UCF Knights defeat TCU in 21-point comeback
FORT WORTH, TX - SEPTEMBER 14: UCF Knights quarterback KJ Jefferson (1) gets tackled by TCU Horned Frogs safety Bud Clark (21) during the game between the TCU Horned Frogs and the UCF Knights on September 14, 2024 at Amon . Carter in Fort Worth, Texa
KJ Jefferson threw a 20-yard touchdown to Kobe Hudson with 36 seconds left as UCF overcame three blocked kicks and a three-TD deficit after halftime to beat TCU 35-34 on Saturday night in the first game this season to count in the Big 12 standings.
The game-winning score, and the first time for the Knights (3-0, 1-0 Big 12) to lead, came four plays after it appeared they had fumbled the ball away. A booth-initiated replay review instead confirmed that receiver Randy Pittman Jr. was down just before the ball came out with 1:16 left.
UCF scored touchdowns on four of their five possessions after halftime. That included the first three, when RJ Harvey ran for two of those and also added a 2-point conversion while Hudson, who finished with six catches for 145 yards, had a 27-yard score.
The Horned Frogs (2-1, 0-1) led 28-7 when Jack Bech ran past two defenders for a 50-yard touchdown only 1:32 after halftime. Kyle Lemmermann had field goals of 31 and 24 yards after that but was wide right on a 58-yard attempt on the final play of the game.
Jefferson, the Arkansas transfer, was 13-of-22 passing for 230 yards and three touchdowns. Harvey had his fifth consecutive 100-yard rushing game, finishing with 180 yards on 29 carries and has eight TDs on the ground already this season. He also had his second career receiving scoring on an early 29-yard play.
TCU’s Josh Hoover completed 35 of 52 passes for 402 yards and four touchdowns, two of those sensational catches by Savion Williams. Bech had nine catches for 200 yards.
It was the third game this season matching Big 12 opponents. But Utah’s 23-12 win over Baylor last week and No. 14 Kansas State’s 31-7 win over No. 20 Arizona on Friday night were games scheduled before the Utes and Wildcats entered the league and weren’t counted in the standings.
The takeaway
UCF: Colton Boomer made the kick that won it, making the extra point in the final minute. He had field goal attempts of 47 and 27 yards blocked before halftime, and also had an extra point blocked in the third quarter.
TCU: Williams, one of only four TCU seniors to spend their entire college careers at the school, had multiple touchdowns for the first time in his 42 games. He made a leaping catch with both his arms fully extended over his head between two defenders in the end zone for an 18-yard score that put TCU up 14-0 late in the first quarter. Williams had to turn his body and reach back on a ball thrown behind him in the second, then secured that 16-yard score while parallel to the ground.
Up next
UCF: Has an open date before hosting Colorado on Sept. 28.
TCU: Plays Saturday at ACC newcomer SMU (2-1), which is about 40 miles away on the other side of the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex and is TCU coach Sonny Dykes’ former team.