I know we just took the FS kid, but do we take a look?

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On this MLK Day edition of UCF Knight Talk, UCF basketball coach Johnny Dawkins joined Marc Daniels for the beginning of the show and he was later joined by the football coordinators, OC Darin Hinshaw and DC Addison Williams.

Highlights from Johnny Dawkins:

UCF is coming off a tough loss at Tulane and now has this week off before hitting the road next Saturday at usf.

UCF obviously is dealing with injuries - C.J. Walker is out for the year, Michael Durr with the hand issue and PG Darius Johnson out. Johnny says they must have a "next man up" mentality to overcome these issues.

As for Darius Johnson, he's still "day to day" and "getting better." Johnny said he "shouldn't be out much longer" and "it's getting close."

Durr is expected back at some point in February. He had surgery on his hand last week.

Marc asked about Lahat but I think Dawkins responded by talking about Thierno Sylla. He's set for more playing time as a result of the injury to Durr. He was heavily recruited out of Canada. He's a big part of the future.

Marc said the Memphis game was one of the greatest wins at UCF Arena. Johnny said the guys "refused to lose."

In a double-overtime game with multiple players fouled out, Dawkins said they have strength in their numbers. He said there's not a lot of separation within the roster. Guys like P.J. Edwards may not play as much just due to rotation, but he's capable of playing at a high level if asked. Same applies to Tyem Freeman.

Marc brings up the missing point controversy. Dawkins said he knew right away and appreciated Marc fighting on behalf on the team.

In regards to the Tulane game, Dawkins didn't think fatigue would be an issue at the beginning of the game. They did all their prep on Friday morning after giving them a light day on Thursday. They just couldn't knock down shots early. They had good looks. They didn't defend well as well as they needed to.

The game plan was to play inside out and they settled for too many outside shots. It's hard to turn down good looks as a shooter. That's what Tulane does defensively.

At one point, UCF was down 19 and narrowed it to 3 points with two minutes left. Tyem Freeman was a big factor in the comeback.

This is interesting: Tyem Freeman would have been in the starting lineup at the beginning of the season, but was in concussion protocol for a full month. So it's been a process of him coming back, getting healthy and now getting in the rotation.

Tyem and P.J. Edwards have been great bench and locker room guys all season even when they haven't been playing.

On the final minutes of the Tulane game, UCF had multiple opportunities to tie or potentially take the lead. They had three straight possessions with poor execution. Jayhlon Young was probably trying to do too much, made some bad decisions.

With no game until Saturday at usf, they want to use this week to recover. Today's practice was intense and so will tomorrow. Wednesday is an off day. Then two more prep days on Thursday and Friday.

usf beat them pretty bad last year. Concentration, composure and confidence is the key. usf is a physical, big team.

That's it for Johnny.

===

Highlights from OC Darin Hinshaw:

Marc says, "Doesn't he look better in Black and Gold?" Hinsaw said it's awesome to be back.

Does he remember his first touchdown pass? It was 1991. He does remember his first-ever pass. It was to Mike Dickinson and he dropped it. A perfect throw too. As a young quarterback, Hinshaw talks about there's a time when things click and you can see things unfolding, understanding defenses and where to go with the ball. Mike Kruczek used to talk about that. That's when you've got it. He remembers the first game when it "clicked" for him was against Savannah State. They lost, but had a big comeback. He threw four touchdowns and 280 yards.

Marc asked about coming back last year as an analyst. Hinshaw said he was still being paid by Kentucky, so he didn't mind coming back in a non-coach role. He didn't initially know it was on defense. It was a great year though, learning more about that side. He believes that's what ultimately led him to becoming the OC.

Hinshaw is "extremely excited" about the offensive personnel. He's already met with every player.

"We are loaded at running back. We have a lot of good running backs."

On the quarterbacks, before he even had the press conference, he spoke to all the QBs. "I like our quarterback room and where we're at. I know the skill set. Coach Malzahn has done a great job there."

