Fiery debate over UCF football game tradition settled by whopping $27,000 in fan donations

ORLANDO, Fla. - A brief but contentious tradition at UCF football games has been laid to rest, all because of an impressive fundraiser that raised nearly $27,000 for student-athletes. 

Kingdom NIL, the official collective for UCF Athletics, led the charge to end the debate surrounding the song played during the fourth quarter at at the Bounce House – Frankie Valli's "Can't Take My Eyes Off You." In short, some fans absolutely detest the singalong tradition that first appeared in the 2021 season, saying it's outdated and boring. Others couldn't wait to get up on their feet and sing along to the 1967 hit before or during the fourth quarter. But now, that opportunity is gone. 

The Early Signing Period for soon-to-be college athletes started Wednesday, and UCF welcomed a slew of new recruits. Kingdom NIL's Frankie Valli donation drive was a part of its first-ever "Go Knights, Sign On" campaign to help raise funds for future Knights. 

Kingdom NIL Executive Director SJ Tuohy told FOX 35 the campaign was originally planned for UCF's bye week, but after a string of consecutive losses, they didn't feel right about going through with the fundraiser. It wasn't until early December when Latoya Jackson, assistant director of the ChargeOn Fund, suggested to revisit the idea for Signing Day.

"All of us were like, ‘Oh, absolutely. That’s a great idea," Tuohy said. 

And thus, the campaign went live. 

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"Tip the scales with your contributions to determine if the Bounce House actually loves 'Can’t Take My Eyes Off Of You' by Frankie Valli. Don’t take your eyes off the leaderboard – someone could swoop in at the end of the day and decide the future of the song," the website read on Wednesday, alongside two buttons to make a one-time contribution. 

In the end, the nays had it, raising $14,017 to kill the song versus the $12,900 donated to keep it. That's nearly $27,000 raised for student-athletes and the future of UCF Athletics. 

"To raise that much money while having some fun doesn't happen a lot," Tuohy said. "I think, at least on the surface, to me, everybody had a fun time and everybody was a good sport, and that doesn't happen a lot. 

"For us, it was a major success, and it really was a great way to get people involved with the Kingdom who hadn't been involved before and that part's huge. It was a success in a lot of different ways."

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Tuohy said over 140 people donated, and it wasn't as divided as he thought it would be. 

"I donated to kill the song. Although it was a nice thought, I felt like it brought down the energy (in the Bounce House)," die-hard UCF fan Mary Ashbaugh told FOX 35. "We need hype to get the crowd going in the fourth quarter. Especially for close games. Hype songs get people on their feet cheering."

As for the fundraiser, she said it was a great idea. 

"I thought the fundraiser was fun and got everyone involved. There was a lot of play-fighting and jokes," she said. "I feel like it brought fans together. It was a great way to raise money without people being mad about it."

Alumnus Cassidy Harpster also donated to say goodbye to the catchy tune at the Bounce House. 

"I wanted to get rid of the song because it feels like a tradition being forced on us," he told FOX 35. "It doesn’t feel natural. But, in my opinion, the only people who should have a vote on this are the current students who attend games, and not just whoever has the most money."

Other fans, however, are disappointed that the song is gone forever. 

"I hate to see it leave because I think that it had the crowd going," Gianna Aprile told FOX 35. "The crowd got excited, everyone sang along. Even though it was an old song, I feel like it was a song that everyone liked and could sing along with."

As an alternative, Aprile suggested the stadium play the more popular anthem for the Knights more often – Zombie Nation's "Kerncraft 400," or as it's more colloquially known, "Zombie Nation." 

Some UCF football players weighed in on social media, too. 

"Get rid of the song," running back RJ Harvey wrote on X. 

"Keep the song!" wide receiver Xavier Townsend replied. 

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The official UCF Football account also made light of the vote. 

"Recount?" they said. 

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Since this fundraiser was so successful, Tuohy said it's not out of the realm of possibility for a similar donation drive to make a comeback. 

"There's nothing on the horizon," Tuohy said, adding that if there's ever another situation like the Frankie Valli song, they could do it again. "But, it's not our new thing." 

UCF is gearing up to face Georgia Tech in the Gasparilla Bowl in Tampa on Friday. 

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