It wasn’t close. The UCF Knights destroyed the South Florida Bulls 34-7 on Senior Knight to win the War on I-4 for the third consecutive year. The Knights finish the regular season with a 9-3 record, 6-2 in The American, and with 21 straight home wins.

Highlights

Four Downs

1. It could have been worse. The final score ended up being closer than it should have been. UCF was totally dominant from the kickoff. They had more than double the total yards (539 to 250) and forced three turnovers without surrendering one. 11 UCF penalties contributed to that.

2. He GOOOOOOONE. In his final home game, Adrian Killins got his mojo back. He led UCF in rushing with 115 yards on 14 carries, including an electrifying 35-yard TD run in the second. He led a UCF rushing attack that ran for 232 yards on 42 carries and simply overpowered USF’s defense.

3. “You’re not good enough.” Those are the words of ESPN analyst Kelly Stouffer regarding USF in the third. He’s right. The UCF defense feasted on the Bulls, posting three turnovers, two sacks, nine tackles for loss, and holding them to just 250 yards of offense. Their final drive lasted 19 plays and ended with an interception by Eriq Gilyard.

4. FIGHT. The game was marred by pregame scuffles, multiple post-snap dust-ups and a donnybrook late in Q2 that cost UCF a possible TD. It’s a rivalry. These things happen.

Knights of the Night

• Dillon Gabriel - 23/39, 270 yards, 2 TDs, plus 29 rushing yards on 10 carries
• Adrian Killins Jr. - 14 carries, 115 yards, one TD
• Darriel Mack Jr. - 1/1, 37 yards, plus 36 yards on 8 carries and a TD
• Gabriel Davis - 8 catches, 106 yards, 2 TDs
• Nate Evans - 8 tackles
• Antwan Collier - 7 tackles, one sack, one interception, and half a tackle for loss
• Eriq Gilyard - 7 tackles, one TFL and a pick
• Dylan Barnas - 2/3 on field goals, including a career-long 50-yarder on Senior Knight

Next Up

We don’t know. We’ll be following where UCF goes for a bowl over the next week.