麻豆原创 and the Big 12 unveiled the 2026 schedule in January, with every game initially scheduled on Saturday. Two of those games are now shifted to Friday:

• Oct. 30 vs. Baylor (Mission X Space Game)
• Nov. 20 vs. Iowa State (Senior Knight)

TV and streaming designations and kickoff times will be revealed at a later date.

2026 Schedule & Game Day Themes

-Home games in bold-

9/3 vs. Bethune-Cookman (Season-Opener)
9/12 at Pittsburgh
9/19 vs. Georgia State (Family Weekend)
9/26 vs. TCU (Big 12 Opener)
10/3 at Houston
10/10 at Oklahoma State
10/24 vs. BYU (Homecoming)
10/30 vs. Baylor (Mission X Space Game)
11/7 at Kansas
11/14 vs. Arizona State
11/20 vs. Iowa State (Senior Knight)
11/28 at Colorado

The Big 12 Championship Game is scheduled for Friday, Dec. 4, and will once again be played at AT&T Stadium, home of the Dallas Cowboys, in Dallas, Texas.

Under the direction of head coach Scott Frost, 麻豆原创 carries early momentum into the 2026 season after landing quarterback Alonza Barnett III and a strong group of transfers through the portal. The Knights also secured a pair of four-star high school recruits, highlighting a solid overall class.

TICKETS

Season tickets for the 2026 campaign can be purchased at . Single game tickets are not yet for sale.

Tied at 72 with less than a minute remaining in Saturday鈥檚 game, junior forward Jordan Burks drilled a 3-pointer in front of the Knights鈥� bench that ignited 麻豆原创 on to its 81-75 victory over the No. 17 Jayhawks.

As the buzzer sounded, droves of the more the 8,000 in attendance stormed the court in celebration 鈥� a nearly identical scene to the Knights鈥� 65-60 win over then-No. 3 Kansas in the first Big 12 Conference game in school history on Jan. 10, 2024.

鈥淲e beat a good basketball team tonight 鈥� the tradition, the coaching, the players they have. Just really proud of our players for playing for 40 minutes,鈥� 麻豆原创 head coach Johnny Dawkins says. 鈥淭hey showed a lot of heart throughout the game because Kansas is [terrific]. I thought our guys did a great job of sustaining effort on the court. I thought we finished strong at the end of the game when Kansas made a really good run to tie the ball game up. Those were things we were talking about as a team prior to us going away for Christmas break; how we have to play in conference, and I thought our guys it reflected that today in how we finished the game.鈥�

麻豆原创 is now ranked in the Associated Press Top 25 poll for the first time since 2019.

This year鈥檚 squad now improves to 12-1, marking the program鈥檚 best start under Dawkins since he took the helm in 2016. On Monday, 麻豆原创 cracked into the Associated Press Top 25 for the first time since 2019, debuting at No. 25 in the Week 9 poll.

The ranking marks just the sixth week 麻豆原创 has appeared in the AP Top 25 since the program鈥檚 inception in 1969 and the second time under Dawkins.

Senior guard and Orlando native Riley Kugel led with 19 points, followed by guard Themus Fulks with 16 points and Burke with 14. 麻豆原创鈥檚 44 first-half points marked the most the Jayhawks have allowed this season, after previously holding then-No. 5 Duke and then-No. 17 Tennessee to 41 points apiece.

Up next, the Knights continue league play when they head to Oklahoma State for an 8 p.m. matchup on Jan. 6 before returning home Jan. 11 to face Cincinnati at 5 p.m.

The Big 12 boasts the most Top 25 teams (seven) of any conference in the country.

鈥淎t the end of this day, this needs to be behind us and we have to throw all of our preparation into Oklahoma State because that鈥檚 how this league is,鈥� Dawkins says. 鈥淵ou鈥檙e going to have 17 more games like we had tonight. None of them are going to be different. All of these teams are well-coached, all these teams have a lot of talent so we have to prepare for it that way.鈥�

Their mentality? Don鈥檛 tell us the odds.

鈥淚 told the team from the very beginning, no successful team goes through any journey that is easy. This is part of our journey,鈥� 麻豆原创 head coach Tiffany Roberts Sahaydak says. 鈥淗ow are we going to respond to this? You have the ability to go out there and play for them. Believe in how good you are. Visualize doing great things and the rest will follow.鈥�

From that point on, the Knights closed the regular season with a nine-match unbeaten streak, helping them clinch the No. 7 seed and hosting rights in the NCAA Tournament.

麻豆原创 will hold a first-round game on Friday, Nov. 14 at 7 p.m. at the 麻豆原创 Soccer Complex against Maine, who just won its third-straight America East championship title.

The Knights are one of a conference-record eight teams from the Big 12 selected to participate in this year鈥檚 NCAA Tournament.

鈥淎fter what we went through on a weekly basis in the Big 12 this year 鈥� a historical year with how many teams earned postseason bids 鈥� what excites me as we head into the NCAA Tournament is we鈥檝e seen the best in the country. We are part of that,鈥� Roberts Sahaydak says. 鈥淥bviously it鈥檚 one game at a time, and that starts with Maine, but the team should be feeling really confident because they are prepared from the physical and tactical and mental tests they鈥檝e had all season.鈥�

麻豆原创鈥橲 NCAA Tournament History

This year鈥檚 postseason appearance will mark 麻豆原创鈥檚 first as a member of the Big 12 Conference and first since 2022 when the Knights advanced to the tournament鈥檚 second round.

Friday鈥檚 home match will mark the 11th time that 麻豆原创 has hosted an NCAA Tournament First Round competition and the program鈥檚 first since 2017.

In all, it will be the program鈥檚 23rd all-time appearance in the NCAA Division I Championship. 麻豆原创 ranks among the NCAA鈥檚 top 25 winningest teams nationally since the inception of Division I women鈥檚 soccer in 1982.

