UCF fired up for Florida Gators face-off in The Swamp: 'A whole different ball game'
ORLANDO, Fla. - The buzz around UCF's upcoming football season is electric, but there's one game in particular that has Knights – players and fans alike – circling Oct. 5 on their calendars: the day they'll face off against the Florida Gators.
Thursday afternoon was Media Day at UCF, where head coach Gus Malzahn and players and coaches on both sides of the ball spoke with reporters about the upcoming season. The Knights' second season in the Big 12 Conference kicks off on Aug. 29 against New Hampshire – a game that several players said they were looking forward to.
ORLANDO, FLORIDA - OCTOBER 29: A general view of the pressbox at FBC Mortgage Stadium during a game between the UCF Knights and the Cincinnati Bearcats on October 29, 2022 in Orlando, Florida. (Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images)
"First game of the season. Set the tone. My focus is strictly on New Hampshire," said UCF quarterback and team captain KJ Jefferson, who was recently plucked out of the NCAA transfer portal.
He made his debut for the Knights at the Spring Game earlier this year, throwing for 271 yards and two touchdowns.
MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE - DECEMBER 28: KJ Jefferson #1 of the Arkansas Razorbacks holds the Liberty Bowl trophy after defeating the Kansas Jayhawks after the AutoZone Liberty Bowl at Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium on December 28, 2022 in Memphis, Tennessee.
"I'm ready for the first one. We have a lot of big games, so it's nothing that I can't, cannot look forward to," said wide receiver Kobe Hudson. "It's a lot of high expectations, and I'm just ready to go out there and prove to the world that we're not an average team, we're better than an average team, and I have high expectations for it. I'm just ready for the first game, and to see how the atmosphere is, and I know a lot of people are excited to watch us this year."
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Colorado was another big topic on Thursday, as players said they were eagerly anticipating coach Deion Sanders and the Buffaloes' first trip to the Bounce House.
BOULDER, COLORADO - OCTOBER 13: Head coach Deion Sanders of the Colorado Buffaloes watches his team during warm-ups before taking on the Stanford Cardinal at Folsom Field on October 13, 2023 in Boulder, Colorado. (Photo by Justin Tafoya/Getty Images)
"They have a big name, big brand, great players, great competition – and I don't shy away from competition. I love the competition," said defensive back Braeden Marshall. "That's one of the games I'm looking forward to."
Further down the line, however, is a big-time matchup between the UCF Knights and the Florida Gators. This is the first of a three-series stretch both programs agreed on back in 2021. The first game is scheduled for Oct. 5 in "The Swamp," followed by the "Bounce House" on Sept. 14, 2030. The final game of the series is set for Sept. 3, 2033.
The in-state clash came to a head in the 2021 postseason after the Knights dominated the Gators 29-17 in the Union Home Mortgage Gasparilla Bowl in Tampa on Dec. 23.
UCF Knights wide receiver Ryan O'Keefe (4) takes the ball deep into Florida Gators territory during the Gasparilla Bowl at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida, Thursday, Dec. 23, 2021. (Willie J. Allen Jr./Orlando Sentinel/Tribune News S
It's a game that a few players on UCF's roster this year are looking forward to. Some are even returning for the first time after transferring from the Southeastern Conference, like Hudson, who left Auburn after the 2020 and 2021 seasons.
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"The Swamp gonna be big. That's gonna be big," Hudson said. "This is my first time going back to the SEC since I came back from Auburn, so it's gonna be a blessing going to play those guys. It's gonna be a great atmosphere and it's gonna be a big-time game for us."
ORLANDO, FL - OCTOBER 13: UCF Knights wide receiver Kobe Hudson (2) celebrates his touchdown during the game between the Temple Owls and the University of Central Florida (UCF) Knights on Thursday, October 13, 2022 at Bright House Networks Stadium in
Linebacker Jesiah Pierre, who announced he was transferring to UCF earlier this year, played his first two years of college ball up at Florida. The former Texas Tech standout said he's looking forward to going back – and already has friends hitting him up about the in-state face-off.
NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE - NOVEMBER 21: Jesiah Pierre #40 of the Florida Gators plays against the Vanderbilt Commodores at Vanderbilt Stadium on November 21, 2020 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Frederick Breedon/Getty Images)
"It'll be a big game. It'll be a very – personally for me – very exciting. But at the end of the day, we gotta come as a team and do what we gotta go do," the Mount Dora native said. "It's all about the team and how we come in together as a unit, UCF family. For me, it'll be a good game. Going back to The Swamp, playing there, it was fun, good times, a lot of growing moments.
"Life circles back in crazy ways that you don't even know. It'll be an exciting game."
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The fifth-year linebacker also shared some insight for his fellow teammates who haven't played at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium before, which seats about 90,000 fans – sometimes, even more. That's just about double the capacity for the Knights' home field at FBC Mortgage Stadium.
"(The environment is) crazy. That's why I'm mentally, like, know you gotta come in and prepare. I played there when I was playing for them – opposing teams, I can imagine it's a whole different ball game. The Swamp, when they get crazy, they get crazy. Ninety-five-plus (thousand people) just going crazy, and it's an in-state game so a lot of people, they'll be going crazy for sure."
GAINESVILLE, FLORIDA - NOVEMBER 25: A general view as fans wave flashlights during the 3rd quarter tradition playing of Tom Petty's "I won't back down" during a game between the Florida Gators and the Florida State Seminoles at Ben Hill Griffin Stadi
Despite Pierre's history with the Gators, he's still riding for the Black and Gold come Oct. 5.
"I have a lot of memories of The Swamp. The Swamp was really loud. But, I'm a Knight, so I'm gonna say UCF (is louder) for sure," he said. "UCF, Bounce House. That's Orlando. You know we different in Orlando. I'm gonna say 100% UCF, Bounce House. We're gonna put on a show every single time we're in there."