On the OL: "We've got depth on the offensive line. We've recruited well. Herb Hand is a great o-line coach. He's a big reason I'm here is because of Herb Hand and our relationship."

On the WRs: "The receiver position, there was some frustration when I met with those guys about being able to throw the ball down the field. I explained to them what we're going to be doing offensively. They're excited. We've got depth there too."

Hinshaw added they've got "one spot left" to find a "fast wideout in the portal."

On the TEs: "We've got two tight ends that are seniors. Alec Holler is awesome. We'll use tight ends in this offense."

"I'm excited about our personnel and where we're at. We've got to finish these two weeks in recruiting. I can't wait to get with the offense and get going."

On the adjustment going into the Big 12, Hinshaw said you've got to be able to run the ball. The vertical passing game is going to be huge. That's what they do in the Big 12. He's talked to Gus about it. They are going to do that. There's ways to train the quarterbacks on that - he's done it everywhere he's been.

Your offense takes on a form of its own as you learn your players.

"We're going to throw the football down the field." Not necessarily every down. They'll be balanced with a vertical passing game.

Hinshaw said he's been trying to get back to UCF for a long time. "To be able to coach at your alma mater, being back home, my mom and dad live here, my brother... It's incredible I'm back here. It's really awesome.

"The bottom line is I've got a job to do. We're just beginning. We've got to build this the right way. I've started to install the offense. We've got to finish recruiting the right way. Then be in a situation to get the installs in. We'll start going through it before we get to spring football. Being back home, I still can't believe it."

Kirk Speraw sent Marc a text message when Hinshaw got the job. Hinshaw played on the basketball team - he did play a couple minutes in the NCAA Tournament game against Purdue and Glenn "Big Dog" Robinson.

===

Highlights from DC Addison Williams:

Marc begins by showing a picture of Addison Williams as a freshman at South Carolina. He had one career interception that came against Arkansas. He was primarily recruited by Tyrone Nix and Ron Cooper. Steve Spurrier didn't get involved until late. Then he coached with Spurrier. "What you saw on TV is how he really was."

Working with Gus at Auburn on the offensive side, he learned so much about the rationale for how they operate.

His defense will be more multiple front and coverage wise. They have to be able to change looks and not just remain in one look for the entire game.

What's the biggest adjustment going into the Big 12? Addison says it's getting more speed on the field. Not just line up in base defense but having good sub packages.

As a DC, Addison says one of the bigger changes is now spending more time with that entire side, not just the secondary.

Addison thanked former South Carolina assistant coach Lorenzo Ward, who got him into coaching. Also former Tusculum coach Frank DeBuski, who gave him his first opportunity

Addison said relationships with players is more important than ever. You must have a relationship, especially if you're going to be hard on them. If they know you love them, you can them coach them hard. If the relationship is not there, that's when some guys hit the transfer portal.

Asked about the returning player leadership, Addison named Josh Celiscar, Jason Johnson, Ricky Barber and Tre'Mon Morris-Brash, those are the four guys he's going to lean on.

He spoke to Jason Johnson today about becoming more vocal. Johnson got here a bit later, last summer, so he might have been reluctant to be a big talker. It's not necessarily about giving a rah-rah speech, but if a guy does something right or wrong, speak up.

He has not made a final decision about whether he'll coach from the field or the box, but right now he's leaning towards staying in the box. He thinks that's been a strength for him, coaching from up top.

Away from football, what does Addison like to do? Spending time with the kids. He has a 3-year old son and 10-month old daughter.

Asked about the first people he called when he got the DC job, Addison said Lorenzo Ward (now the DC at Chattanooga) and Steve Wilks (interim HC for Carolina Panthers). Addison said he considered both as mentors.

On the UCF defense in 2023, Addison said they'll be sound, good tacklers and disciplined.

"I'm super excited. We've got a good group of guys we've added to the mix. I'm excited about the team we're going to put on the field for Knight Nation."

Does anyone own primative camping land in the central Florida area? I go camping with some friends twice a year and I’m interested in purchasing land versus going to state parks. I was curious if anyone else has done something like this in the past.