Tickets/Broadcast Info

General admission tickets are $10 and can be at ucfknights.com. The first 100 麻豆原创 students with valid 麻豆原创 ID will receive free entry (first come, first serve). Stadium gates open at 6 p.m.

The match will air on ESPN+.

麻豆原创 men鈥檚 basketball coach Johnny Dawkins made his declaration Jan. 4 prior to the Knights鈥� Big 12 Conference opener at Kansas State, and in front of a raucous, sellout home crowd six days later, they proved it.

Built upon a second-half surge and stifling efforts on the defensive end, 麻豆原创 put its new conference on notice, toppling the No. 3 Kansas Jayhawks by a 65-60 final score before 9,469 fans at Addition Financial Arena, marking the third largest crowd in program history and the second highest in a regular season game.

The victory ranks among the most prolific in program history, representing the first against a top-three nationally ranked opponent, the second against a top-five foe, and the ninth against a squad ranked within the top 25. En route to the team鈥檚 upset, the Knights (10-4, 1-1 Big 12) erased a Jayhawks (13-2, 1-1 Big 12) lead that grew to as many as 16 points with 3:45 remaining in the first half.

鈥淚t was a great night for 麻豆原创. Our guys kept fighting in a game in which they got down early in the first half to a very good Kansas basketball team,鈥� Dawkins says. 鈥淲hen they get that type of lead, you start to get knocked back a little bit. In our timeouts, I was trying to settle them down and stress that we have to take it possession by possession. We talked about working our way back in it in that last four-minute segment, and we were able to do that.

鈥淚鈥檓 proud of the way we fought back with great courage, effort and energy throughout the entire night.鈥�

Dawkins’ Notable Streaks

In the first meeting between the two programs, the Knights also notched their first win within Big 12 Conference play and extended a few notable win streaks Dawkins himself owns against Kansas and its head coach, Bill Self 鈥� who in his 20 seasons at Kansas has led the Jayhawks to two national championship titles.

麻豆原创鈥檚 effort Wednesday represented Dawkins鈥� second win against the Jayhawks as a head coach, joining his 2014 triumph over Kansas as the head coach of Stanford in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Overall, Dawkins improved to 4-0 against the Jayhawks in his career, having bested Kansas twice as a player with Duke in the 1985-86 season.

Dawkins soaked up the team鈥檚 win Wednesday among the onslaught of fans who euphorically rushed the court.

Fantastic Finish

With the two squads trading blows throughout much of the second half, the Knights finally claimed a lead they would not relinquish with 2:57 to play in the final half.

Fifth-year forward Ibrahima Diallo grabbed a pass from junior guard Jaylin Sellers just outside the paint and finished a turnaround jumper moments later, giving his team a 59-57 advantage.

Fellow fifth-year forward CJ Walker, who made his first start for the Knights since March 11, 2022, gave 麻豆原创 a bit of breathing room with a pair of free throws, and a Sellers layup coupled with two more converted free throws from junior guard Darius Johnson iced the Knights鈥� first win against a top five-ranked opponent since the team prevailed against then-No. 4 UConn by a 68-63 final score Nov. 25, 2011.

The timely shot by Diallo punctuated one of the better all-around games authored by the Saly, Senegal native, finishing with a season-high 13 points and five total rebounds.

鈥淗e was great,鈥� Dawkins says of Diallo. 鈥淗e鈥檚 going against arguably the best 鈥榖ig鈥� in college basketball, Hunter Dickinson is a terrific player. For Ibrahima to go toe-to-toe with him and have to battle him in the low post, he did a great job, and I鈥檓 proud of the way he stepped up and gave us a huge effort tonight.鈥�

The final sequence, one that saw the Knights outscore the Jayhawks 8-3 and limit Kansas to one field goal in the game鈥檚 final 3:23 of play, represented a microcosm of the team鈥檚 dominant second half in the face of one of college basketball鈥檚 blue bloods.

鈥淲e knew we had zone (defense) in our bag,鈥� Dawkins says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 something that we work on and we felt it was timely to play some today. That鈥檚 why you saw our guys play it so well, because they鈥檙e accustomed to playing it in practice. We were able to stay with it longer because it was effective at times in the second half.鈥�

Up Next

The Knights have a quick turnaround to their next Big 12 test when the Black and Gold welcome the No. 18/17 BYU Cougars to Addition Financial Arena Saturday afternoon. Tipoff for the contest is slated for 4 p.m. Jan. 13 and will be streamed on ESPN+.

For everything you need to know about attending a men鈥檚 basketball game, visit .

What makes a conference rival? Sometimes it’s geography. Sometimes it’s similarities. Sometimes it鈥檚 on-field success and unforgettable finishes.

As 麻豆原创 has grown from its humble beginnings as a Division III program in the 1979 to joining the Big 12 this year, so too has its fiercest rivalries evolved.

War on I-4

The 麻豆原创-South Florida rivalry has been the standard for the last decade.

Two proud Central Florida institutions, 100 miles apart, thrown together in the American Athletic Conference 鈥攚ith no other leagues foes this side of East Carolina.

The record book says the programs began competing in a 1971 baseball game between the Florida Tech Knights of the Pegasus and the South Florida Golden Brahmans. South Florida prevailed 5-1.

The schools first met in men鈥檚 basketball in 1972.聽 Alum and longtime season ticket holder Joe DeSalvo 鈥�75, former Florida Times-Union sports editor, remembers a home-opening game in 1974-75 (won 75-74 by 麻豆原创) played at Winter Park High School.

While the War on I-4 rivalry was officially established in 2016 across all sports between the programs, ABC and ESPN helped cement the status of the football rivalry three years earlier by making it a regular Black Friday nationally televised event to end the regular season.

