| 2007 UCF Knights football | |
|---|---|
 | |
C-USA champion C-USA East Division champion | |
C-USA Championship Game, W 44–25 vs. Tulsa | |
Liberty Bowl, L 3–10 vs. Mississippi State | |
| Conference | Conference USA |
| East | |
| Record | 10–4 (7–1 C-USA) |
| Head coach |
|
| Offensive coordinator | Tim Salem (4th season) |
| Defensive coordinator | John Skladany (1st season) |
| Home stadium | Bright House Networks Stadium (Capacity: 45,323) |
| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | W | L | W | L | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| East Division | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| UCF x$ | 7 | – | 1 | 10 | – | 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| East Carolina | 6 | – | 2 | 8 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Memphis | 6 | – | 2 | 7 | – | 6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Southern Miss | 5 | – | 3 | 7 | – | 6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Marshall | 3 | – | 5 | 3 | – | 9 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| UAB | 1 | – | 7 | 2 | – | 10 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| West Division | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Tulsa xy | 6 | – | 2 | 10 | – | 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Houston x | 6 | – | 2 | 8 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Tulane | 3 | – | 5 | 4 | – | 8 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rice | 3 | – | 5 | 3 | – | 9 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| UTEP | 2 | – | 6 | 4 | – | 8 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SMU | 0 | – | 8 | 1 | – | 11 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Championship: UCF 44, Tulsa 25 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The 2007 UCF Knights football team represented the University of Central Florida in the 2007 NCAA Division I FBS football season. Their head coach was George O'Leary, in his fourth season with the school. The season was highlighted by the completion of their new on-campus stadium. The Knights moved out of the aging Citrus Bowl in downtown Orlando, and began playing their home games at Bright House Networks Stadium, located on the main campus of UCF in east Orlando, Florida. In addition, the team changed its nickname from "Golden Knights" back to simply "Knights."[1] From its inception in 1979 to 1992, the football team had been known as the Knights, then used the name "Golden Knights" from 1993 until 2006.
The Knights were led on offense by quarterback Kyle Israel and Consensus All-American running back Kevin Smith.[2][3][4] Smith rushed for 2,567 yards, a single-season school record, and just 61 yards shy of Barry Sanders' all-time NCAA record. UCF's inaugural game in their new stadium was a nationally televised contest against the No. 6 Texas Longhorns. In a back and forth game, they lost by only a field goal.
UCF went 9–3 in the regular season (7–1 in C-USA), with their only conference loss being at East Carolina. They won the C-USA Eastern Division, their second division crown in three years. They would go on to host the C-USA Championship Game for the second time. Taking revenge on Tulsa for beating them two years prior, UCF won the game 44–25, to claim their first Conference USA championship title.
UCF was invited to the Liberty Bowl to face Mississippi State. In a low-scoring game, their defense held the game close, but the offense was unable to re-fire. UCF fell by the score of 10–3.
After the conclusion of the season, Kevin Smith decided to forgo his senior season, and entered the 2008 NFL draft. He was selected with the first pick of the third round by the Detroit Lions.
- ^ Hightower, Kyle (April 13, 2007). "'Golden' era ends for UCF". Orlando Sentinel. p. D3. Retrieved November 13, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "#7 Kyle Israel". ESPN. Archived from the original on October 29, 2007. Retrieved September 15, 2007.
- ^ Hightower, Kyle (September 3, 2007). "UCF upbeat as date with Texas looms". OrlandoSentinel.com. Tribune Company. Archived from the original on September 9, 2012. Retrieved September 15, 2007.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
UCF ESPN boxwas invoked but never defined (see the help page).
