# 2012 UCF Knights football team

The 2012 UCF Knights football team represented the University of Central Florida in the 2012 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Knights played in the Eastern Division of Conference USA and played their home games at Bright House Networks Stadium in Orlando, Florida. The Knights were led by head coach George O'Leary, who was in his ninth season with the team.
The 2012 season marked UCF's last as a member of Conference USA, as the Knights moved to the American Athletic Conference in 2013. UCF was originally barred from postseason play for the season due to recruiting violations in both football and basketball under previous athletic director Keith Tribble. The university had its appeal delayed until 2013 and was bowl-eligible for 2012. For the fourth time as C-USA members, UCF won the Conference USA Eastern Division, though the Knights lost the Conference USA Championship game to Tulsa. As a result, the Knights appeared in the Beef 'O' Brady's Bowl, in which they defeated Ball State, 38–17, for the second bowl victory in program history. The Knights finished the season receiving votes both in the AP and Coaches polls.
All games were broadcast live on the UCF-IMG radio network. The Knights' flagship station was WYGM "740 The Game" in Orlando.

## Personnel
### Recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for 2012 recruits :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Luke Adams DE | Pensacola, FL | Catholic | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 250 lb (110 kg) | Oct 12, 2011 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 76 |||||||
| Cal Bloom TE | Osseo, MN | Osseo | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 235 lb (107 kg) | Jan 22, 2012 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 45 |||||||
| Chester Brown OL | Hinesville, GA | Bradwell Institute | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 340 lb (150 kg) | Jan 29, 2012 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 75 |||||||
| Mike Campbell OL | Pace, FL | Pace | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | 252 lb (114 kg) | Jan 10, 2012 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 45 |||||||
| Blake Davis TE | Delray Beach, FL | American Heritage School | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 225 lb (102 kg) | Oct 17, 2011 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 75 |||||||
| Jeremy Davis CB | New Berlin, NY | Milford Academy | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | 170 lb (77 kg) | Feb 1, 2012 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A |||||||
| Tyler Gabbert QB | Ballwin, MO | Missouri | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | 200 lb (91 kg) | Jan 16, 2012 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 76 |||||||
| Jacoby Glenn DB | Mobile, AL | Vigor | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 175 lb (79 kg) | Jan 19, 2012 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 76 |||||||
| Troy Green QB | Skaneateles, NY | Skaneateles Senior | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 200 lb (91 kg) | Jan 23, 2012 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 45 |||||||
| Jared Henry S | Jacksonville, FL | First Coast High School | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | Jan 2, 2012 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A |||||||
| Drico Johnson WR | Orlando, FL | Agape Christian Academy | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 200 lb (91 kg) | Aug 2, 2011 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 76 |||||||
| Taylor Oldham WR | Daytona Beach, FL | Warner Christian Academy | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 195 lb (88 kg) | Jun 14, 2011 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 74 |||||||
| Dareen Owi WR | Miami, FL | Miami Norland | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 200 lb (91 kg) | Jan 5, 2012 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 71 |||||||
| Kelly Parfitt OL | Delray Beach, FL | American Heritage School | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | 290 lb (130 kg) | Oct 31, 2011 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 72 |||||||
| Phil Smith OT | Tampa Bay, FL | Georgia Tech | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 290 lb (130 kg) | Oct 9, 2011 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A |||||||
| Stanley Sylverain LB | Naples, FL | Golden Gate | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 215 lb (98 kg) | Oct 9, 2011 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 73 |||||||
| Colby Watson OL | Pensacola, FL | Pine Forest | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | 320 lb (150 kg) | Jan 15, 2012 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 79 |||||||
| Nicco Whigham DB | Fort Lauderdale, FL | Cardinal Gibbons | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 195 lb (88 kg) | Jan 17, 2012 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 72 |||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: 119 |||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "UCF 2012 Football Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved January 26, 2012. "2012 UCF Football Commits". Scout.com. Retrieved January 26, 2012. "ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved January 26, 2012. "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com. Retrieved January 26, 2012. "2012 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved January 26, 2012. |||||||

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Opponent | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| August 30 | 7:00 pm | at Akron* | InfoCision Stadium – Summa FieldAkron, OH | ESPN3 | W 56–14 | 12,616 |
| September 8 | 12:00 pm | at No. 14 Ohio State* | Ohio StadiumColumbus, OH | ESPN2 | L 16–31 | 104,745 |
| September 15 | 4:00 pm | FIU* | Bright House Networks StadiumOrlando, FL | CSS | W 33–20 | 40,478 |
| September 29 | 12:00 pm | Missouri* | Bright House Networks StadiumOrlando, FL | FSN | L 16–21 | 35,835 |
| October 4 | 8:00 pm | East Carolina | Bright House Networks StadiumOrlando, FL | CBSSN | W 40–20 | 32,181 |
| October 13 | 8:00 pm | Southern Miss | Bright House Networks StadiumOrlando, FL | CBSSN | W 38–31 $^{2OT}$ | 34,514 |
| October 20 | 8:00 pm | at Memphis | Liberty Bowl Memorial StadiumMemphis, TN | CSS | W 35–17 | 22,106 |
| October 27 | 8:00 pm | at Marshall | Joan C. Edwards StadiumHuntington, WV | CBSSN | W 54–17 | 22,563 |
| November 3 | 7:00 pm | SMU | Bright House Networks StadiumOrlando, FL | CBSSN | W 42–17 | 36,036 |
| November 10 | 7:00 pm | at UTEP | Sun Bowl StadiumEl Paso, TX | FCS | W 31–24 | 25,483 |
| November 17 | 12:00 pm | at Tulsa | Chapman StadiumTulsa, OK | FSN | L 21–23 | 19,725 |
| November 24 | 12:00 pm | UAB | Bright House Networks StadiumOrlando, FL | FSN | W 49–24 | 28,602 |
| December 1 | 12:00 pm | at Tulsa | Chapman StadiumTulsa, OK (C-USA Championship) | ESPN2 | L 27–33 $^{OT}$ | 17,635 |
| December 21 | 7:30 pm | vs. Ball State* | Tropicana FieldSt. Petersburg, FL (Beef 'O' Brady's Bowl) | ESPN | W 38–17 | 21,759 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from AP Poll released prior to the gameAll times are in Eastern time |||||||

## Game summaries
### Akron

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • Knights | 7 | 28 | 14 | 7 | 56 |
| Zips | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 14 |

### Ohio State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Knights | 3 | 7 | 6 | 0 | 16 |
| • Buckeyes | 7 | 10 | 14 | 0 | 31 |

### FIU

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Panthers | 0 | 0 | 14 | 6 | 20 |
| • Knights | 9 | 14 | 7 | 3 | 33 |

### Missouri

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • Tigers | 0 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 21 |
| Knights | 3 | 7 | 0 | 6 | 16 |

### East Carolina

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| East Carolina | 14 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 20 |
| • Knights | 7 | 13 | 10 | 10 | 40 |

### Southern Miss

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | 2OT | Total |
| Golden Eagles | 0 | 7 | 7 | 10 | 7 | 0 | 31 |
| • Knights | 7 | 10 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 38 |

### Memphis

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • Knights | 14 | 0 | 7 | 14 | 35 |
| Tigers | 10 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 17 |

### Marshall

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • Knights | 7 | 20 | 20 | 7 | 54 |
| Thundering Herd | 3 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 17 |

### SMU

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Mustangs | 3 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 17 |
| • Knights | 7 | 14 | 14 | 7 | 42 |

### UTEP

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • Knights | 7 | 10 | 0 | 14 | 31 |
| Miners | 7 | 3 | 0 | 14 | 24 |

### Tulsa

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Knights | 0 | 14 | 0 | 7 | 21 |
| • Golden Hurricane | 10 | 0 | 13 | 0 | 23 |

### UAB

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Blazers | 0 | 10 | 7 | 7 | 24 |
| • Knights | 14 | 21 | 7 | 7 | 49 |

### Conference USA Championship Game

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | Total |
| Knights | 0 | 14 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 27 |
| • Golden Hurricane | 7 | 14 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 33 |

### Beef 'O' Brady's Bowl

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • Knights | 13 | 15 | 7 | 3 | 38 |
| Cardinals | 0 | 7 | 3 | 7 | 17 |