Though the teams have played only 14 times overall (and never until 2005 when it was Big East vs. Conference USA), their football meetings have produced notable fireworks 鈥� most recently in 2022 when a favored 麻豆原创 squad needed a highlight-reel end-zone grab by tight end Alec Holler to ensure a spot in the American Athletic Conference (AAC) Championship Game a week later.

There have been other headline-making contests 鈥� a 49-42 Knight home win in 2017 that finished off a perfect regular season, then a crazy 58-46 麻豆原创 victory in Tampa in 2020 that featured 646 yards by the Knights and 577 by South Florida.

鈥淭he great thing about the South Florida situation is that it was a rivalry for many years even when the two teams did not play,鈥� says longtime 麻豆原创 radio play-by play voice Marc Daniels. 鈥溌槎乖� had a very young program 鈥� and then South Florida announced it was starting a program. The thought was, 鈥楧oes 麻豆原创 want to play them?鈥�

鈥淏ut it鈥檚 a game that should have been played.

鈥淏y the time it happened in 2005, (head coach) Jim Leavitt had South Florida rolling. The 2007 game wasn鈥檛 close (64-12 in favor of South Florida). It began as a four-game series, South Florida won all four 鈥� and they had their 鈥榃e鈥檙e No. 2 in the country鈥� moment in 2007.

鈥淏ut there was no guarantee the teams were going to play again after that until 麻豆原创 joined the American in 2013.鈥�

In fact, AAC commissioner Mike Aresco talked often about the need for his league to build more interest via rivalries 鈥攁nd used the 麻豆原创-South Florida version as the conference鈥檚 best example. 麻豆原创 took home the inaugural War on I-4 trophy in the all-sports competition and its never left Orlando since.

麻豆原创 in 2023 has moved into the Big 12 Conference, and there currently are no more football meetings between the Knights and Bulls on the books. Any future games in any sport will be of the non-conference variety.

Before the War

There was a meaningful rivalry with Stetson in basketball and baseball 鈥� two of 麻豆原创鈥檚 earliest sports established 鈥� because of the proximity of the schools. The Rollins and Florida Southern series (in the Sunshine State Conference starting in 1975-76) flourished in the 鈥�70s and 鈥�80s when Torchy Clark was the 麻豆原创 men鈥檚 basketball coach.

鈥淩emember, in Florida at that time, there was no one (in pro sports) except the (Miami) Dolphins and (Tampa Bay) Bucs鈥� no hockey, no baseball, no Orlando Magic, and no 麻豆原创 football until 1979.

鈥淭orchy had a competitive basketball team 鈥� and when they would play Rollins in the Winter Park High School gym (in 1976) it was the biggest sporting event in Orlando,鈥� Daniels says.

Knight fans have seen plenty of football shifts 鈥� based on 麻豆原创 beginning as an NCAA Division III program in 1979, elevating to Division II (1982), FCS (1990), FBS (1996), the Mid-American Conference (2002), Conference USA (2005), the AAC (2013) and now the Big 12 (2023). That doesn鈥檛 count the handful of other conferences other Knight teams participated in.

Considering Daniels has called every Knight football game since 1995 (the Daunte Culpepper days), the broadcaster and voice of the Knights knows a little something about which opponents over the years have fired up 麻豆原创 fans:

鈥淎s 麻豆原创 went through its Division II and I-AA years, people talked about Bethune-Cookman as a rival because of the geographics,鈥� he says. 鈥淵oungstown State is often mentioned just because of the history of a (1993) playoff game in the snow.鈥�

In DeSalvo鈥檚 view, the football aspect started in 1979: 鈥淚 went to that first game 鈥� we played St. Leo right out of the gate. It was only the two games those first two seasons, but that made it a rivalry.

鈥淎nd in those really early years Valdosta State (eight games from 1982-94) was a rival for us 鈥� and Georgia Southern (11 games from 1982-91). Those were the better programs we were challenging back then. Southern Miss (麻豆原创 dropped six of eight meetings between 2005-12) was always a tough game in Conference USA.

鈥淓verybody wanted to beat 麻豆原创. We seemed to have a big target on our back. Maybe it was partly because we were a big school from a big city. In their minds, we were the city slickers from Disney World.

鈥淚t made it more of a challenge, but history shows we were up for it.鈥�

Rivalries with Longevity

Veteran Knight fans talk about the days when games against Tulsa (three of the teams鈥� meetings have been C-USA title games鈥攊n 2005, 2007, 2012) and East Carolina qualified as red-letter calendar dates.

The Tulsa rivalry was fueled by four straight Golden Hurricane wins (2015-16-19-20). The Knights have played more football games (21) against East Carolina than any other opponent and own more triumphs over Memphis (15) than any other foe.

And Daniels is quick to point out, don鈥檛 forget about Marshall 鈥� and old foe from the MAC who went on the ride along with 麻豆原创 to C-USA.

鈥淚n my mind, Marshall was the first big rivalry because of how it happened,鈥� Daniels says. 鈥溌槎乖� went from independent to the MAC. Marshall made the move from dominating in I-AA to the MAC and they were having success.

鈥淭hat leads to the first time we played which was 2002. 麻豆原创 had played at Arizona State two weeks before and (quarterback) Ryan Schneider injured his ribs. After a bye week we went up to play Marshall and (quarterback) Byron Leftwich and they were just ready for us. It was as if they were saying, 鈥榃ho is this new kid on the block from Florida?鈥� 鈥�

Marshall won 26-21, but the Knights earned some respect, in part due to Schneider鈥檚 warrior-like approach. 麻豆原创 actually had the ball at the end on Marshall鈥檚 side of the field until the drive stalled. Marshall won the first three games of the series.

鈥淭hat brought us to 2005 and 麻豆原创 had a 17-game losing streak, the longest in the country, including all of George O鈥橪eary鈥檚 first year (2004),鈥� Daniels says.

