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UCF 2022 Football Schedule Revealed

The Knights get a chance at revenge in what could be their AAC swan song

By AndrewGluchov
Union Home Mortgage Gasparilla Bowl - UCF v Florida
UCF ended 2021 on a positive bowl game win going into 2022
Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images

After many sleepless nights, people huddled in Twitter Spaces, and people wondering when it would happen, UCF and the American Athletic Conference have announced the 2022 football schedule. In what could be the final season for UCF in the AAC, revenge has to be on the Knights’ minds as they will host every team that defeated them in 2021.

The season technically starts with the spring game on April 16th. That game will be at the Bounce House at noon. If previous years are any indication, it should be open to the public. After that, we wait until the fall.

Fans already knew ahead of time that September would be loaded with out-of-conference matchups. Unlike last year, which had a bottom-heavy home schedule, six of the seven home games will be played before Halloween. Three of those home games will be weeknight games. For anyone who travels to games, plan accordingly.

South Carolina State v Central Florida
UCF made short work of South Carolina State in 2018 38-0
Photo by Alex Menendez/Getty Images

vs South Carolina State Bulldogs - September 1 (Thurs) - The Knights kick off with another Thursday night opener against South Carolina State. UCF is 3-0 against the Bulldogs and has yet to surrender a point in those three matchups. The two last played in 2018 with UCF winning 38-0.

UCF v Louisville
Johnny Richardson gets another crack at Louisville
Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images

vs Louisville Cardinals - September 9 (Fri) - The revenge tour begins the following week on Friday as the Knights will be the Louisville Cardinals for the third time on a Friday night. Each of the prior two matchups went down to the wire as UCF won in 2013 38-35 and lost last season 42-35. Both games were decided in the closing seconds and had really good ratings, so ESPN has to be salivating for this game.

Central Florida v Florida Atlantic
Running back Otis Anderson ran wild on the Florida Atlantic Owls in 2019
Photo by Mark Brown/Getty Images

at Florida Atlantic Owls - September 17 - UCF’s first Saturday game will be a trek down I-95 to Boca Raton to play the Florida Atlantic Owls. This will be the fourth matchup between the two schools with UCF winning every matchup. The last two times they played each other ended up being blowout wins for UCF.

Wide Receiver Jaylon Robinson should see plenty of action when Georgia Tech comes to Orlando.
UCF Athletics

vs Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets - September 24 - The last time Georgia Tech and UCF were supposed to play in Orlando, a hurricane decided to get in the way. The Knights and Yellow Jackets try again with UCF being the host for the first time. The two last played in 2020 with the Knights victorious.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL: NOV 13 UCF at SMU
UCF hopes to get back on track after losing to SMU last year.
Photo by George Walker/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

vs Southern Methodist Mustangs - October 1 - Game two of the revenge tour is also Family Weekend at UCF as the SMU Mustangs come to town. This could end up being the toughest game on the home schedule as quarterback Tanner Mordecai is back after the Mustangs made short work of the Knights last season. Prior to that game, UCF had won the previous five matchups.

The bye week will be the weekend of October 8. Go to a park or something.

UCF’s defense has run roughshod on Temple’s offense over the past few years.

vs Temple Owls - October 13 (Thurs) - This game is slated as a mid-week primetime game. The Temple Owls have had it rough against UCF though. UCF has won the last five matchups against the Owls and outside of one shootout, none of them have been close. One could argue that Temple might be one of the schools happy to see UCF leave for another conference.

NCAA Football: East Carolina at Central Florida
UCF won a close one with East Carolina last year.
Mike Watters-USA TODAY Sports

at East Carolina Pirates - October 22 - UCF’s longest-running football rivalry might be coming to an end when the Knights move the Big 12, but there is at least one more matchup coming with the East Carolina Pirates. UCF has won the last six matchups to tie the series 10-10.

NCAA Football: Central Florida at Cincinnati
Matt Lee and the UCF offensive line is going to have their hands full with the Cincinnati defensive line.
Katie Stratman-USA TODAY Sports

vs Cincinnati Bearcats - October 29 - The third stop on the revenge tour is a near Halloween Homecoming matchup with the Cincinnati Bearcats. Cincinnati had a magical run in 2020 all the way to the CFP semifinals. Many pieces of that team are no longer there, so this Cincy team is a bit of a wild card. The Bearcats have defeated the Knights in each of the last three seasons.

NCAA Football: Memphis at Central Florida
Running back Isaiah Bowser is back for another round with Memphis.
Mike Watters-USA TODAY Sports

at Memphis Tigers - November 5 - A year after snapping a 13-game winning streak against the Memphis Tigers in 2020, the Knights got back to their winning ways in 2021. This is a game to keep an eye on as quarter Seth Henigan can rack up the yards very quickly. He did not play last year due to injury.

NCAA Football: Tulane at Central Florida
Tight end Alec Holler became one of the breakout players in 2021.
Mike Watters-USA TODAY Sports

at Tulane Green Wave - November 12 - Going to New Orleans should be a great road game for fans. The Knights lead the series against the Tulane Green Wave 9-2, but both losses have been on the road with the last one occurring in the season.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL: OCT 02 UCF at Navy
The run defense is going to have to work against Navy.
Photo by Mark Goldman/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

vs Navy Midshipmen - November 19 - The fourth and last stop on the revenge tour is the final home game of the regular season as the Navy Midshipmen come to town. Running the triple option, Navy is always unpredictable and good against teams with depth issues. They took advantage of UCF’s youth last year after the Knights won the previous contests.

NCAA Football: South Florida at Central Florida
Defensive back Divaad Wilson and defense kept the South Florida offense in check in 2021.
Mike Watters-USA TODAY Sports

at South Florida Bulls - November 25/26 (Fri/Sat) - What could be the final football edition of the War on I-4 has normally been a Black Friday game. This year, it’s still up in the air if it will be on Friday or Saturday as they’re competing with two other AAC matchups. After five consecutive wins, the Knights have a 7-6 lead on the Bulls.

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