev9WRNwE3JKMvAx6DzGae9lRdmqHC5ILMLE7DWdj1w