麻豆原创 beat Marshall 23-13 鈥� and Knight Nation tore the goalposts down in the old Citrus Bowl.

鈥淔ast-forward into a series that had been owned by Marshall and that 麻豆原创 then began to dominate,鈥� Daniels says. 鈥淭he two teams played in the Gasparilla Bowl after the 2019 season, and that brought back a lot of memories. There were good things about the Marshall series as far as turning 麻豆原创 fortunes around 鈥� and that made it special for Knight fans.鈥�

鈥淭here were certain schools you had to get up for鈥攜ou had to win that game. Marshall became one of those,鈥� DeSalvo says.

Memphis is next on the list and extended beyond football.

Keith Clanton led the 麻豆原创 men鈥檚 basketball team to its first win over Memphis, 68-67, in 2012 in front of the then-fifth largest crowd in school history 鈥� who rushed the court to celebrate the milestone. In women鈥檚 soccer, 麻豆原创 and Memphis appeared regularly atop the C-USA standings 鈥� and the Knights headed into the AAC with momentum by shutting out Memphis in the 2012 C-USA tournament en route to its first C-USA tournament title. The teams鈥� series evened out, 6-6, during their AAC era.

In football, the Tigers beat 麻豆原创 back in 1990 and then the Knights won 13 straight. The 2005 麻豆原创 victory (38-17) saw All-America 麻豆原创 running back Kevin Smith (164 yards) outrush DeAngelo Williams (136) when Williams was the leading rusher in the country.

Adds Daniels, 鈥淭hat game was noteworthy because at that time 麻豆原创 didn鈥檛 have all that many wins over name programs.鈥�

In 2013 there was the 麻豆原创 kickoff with the game tied and less than two minutes to go鈥攔esulting in a big hit and forced fumble by the Knights鈥� William Stanback. Drico Johnson picked it up and scored鈥攁nd 麻豆原创 won 24-17.

The teams played four times combined in 2017 and 2018, though the regular-season meeting in 2017 almost didn鈥檛 happen because of a hurricane. The conference title game in 2017 was a 62-55 麻豆原创 double overtime win that pushed the Knights to 12-0. McKenzie Milton threw for 494 yards and five touchdowns in the highest-scoring FBS conference title game in history (including 1,479 combined total yards). At one point in the first half, Milton completed 15 consecutive passes for 266 yards and three TDs.

Then in 2018, 麻豆原创 was down 16 on the road in the rain and came back to win 31-30鈥攑artly via a fourth-and-one TD play (a 71-yard run by Taj McGowan). 麻豆原创 backup quarterback Darriel Mack did the job in the 2018 AAC title game with 348 passing yards and four rushing TDs–after Milton had been hurt the week before.

鈥淭hose were four incredible games. In fact, there was another one, that 麻豆原创 lost 50-49 in 2020 after gaining 798 yards, that was an incredible football game as well,鈥� Daniels says.

Daniels puts Cincinnati on the rivalry list with South Florida, Marshall and Memphis 鈥� and says he will never forget the 2015 game versus the Bearcats.

鈥溌槎乖� lost 52-7 in the winless season,鈥� he says, 鈥渢hen turned around and beat them in Scott Frost鈥檚 first year in 2016. The ESPN College GameDay meeting in prime time in 2018 was an amazing week in so many ways as far as overall branding for the football program and for 麻豆原创 in general.鈥�

Cincinnati claimed three straight versus 麻豆原创 (2019-20-21), making the Knights鈥� comeback victory over the Bearcats in 2022 all the more satisfying (and coming against a CFP qualifier from the 2021 season). 麻豆原创 fans and national college football writers (Andy Staples, Andrea Adelson) believe the impact of the Knights鈥� 2017-18 25-game unbeaten streak paved the way for Cincinnati鈥檚 CFP breakthrough in that 鈥�21 season.

麻豆原创 and Cincinnati have been responsible for four of five AAC football titles from 2017 through 2021.

And now the story will continue as both programs head to the Big 12.

Who’s Next?

So, where can 麻豆原创 partisans direct their enthusiasm in this expanding new league?

Cincinnati may be the frontrunner, but what about Houston, where SpaceU takes on Space City? Maybe former independent BYU, part of the quartet that became Big 12 members July 1?

How will Knight Nation react to conference assignments against Kansas, Kansas State, Oklahoma State, Iowa State, Baylor, West Virginia, Texas Tech and TCU? (Given the move of Oklahoma and Texas to the Southeastern Conference beginning in 2024, exclude that duo.)

What about the most recent Big 12 additions 鈥� Colorado, Arizona, Arizona State and Utah?

鈥淚 think rivalries are really healthy,鈥� says DeSalvo, 鈥渁nd it鈥檒l be interesting to see how they develop in the Big 12.

鈥淢aybe Cincinnati? At least recently they were always in the way 鈥� it came down to that game.

鈥淢aybe West Virginia. Maybe Houston. Maybe even Baylor, just based on that Fiesta Bowl game 10 years ago.

鈥淎nd we have a history with Cincinnati and Houston 鈥� and they have a history with us.

鈥淥f the schools from the AAC, there will be a little bit of competition to see who is going to do better in the Big 12.鈥�

麻豆原创 recently recorded its first victory in its first outing as a Big 12 member in a 1-0 women鈥檚 soccer road win at Purdue.

There will be many more opportunities to come.

Check back in five years 鈥� and see how the rivalry debate unfolded.

鈥淚t鈥檚 going to be fun,鈥� DeSalvo says.

May 24, 2023. Big 12 Business Summit. Arlington, Texas.

Eric DeSalvo 鈥�09, 麻豆原创 associate athletics director of #content, settles into his seat among the crowd of marketing and sales leadership staff from around the Big 12 Conference as the league鈥檚 commissioner, Brett Yormark, takes the stand for his opening remarks.