Republicans are already looking incompetent. The Gaetz-Boebert moron wing of the party is holding the rest of them hostage. The next 2 years is going to be a disaster for house Republicans and they are going to get destroyed in '24 because of it.

Gabe just had a TD. Up 34-24.

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The Federal Aviation Administration early Wednesday ordered airlines to pause all domestic departures until 9 a.m. ET to allow the agency to restore a critical system that alerts pilots and crew to safety advisories and other information for flights.

United Airlines Holdings Inc. UAL 5.54%increase; green up pointing triangle

said early Wednesday that it had temporarily delayed all domestic flights due to the issue. American Airlines Group Inc. AAL 3.97%increase; green up pointing triangle said in a tweet the FAA outage was affecting all carriers and all flights, but didn’t provide details. “We sincerely appreciate your patience as they work to resolve this,” the company said.

The FAA, which oversees and manages the aviation network in the U.S., said it is working to restore its so-called Notice to Air Missions System. “Operations across the National Airspace System are affected,” the FAA press office said. It also said, however, it was performing final checks to get the system back up and running. The FAA said in an advisory to operators that a Notam outage hotline had been activated while the problem was being addressed by technicians.

immediately losing our first game after being put in

Randomly thought about this tonight while watching playoffs.

1. Who is the most overall gifted UCF football player?
2. Who is the most overall gifted that UCF has played?

In case anybody missed the threads from earlier this year... I felt it was fitting to honor these guys as we turn the page to 2022.

"Big Les" who in recent years changed his username to @FTUCF. Les Harding was one of the very first UCF fans I met through the board, going back more than 20 years ago now. We had many conversations through the years, whether it was watching a UCF practice or attending a coach's show or recruiting event. He had a big personality and loved to talk about UCF - if you met him once, you'd never forget him.

Les also had a degree from UF and was a member of their band during the 1960s. He identified as a Gator fan prior to UCF starting a football program and rooted for both for a while, but eventually became all UCF. He would have especially enjoyed the Gasparilla Bowl. He sadly suffered a medical emergency at the ECU game, passing away at the Bounce House.


@spacecoastknight and then his new/alternate name, @Island of the Knight. I never met him in person, but he was a legend here in the Dungeon for his takes on sports and politics and the passion/fervor he used to hammer home his viewpoints. Love him or hate him, he was always entertaining. I really miss his sports posts (maybe not the other ones that got people mad, lol). He sadly succumbed to COVID in early August.


Sadly, it makes me wonder who else I've lost touch with through the years, maybe not recognizing when a certain poster faded away (and one I didn't know personally).

Charge On for eternity.

At Houston

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(Note: none of the four teams joining the conference this summer — BYU, Cincinnati, Houston or UCF — appeared in any of these rankings.)

ESPN

• 12. TCU
• 16. Texas
• 18. Kansas State
• 23. Texas Tech

The Athletic

• 10. TCU
• 17. Kansas State
• 21. Texas Tech

Bleacher Report

• 14. Texas
• 15. TCU
• 17. Kansas State
• 20. Texas Tech
• 23. Oklahoma

Yahoo Sports

• 15. TCU
• 16. Texas
• 17. Kansas State
• 20. Oklahoma
• 21. Texas Tech

CBS Sports

• 6. TCU
• 17. Texas
• 19. Kansas State
• 25. Oklahoma

Fox Sports

• 8. TCU
• 13. Kansas State
• 22. Oklahoma
• 23. Texas
• 25. Kansas

Sports Illustrated

• 9. TCU
• 18. Kansas State
• 21. Texas

Sporting News

• 8. TCU
• 17. Kansas State
• 18. Texas Tech
• 20. Texas

Athlon Sports

• 14. Texas
• 15. TCU
• 20. Kansas State
• 21. Oklahoma

Hard not to envision a Gus Malzahn-coached team ranked at any point during the season. I think UCF and Gus find a way to win eight games.

I simply do not see UCF floundering in a league where only one team has a national top 50 run defense (33. Texas).

