Commentary: Knights don't wow in opener against South Carolina State

You don't want to show too much in the first game. If that was UCF's goal, you can call Saturday night a Category 5 success. The Knights didn't show a lot. In fact, they did such a good job of hiding their offense that you have to wonder if they have one. Either that or the MEAC is the sleeper power conference this year.

All hail South Carolina State.

"We had an opportunity to possibly take a football game here," Coach Buddy Pough said. Not Really. UCF was never in danger of losing, mainly because South Carolina State was never in danger of scoring. But the Knights led only 7-0 entering the fourth quarter, which was about 21 points short of where they should have been.

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Central Florida blanks South Carolina State, 17-0

ORLANDO, Fla. -- The phrase “moral victory” is not in South Carolina State head football coach Oliver “Buddy” Pough’s vocabulary. Not surprisingly, he refused to view Saturday’s 17-0 season-opening loss to Central Florida in such a manner. “We’re not in the moral victory business,” Pough said. “We’re a good enough team now where we’ve got to make some type of statement and we haven’t made it yet. The one thing we do know is that we can go in and play defense I think with pretty much anybody. We’ve just got to find a way to make our overall team come together.”

The Bulldogs stopped the Knights on three of five trips to the red zone as Markee Hamlin (#11) had eight tackles and one fumble recovery to lead the S.C. State defense.

Even though the Bulldogs’ third contest against a Football Championship Subdivision foe was less lopsided than last year’s two contests against Air Force Academy and the University of South Carolina, to a man, the outcome was seen as a missed opportunity. “Tough season opener,” Pough said. “When you come into stadiums like this you feel like you might have a chance to at least hang around. “When you do for a while, you feel really bad about not getting it done.”

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Attendance: Bright House Networks Stadium, Orlando, FL: 42,126 (Capacity: 45,301)

‘Four-Headed Monster’: SCSU could have its hands full with UCF backfield

ORLANDO, Fla. - The good news for South Carolina State’s defense is All-American running back Kevin Smith no longer carries the football for Central Florida. Instead, the Bulldogs will have to deal with what the Knights hope will be a “four-headed monster” out of the backfield. With four freshman tailbacks on the depth chart, head coach George O’Leary plans to use a “running back by committee” for Saturday’s season-opener against S.C. State and beyond.

“I’m going to possibly play all four of them and each and every game,” O’Leary said. “They all bring something different to the table. The freshmen have great speed and vision and that’s what I look at. The one thing I think that I was concerned about was obviously pass protection and they all bow up and put a hat on people which is what you’re looking for in the protection.”

In Ronnie Weaver (6-0, 202 lbs.), Brynn Harvey (6-1, 215), Latavius Murphy (6-3, 215) and Brandon Davis (5-9, 190), the defending Conference USA champions will try to reproduce the NCAA-leading 2,567 yards and 29 touchdowns posted last season by Smith (currently with the Detroit Lions).

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UCF Football Preview vs South Carolina State Bulldogs

The UCF football team will open its second campaign at Bright House Networks Stadium on Aug. 30, against South Carolina State. The contest will serve as the season opener for both squads.

Here is an early look at UCF's contest with South Carolina State:

Experienced Squad
Forty-four letterwinners from South Carolina's State 2007 squad are back this season. The Bulldogs went 7-4 a year ago. With a 6-2 mark, the team finished tied for second in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. Seventh year head coach Oliver "Buddy" Pough has seven starters back on offense and nine starters returning on the defensive end.

Ground Attack
Tailback Will Ford is back to lead the ground attack for South Carolina State. Last year, the Bulldogs ranked ninth nationally, averaging 260.2 rushing yards per game. Ford, an All-MEAC First Team selection, was 11th in the country on the ground (125.18). He found the end zone four times. Against South Carolina, Ford carried the ball 17 times for 112 yards.

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SOUTH CAROLINA STATE UNIVERSITY BULLDOGS.