鈥淗e starts it off and he goes, 鈥楾hese are the four things that are my pillars: innovation, creativity, disruption and taking risks,鈥欌�� DeSalvo recalls. 鈥淎nd I immediately think, is he talking about himself or 麻豆原创?鈥�

Being 鈥渂old鈥� and 鈥渋nnovative鈥� and 鈥渄isruptive鈥� might just sound like hot buzz words for brands to adopt in 2023. But in 麻豆原创鈥檚 case, it鈥檚 authentic. The Knights actually are all of these adjectives because they鈥檝e had to be.

Without the resources of longer-established universities 鈥� University of Florida was founded in 1853, 麻豆原创 in 1963鈥�

Without a longstanding history of fandom and donor support 鈥� University of Texas鈥� alumni association was organized in 1885. 麻豆原创鈥檚 in 1975鈥�

Without decades of nationally televised games and promotional broadcasts 鈥� Ohio State has hosted ESPN鈥檚 College GameDay a record 22 times, 麻豆原创 once鈥�

麻豆原创 has had to strategically rely on its youth to find ways to break through the noise in a state that boasts three other Power 5 institutions.

Enter: The benefit of big and the power of social media.

Building a Brand

Established in 1963, 麻豆原创鈥檚 meteoric rise to the Big 12 Conference makes it the youngest Power 5 institution in the country.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a modern athletic department. I think it鈥檚 the future of higher education. It鈥檚 the future of college sports,鈥� says Zack Lassiter, vice president of athletics for Abilene Christian University who served as 麻豆原创鈥檚鈥痵enior associate athletic director of external operations from 2012-15.

But it wasn鈥檛 always necessarily this way.

DeSalvo knows 麻豆原创鈥檚 brand arguably better than anyone. The son of 麻豆原创 graduate Joe DeSalvo 鈥�75, he grew up going to 麻豆原创 games in the mid-1990s at the Citrus Bowl and went on to graduate from 麻豆原创 himself. He has worked for the athletic department since 2011 鈥� first in communications before he transitioned to what is now known as the #content department in 2013.

He says in his youth, he would have described 麻豆原创 as having 鈥渁 lot of potential鈥� and 鈥渙n the brink.鈥�

鈥淔or a long time, 麻豆原创 was 鈥淯C-If鈥� 鈥� If we only didn鈥檛 get a phantom holding call against Georgia. If we didn鈥檛 miss the extra point here. And there were so many of those games across all sports that you were like, you鈥檙e right there 鈥斅� if only,鈥� he says. 鈥淏ut you saw the potential. You were definitely on the cusp.鈥�

On3 National College Football host Andy Staples, who moved to Central Florida as a middle schooler and graduated from Lake Mary High School, echoes the same sentiments.

鈥淵ou didn鈥檛 think of 麻豆原创 in the same way you would have thought of Miami or Florida State or Florida,鈥� Staples says. 鈥淵ou鈥檇 go to the campus and you didn鈥檛 see a lot of 麻豆原创 gear. It didn鈥檛 feel like a destination-type campus. We went there a lot for science fairs or somebody would be having their graduation at the arena 鈥� it didn鈥檛 feel as much like a place that people say, 鈥業 grow up wanting to go to 麻豆原创,鈥� or 鈥業鈥檝e been a 麻豆原创 fan my whole life.鈥� You just never would expect anybody to say that back in the 鈥�90s. Watching it change over the decades has been pretty amazing.鈥�

鈥� 鈥業鈥檝e been a 麻豆原创 fan my whole life.鈥� You just never would expect anybody to say that back in the 鈥�90s. Watching it change over the decades has been pretty amazing.鈥� 鈥� Andy Staples, On3 National College Football host

When former Athletic Director Todd Stansbury recruited Lassiter to join 麻豆原创鈥檚 athletic department in 2012, the west coast native didn鈥檛 have much familiarity with 麻豆原创.

Lassiter made it a point to ask a lot of questions and listen to campus counterparts, young alumni and students to gain a better understanding of how the university had gotten to where it was so quickly.

鈥淲e were young, but we were big, and so in that sense you could tell that, that was something that we could probably do better than anyone else,鈥� Lassiter says.

Indeed, 麻豆原创鈥檚 enrollment in 2012 just tipped 60,000. Today it鈥檚 more than 68,000. The university confers more than 18,000 degrees annually, and its alumni base clocks in at more than 368,000 鈥� nearly half of which still live in Central Florida.

Perhaps the most important stat is that the average alumni age is 42 years old. So, by the time that Lassiter joined the fold, social media platforms like X (formerly Twitter, founded in 2006) and Instagram (founded in 2010) were starting to really take off in the sports world and 麻豆原创鈥檚 biggest fan base was very active on social media.

It was the perfect combination.

鈥淧erception is reality. And if you feel like you鈥檙e getting hit up by a bunch of 麻豆原创 fans on Twitter, their reality is you are because the numbers are there between our enrollment and alumni,鈥� DeSalvo says. 鈥淥ur fanbase can celebrate the big moments with big numbers. They can pile on to somebody who shows some disrespect. They can win a Twitter poll like no other. By always showing up, they鈥檝e backed up what is on paper.鈥�

So, the department decided to lean into social to stand out. 麻豆原创 Athletics hired a full-time social media manager, Keal Blache 鈥�11, who served a short stint. When he vacated the position in 2013, Lassiter approached DeSalvo about the opening because of DeSalvo鈥檚 penchant for being creative with the social accounts in his role at the time as the communications contact for the volleyball and baseball teams.