Buffalo over Philadelphia is my guess.

Love this approach from him.
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Is 660 am radio in Orlando now ESPN? I was searching for the Jags game on the radio and came across this station. As of today, it is still broadcasting ESPN. I hope it continues as Fox Sports radio, 740 in Orlando, stinks, aside from Marc Daniels locally.

Coming off of a big win Wednesday, UCF Men's Basketball travels to New Orleans to take on Tulane on Saturday.

As John Weis writes for the Sons of UCF, Tulane is so good this year in part because they do the fundamental things well.

Click here to read more.

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Hollywood (Fla.) Chaminade-Madonna offensive lineman Elvin Harris has been looking forward to his UCF official visit ever since his offer arrived earlier this spring.

"It was wonderful," Harris said of his weekend in Orlando. "I loved it here. It was a great experience. To hang out with the coaches and hang out with the players on the team, it was just a fun experience to have. It was all around a good time."

He particularly enjoyed getting to know the players.

"My player host was Chido (Chidoziri Maghiro)," Harris said. "And Adrian (Medley). It was fun to hang around them and seeing college players that play the same position as me. He was just teaching me stuff, stuff I could do to help me grow as a person and a player. I was watching how he carries himself. In the community, how he walks and people notice that he's on the football team. The way they carry themselves, it was fun to see that."

They did some fun stuff too.

"We went to TopGolf with all the coaches," Harris said. "We all played golf. It was actually my first time playing golf. It was a learning experience. I'm not gonna lie, my first five times I didn't hit anything. I noticed I had the right (handed) club. I'm left-handed, so I had to get my lefty and I started hitting a couple things."

The food was also a highlight.

"When I got here Friday I had wings," Harris said. "At TopGolf we had burgers and chicken tenders. For breakfast, they had a chef that was personally making us omelettes."

If Harris were to come to UCF, his position coach would be Herb Hand.

"Coach Hand, he's a great guy and a great coach," Harris said. "I learned about his background and some of the players he coached. One of the funnest facts I learned is Coach Hand knows how to cook. He was actually on a TV show. He came in second place in cooking. He was telling me how he can throw down a brisket. One day I'm going to have to try that out."

Harris also loved meeting head coach Gus Malzahn.

"He's a great coach," Harris said. "It was kind if surprising to me. I was thinking something different. I didn't know he was that tall. He's kind of tall. I always thought he was short, seeing him on TV next to Cam Newton. It was fun to hang around him. He's a good person. I went to his house this morning to eat breakfast. He welcomed everyone with open arms. It was just lovely here."

Orlando is also a draw. He loves the fact it's not too far from home.

"There's no NFL team here," Harris said. "UCF is the NFL team basically. It's a lot of support around it. There's actually a lot of opportunities out here too with having Disney here and Disney owns ESPN. It's a lot of opportunities you can get coming to UCF. Just like they say, UCF is literally gonna be the future of college football. It's gonna be big."

He could also have the opportunity to play for UCF's inaugural Big 12 team in 2023.

"That's a huge impact, going to the Big 12," Harris said. "Coach Hand briefly talked about it before. He knows how to win in the Big 12 because he was at Texas. He knows the league."

Tulane and FAU are among the schools heavily recruiting him. No other visits are planned at this time.

"I'd say UCF is the team to beat right now," Harris said. "I keep saying it. I love the coaching staff here. The players. Just the city in general too. It's a beautiful city. I went downtown with a couple players and we walked around the strip. We saw everything. It's a beautiful city. The facilities and stuff, I saw the weight room. Out of UCF and where else I've been, like FSU, UCF is pretty big. I see they want to work."

Paywall article..

...
The Big 12 will add new members BYU, UCF, Cincinnati and Houston this fall. Most Power 5 transitions are rocky, and Big 12 coaches expect some bumps for all four teams. BYU is seen as the program most equipped to handle a full-blown Power 5 schedule, followed closely by UCF. Cincinnati is going through a coaching transition and significant roster turnover, two years removed from a historic CFP run.
...

Two teams standing out now: