Spring Schedule Preview: UCF

Spring (football) has sprung with the new-look Cowboys getting onto the practice field for the first time this week. Let’s continue our look at their 2026 fall slate.

The Cowboys will get an early bye week in 2026. Following their first conference game, a trip to Morgantown to face West Virginia, they’ll return to treat fans to a Big 12 home opener against the Knights.

For the second game in a row, OSU will be trying out its new coaching staff against a recent retread. Week 4 opponent West Virginia will be in Year 2 of the Rich Rodriguez re-experiment while Central Florida will be in the second year of Scott Frost 2.0.

Frost spent the 2016 and 2017 seasons in Orlando, going from 6-7 to a perfect 13-0 before jumping ship to Nebraska. After five years in Lincoln and a couple years off, Frost returned to UCF ahead of the 2025 season to get his first taste of the Big 12.

Be sure to check out our previous episodes: Noncon | WVU

Week 5: UCF | Oct. 10 | Stillwater, Okla.

Series history: 0-2

Last meeting: The Cowboys coughed up a 14-0 halftime lead, spoiling what, at the time, seemed like their best chance at an FBS win all year. To add insult to the injury of not scoring in the second half, there were several squinky-esque moments like two UCF fourth-down conversions, a near muffed punt by the Knights and Jaden Nixon almost gifting his former team a fumble. In the end, the Knights followed up OSU’s 14-0 first half with a 17-0 second to get the win on Senior Knight.

UCF in 2025: The Knights slumped over the last half of Scott Frost’s first season back at the helm. They were 2-7 in the Big 12, and, had it not been for that comeback against OSU, they would have dropped last five games of the season.

UCF in 2026: On one side, you have the Cowboys with the league’s top transfer portal class, and on the other you have UCF. As of writing, the returning 5-7 Knights are ranked last place in the Big 12 in both portal class and high school class, per 247Sports.

Of note: Another touted mid-major QB.

Those rankings notwithstanding, Frost and Co. did make some thoughtful moves in the portal to shore up some key positions, namely at quarterback. They turned over their QB room with a group headlined by former James Madison dual-threat Alonza Barnett III. Last year’s Sun Belt Player of the Year led the Dukes all the way to the College Football Playoff. He went 20-6 the last two seasons as a starter.