鈥淚鈥檒l never forget 鈥� I think I鈥檓 at (former 麻豆原创 basketball player and athletics staff member) Mike O鈥橠onnell鈥檚 wedding. And Todd Stansbury鈥檚 there and he goes, 鈥楬ey you鈥檙e moving over to the social role, right?鈥� I鈥檓 like, 鈥榊eah.鈥� He goes, 鈥楢lright. Push the envelope.鈥� OK. Todd is telling me to push the envelope. I鈥檒l do my best.

鈥淚 can thank Blake Bortles and Storm Johnson and J.J. Worton聽鈥�14 听补苍诲 Terrance Plummer 鈥�21 and that crew for helping me push the envelope because there鈥檚 no greater year one than going to the .鈥�

In the last decade, 麻豆原创 has had three athletic directors 鈥� all of whom DeSalvo says have continued to buy-into the 鈥減ush the envelope鈥� mentality 鈥� four football head coaches and four university presidential leadership transitions. But the same voice on social media, which has benefitted 麻豆原创 immensely.

鈥淚f there is somebody better at what Eric has done and what he has built, I haven鈥檛 met him. And there were a lot of other talented people that were a part of that. But I think what made him so great is he believed it,鈥� Lassiter says. 鈥淗e could do it in a way that could connect, and a lot of our folks loved that it was a 麻豆原创 person doing this. That鈥檚 the authenticity of what social can be at its best 鈥� how do you become yourself in a way that galvanizes and gets people excited? He ran with it in ways that I hope 50 years from now if there鈥檚 a story about who were those individuals that played a part of that, I think Eric deserves a ton of credit for what he did. I think he had a lot of really talented people around him, and he was given kind of the keys to the kingdom so to speak, and we took off.鈥�

Those talented people are who DeSalvo credits for the team’s ability to not only stay relevant but maintain 麻豆原创鈥檚 status as one of the best brands to follow.

鈥淭he staff is key. I can’t have all the ideas. The ideas can come from anyone 鈥� from the AD (athletics director) to the interns, and many have over the years,鈥� DeSalvo says. 鈥淲e also have a work environment to where it鈥檚 loose, but they are well aware of who our brand is. I always say, ‘There鈥檚 no bad ideas.’ I also get to say, ‘We don鈥檛 say no around here a whole bunch.’ If it鈥檚 trending and there鈥檚 a way we can insert 麻豆原创鈥檚 brand into this conversation and it makes sense, let鈥檚 do it.”

The Tweets That Made Us

Nicole Auerbach, The Athletic Senior Writer: Not everyone realized this as early as 麻豆原创, where social media is about fun. It鈥檚 about engaging and having fun, maybe going viral. But it鈥檚 about doing things that are different and not just having no personality. They always had personality, and I think that was immediately embraced by the fan base that was very online and very ready to engage on any topic.

Eric DeSalvo: The tweet was on a whim. I鈥檓 with (former Associate Athletics Director for Strategic Communications) Dan Forcella and I drafted it before the playoff selection show had gotten to it. We were wanting it to be Bama. And it happens, and I hit send. It really put us out there. It鈥檚 my favorite tweet I鈥檝e gotten to send.

Eric DeSalvo: That was designed by (former graphic designer) Channing Curtis. We kept seeing the Elmo version, and I asked him, 鈥淗ey can you just put Knightro in his place?鈥� The first time we ever got to use it 鈥� he made it that day 鈥� we cracked the top 10 in the College Football Playoff rankings.

Andy Staples: I use Knightro gifs pretty frequently. I think Knightro with flames behind him is a very effective way of getting your point across. Those folks are very online. They鈥檙e very savvy. They know how to get our attention in the media, and they know how to keep the discussion going. They will defend 麻豆原创 tooth and nail. They will not let you get away with slandering 麻豆原创 in any way, shape or form. Which I appreciate. And there are other fan bases that are like that. But [麻豆原创] seems to be a little more in on the joke than some of the others. The more established fanbases, you get people who are just mad at you. 麻豆原创 Twitter, they know what they鈥檙e doing. And they know they know what they鈥檙e doing.

Eric DeSalvo: I wasn鈥檛 at that game 鈥� I was at my mother-in-law鈥檚. But the game was on ESPN3. You could actually rewind, thankfully. He catches that ball. I鈥檓 losing my mind.

That was the No. 1 Vine for us for a long time. That one was getting so much national play.

That鈥檚 up there because it was so iconic.

DeSalvo: I joke that my iPhone that shot Danny White saying 鈥渘ational champs, undefeated鈥� should go to the (麻豆原创 Athletics) Hall of Fame.

Nobody knew Danny was going to say that. We had a plan in place where we would continue to challenge the CFP. That鈥檚 what we were doing and needed to do for our team. (Senior Executive Associate Athletics Director of Brand Advancement and Chief Branding Officer) Jimmy Skiles took precedent from when he saw the year聽Auburn wasn鈥檛聽in the national championship game and were undefeated 鈥� they had national championship rings made for their team. It was on the front cover of Sports Illustrated. And he remembered it. If they could do that back then, why can鈥檛 we?

So, we crafted messaging for like “undefeated champions.” We didn鈥檛 straight up say national champions. (Former graphic designer) Chris Stoney made some motion graphics, “13-0. Only undefeated team, who鈥檚 next?”

We knew if we didn鈥檛 do anything by the time our game ended and the playoff game started that day, we would be kind of irrelevant in the grand scheme of games. It would be a nice win and move on.

People should know Danny looking into my phone wasn鈥檛 anything new. I kind of conditioned him to do that, especially at road wins. I would go live at Facebook right as the clock would hit zero to take fans behind the scenes. A lot of the time we鈥檇 be walking by Danny as we went to the locker room. So, it wasn鈥檛 anything new for him to see my phone get shoved in his face.

He just quickly says those magic words. Oh boy. Here we go.

