The UCF defense swarmed Jacksonville State all night long and the Knights produced enough offense to come away with a 17-10 victory in the 2025 season opener. Photo by Debra Edgar.
Scott Frost’s triumphant return as head coach at UCF wasn’t secured without patience, angst and finally jubilation.
Back-up quarterback Tayven Jackson threw 33 yards to DJ Black for the game-winning touchdown with 1:03 left to rally the Knights to a hard-fought 17-10 victory over upset-minded Jacksonville State on Thursday night in their 2025 college football season opener at the Acrisure Bounce House in Orlando.
“The game didn’t quite look like I anticipated it would go, but I was really happy with the fight and perseverance of our guys,” Frost said.
A two-hour weather delay early in the second quarter put a damper on his first game back to UCF since leading the Knights to the program’s only undefeated season in 2017, prior to his departure for a similar position at his alma mater, Nebraska.
Jacksonville State was welcoming back a former coach as well. Longtime assistant and first-time head coach Charles Kelly was making his debut after winning national championships at both Florida State (2013) and Alabama (2020) as an assistant. He was also an assistant coach at Jacksonville State from 1994-1998.
UCF and Jacksonville State are two of 30 FBS programs with a new head coach this season.
Both offenses were as delayed as the weather. Neither team reached the end zone until a frenzied fourth quarter, and it was visiting Jacksonville State that first accomplished the feat.
The Gamecocks led 10-3 in the final period before Jackson engineered the comeback. He came through for UCF injured starting quarterback Cam Fancher, a redshirt senior transfer from Florida Atlantic, who left the game early in the second quarter after suffering a hit that resulted in a targeting penalty.
Jackson completed 17 of 24 passes for 282 yards. The redshirt junior transfer from Indiana tied the game, 10-10, early in the fourth quarter on a 39-yard scoring pass to Dylan Wade, who caught the short pass over the middle and turned it into the Knights’ first touchdown. Wade’s catch and dash completed a 7-play, 76-yard drive, the longest of the game for UCF.
UCF and Jacksonville State engaged in a defensive battle in which neither team scored a touchdown until the fourth quarter. Photo by Debra Edgar.
Jackson saved his best for last, converting on a pair of crucial third downs. He kept the 5-play, 64-yard game-winning march alive with a 15-yard scramble on a 3rd-and-10 situation. Then with time winding down on 3rd-and-9 from the Gamecocks’ 33-yard line, Frost dialed up a pass play that proved to be the difference in the game. Jackson rolled out and hit Black in stride for the deciding score.
“We kind of rolled the dice with that call,” Frost said. “We just kind of sat there and said, ‘let’s win this thing.’ We still had a few bullets in the chamber.”
That pivotal drive was set up by what Frost described as the game-changing play. It was a 4th-and-1 stop at the Knights’ 36-yard line by redshirt senior transfer (FAU) Jayden Williams that earned for him a game ball from Frost.
“That was probably the biggest play of the game,” said Frost, who also praised the defensive unit as a whole. “The defense just kept fighting. They gave up one long touchdown drive and otherwise came up with stops when they needed them.”
Neither team scored in the first half. Knights’ kicker Noe Ruelas put the first points on the board. His 24-yard field goal with 8:03 left in the third quarter gave UCF a 3-0 lead.
Jacksonville State kicker Garrison Rippa answered with a 42-yarder of his own at the 5:28 mark of the third period, and the Gamecocks forged a 10-3 lead with 12:01 to play in the fourth quarter on a 10-yard touchdown run by redshirt junior Andrew Paul. It capped an 11-play, 84-yard drive, the longest of the game for either team.
But UCF closed the door on the Gamecocks’ final drive of the game at the Knights’ 44-yard line on an interception by redshirt junior transfer (Syracuse) Jayden Bellamy.
While the offenses sputtered, a couple of individuals stood out. UCF running back Myles Montgomery accounted for 133 yards, including 79 rushing (21 attempts) and 54 receiving (4 catches). Cam Cook was equally impressive for the Gamecocks with 75 yards rushing on 17 carries and another 43 yards on four pass receptions.
The victory for UCF continued a few streaks. In addition to being the program’s 300th all-time win, the Knights have now taken 10 consecutive season openers, 11 straight Thursday night games, and it’s the 14th consecutive victory for Frost at UCF dating back to 2017.