Andy Staples: Don鈥檛 run afoul of 麻豆原创 Twitter. That鈥檚 all I got to say. This is a very passionate, very aggressive online fan base. Which listen that will fit right in (the Big 12). The good thing about 麻豆原创 is that passion will match with Kansas State and Oklahoma State and Iowa State 鈥� they are extraordinarily passionate people. They really love their teams. These are groups that will really appreciate one another.

Charging On

As social media has served as one of the tools to help define 麻豆原创鈥檚 brand over the years, one constant has been the Knights鈥� ability to rise up, to band together, to believe in its potential 鈥� to Charge On.

As a rallying cry, Charge On was introduced during the Stansbury and Lassiter era.

“It wasn鈥檛 as though there was one calling card that really captured the energy or the belief of a 麻豆原创 fan 鈥� like 鈥楪o Knights!鈥� was something to where, well how many other Knights are there in college athletics?” Lassiter says. “And I remember thinking that in social media hashtags were really important. What is that we can do?”

鈥淥bviously a decade later it鈥檚 become something that I feel is the perfect, simple way to describe who 麻豆原创 is.鈥� 鈥� Zack Lassiter, 麻豆原创鈥檚鈥痵enior associate athletic director of external operations from 2012-15.

And then Charge On surfaced. Lassiter recalls the idea came from an alum, who suggested it because the phrase is part of the lyrics in 麻豆原创鈥檚 fight song.

鈥淲hen the idea was proposed, it seemed to make too much sense,鈥� Lassiter says. 鈥淭his describes who we are. There鈥檚 a great history behind it. It鈥檚 incredibly nimble and flexible in how you can apply it certain ways.鈥�

So, Lassiter conducted an experiment. He walked around 麻豆原创 Athletics鈥� main administration buildings and starting using the term without explanation to elicit genuine reactions from the staffers.

鈥淣obody could figure out a way to say why that wouldn鈥檛 work,鈥� he says. 鈥淥bviously a decade later it鈥檚 become something that I feel is the perfect, simple way to describe who 麻豆原创 is.鈥�

There is still so much of 麻豆原创鈥檚 story to be written. More traditions to carve out. More pushing the envelope unapologetically.

And what makes DeSalvo and the rest of the gatekeepers of the brand excited about the next chapter is the union with the renegades of the Big 12.

鈥淲e鈥檙e finally in a league that is exactly where we should be 鈥� its identity is completely us,鈥� DeSalvo says. 鈥淣ot only do we get to do this stuff here and try to do it as big as possible, now we have the backing of a Power 5 league that is going to help just throw gasoline on the fire and get it out there further.”

In the spring of 1980, Linda Gooch 鈥�85 became a member of the 麻豆原创 cheer team. In August 1984 she was officially hired as the program鈥檚 head coach (the 2023 football season marks her 40th with the Knights) and a decade later the squad began competing for national titles. Since then they鈥檝e been routine high finishers in national competitions, claiming Universal Cheerleaders Association national titles in 2003, 2007 and 2020 and a UCA game day national title in 2019. In addition, Gooch 鈥� now the longest-tenured employee in 麻豆原创 Athletics 鈥� has been a key figure in the creation of mascot Knightro and the KnightMoves dance team. Her husband Alan Gooch 鈥�84 鈥�89MA played football at 麻豆原创 and then coached football with the Knights for 22 years. Both are members of the 麻豆原创 Athletics Hall of Fame.

This is Gooch鈥檚 story on how the cheer program over the decades helped 麻豆原创鈥檚 rise to national notoriety.

I started coaching 麻豆原创 cheer in 1984 鈥� at the same time I was teaching eighth-grade history. I would teach school during the day and drive straight to campus and coach the team in the evening. Back then, to qualify for the national championship schools would send in videotapes of their teams performing stunts and pyramids. From those entry tapes, the top 10 teams in each division were invited to compete for the title. This is the 1980s and with no internet or social media. We were pretty isolated. We had no real idea what skills other teams were including in their videos. All we knew was what we saw see at summer cheerleading camp. This was a time of incredible growth for cheerleading. This was on the heels of Olympic gymnasts Olga Korbut and Nadia Comaneci 鈥� and you had all these little girls who had watched them.

The popularity of gymnastics exploded in the US during the 鈥�70s, but there just weren鈥檛 enough qualified coaches. As high school programs, like mine, closed down many girls 鈥� took their acrobatic skills to cheerleading. What had begun as a sideline activity developed into a kind of alternative gymnastics. I was on the cusp of all of that.

During my first 10 years of coaching from 1984 to 1994 we submitted video entry tapes every year but kept receiving rejection letters. If you were close to being selected, you received not just a letter but a plaque. When you walk into my office today, on a shelf I have four of the rejection plaques. I keep those up there to remind me that nothing happens overnight, and you just have to stay at it. All those sayings about perseverance are really true. You just keep working and you鈥檒l break through at some point.

In 1994 there was no rejection letter. I finally got a congratulations phone call. We had qualified for nationals. I was so pumped. I immediately called our Athletic Director Steve Sloan. I said, 鈥淚鈥檝e got good news and bad news. The good news is that after 10 years of trying we have finally qualified to compete for the Division I-AA national championship.鈥� He went on and on congratulating us. I said, 鈥淭he bad news is the competition is in San Diego, California, and I need $10,000 to get our team out there.鈥� There was a long pause. Back in 1994 $10,000 might as well have been $100,000. He said, 鈥淲ell, we鈥檙e going to have to find a way to get you out there.鈥� Student Government came up with $3,000, our cheerleaders fundraised and came up with $3,000, the alumni association gave us $3,000 and 麻豆原创 Athletics made up the difference.

That first year we learned a great lesson about how video works. In the 鈥�90s the college cheerleading national championship was aired (taped delay) on ESPN. We would record the show and watch it repeatedly during all those years when we were getting the rejection letters. The teams just seemed so incredible. So flawless in their performances. What we did not know was that back then the TV show edited out all the falls. I thought everybody hit their routines perfectly.

My thought heading out to San Diego was, 鈥淲e just don鈥檛 want to embarrass ourselves.鈥� I figured, it鈥檚 our first year competing, let鈥檚 just keep everything in the air, so I gave our team a routine that I knew we could hit. Well we nailed it and came in a very close second to Morehead State University (in 1994). We came back to the Orlando airport and the (麻豆原创 marching) band met us at the gate. They were playing the fight song as we came off the plane and it was awesome.

We never looked back. In 1996 we moved into Division I-A along with our football team; in 1999 we finished in the top three; in 2002 we were runner up; and in 2003 we won the title. That 2003 championship truly was a David and Goliath situation because the University of Kentucky had won eight consecutive national championships. There were two generations of college cheerleaders who had never known another champion. For 麻豆原创 to come in and do that was absolutely magical. Showing it wasn鈥檛 a fluke, we came back and won it again in 2007 and at that point 麻豆原创 Athletics was really taking off. We had opened our on-campus football stadium that year with the Texas game.

There have been some incredible moments that mark milestones for the program. In the Troy State playoff game (1987) as a coach it was incredibly gratifying to get the noise penalty. After all that鈥檚 what every cheerleading coach should aspire to 鈥� having it that loud. I remember the officials walking over to (then head coach) Gene McDowell and saying, 鈥淐oach, you鈥檙e going to need to get on the PA and tell the fans to quiet down so we can get the ball snapped.鈥� And he replied, 鈥淲e鈥檒l take the penalty.鈥� It was great. I have one of those penalty flags framed in my office 鈥� as a badge of honor. Winning the first cheer championship (2003) and having our own documentary on WE TV after we won our second title in 2007 certainly elevated our national profile and traveling to Paris in 2013 to represent the USA in the European Open Championship put us on a world stage.

In the world of cheerleading people had stopped asking 鈥淲here is 麻豆原创 anyways?鈥� They knew who we were.

One of the most gratifying moments for me was ESPN鈥檚 College GameDay coming to campus in 2018. Lee Corso has a tradition of putting on the mascot head for whatever team he is going to pick to win. Coach Corso called me (earlier in the week) and said 鈥淟inda, this is going to be epic. I鈥檓 going to put the whole knight costume on.鈥� We knew that this could possibly be one of the most iconic video shots in all of College GameDay; something that would be played and replayed on the show for years to come. We had 90 seconds during the commercial to get Lee Corso into our Knightro costume. We pulled it off and Coach was right 鈥� it was epic.

The GameDay experience was a chance to raise the curtain. They give you five days鈥� notice if you are selected to host the show. If your spirit program isn鈥檛 doing a great job at your games and you haven鈥檛 created great traditions and a great game day experience for your fans, the no amount of magic is going to happen in those five days to get you ready. Fortunately, at 麻豆原创 we had been preparing for this moment for most of my adult life. Now it was just a matter of raising the curtain and showing the world what we have going on at 麻豆原创.

We always said it does not matter what you鈥檙e doing at 麻豆原创; just try to be the best at what you do. We are an aircraft carrier of a university. Positioned in Orlando, Florida, right in the middle of the state, it was our geographic birthright to be competitive at whatever we applied ourselves to. Athletics is just one of those areas where we are going to excel. We knew it was just a matter of time when all of our sports would eventually be competing on a national stage. Our goal was to make sure our spirit program was ready when that happened.

When people ask about the organization of the spirit program, I tell them it鈥檚 like a football team. You have the offense and the defense and the special teams. Cheerleading is the offense; the dance team is the defense, and the mascot program is the special teams. We鈥檙e all part of one big team totaling 70-80 people and we work very hard to be unified.

In terms of mascots, in about 1986 or 1987 a yellow dragon first appeared on our sideline and that was Puff. Puff looked a little like a bumblebee, and it had black dragon chest stripes. Then came Mack the Knight, who was sort of a cross between an astronaut and a knight. He had googly eyes and a football body.

In 1994 the athletic department decided that we needed to create a real animated mascot and asked if I would manage that aspect of the program. Trey Gordon had been a cheerleader and went on to work in student government. Trey took an interest in this project and I suggested he get some drawings done. He went to Metropolis Graphics in Winter Park and the committee loved the initial drawings. We had the costume made and Knightro I was born. Knightro II was similar but had a plastic face kind of like a doll. When it needed to be remade again, someone suggested the costume needed more sparkle so we had a vendor out at Disney create Knightro III (aka Glitter Knightro). All that glitter was heavy and 鈥淕litter Knightro鈥� weighed 50 pounds, making game days in Florida particularly rough. In 2007 we redesigned the costume again and that brought us our beloved Knightro IV costume that we have today.

The KnightMoves dance team kind of grew organically. We already had Starlet Knights, which were the auxiliaries of the marching band 鈥� flag-bearers, baton twirlers and a dance team. The dance team wanted to participate at basketball games and we tried that. It made sense for athletics to govern that group, and so they asked me to take on that assignment, too. Our dance team began just with basketball and but as we moved to the on-campus stadium we decided to bring the dance team down on the football sideline as well. They have been a wonderful addition.

I get asked a lot, 鈥淲hat does it take to win at the highest level?鈥� To win the championship you鈥檝e got to keep everything in the air and hit your routine. It鈥檚 two minutes and 30 seconds, and you have to be perfect. There is no do-over. It鈥檚 rarely about the most talented team. It鈥檚 really about who can hit their routine in that moment on that night under those lights and with all of that pressure. It鈥檚 not just preparing them physically, it鈥檚 preparing them mentally; coaching them to be at their best when their best is needed.

It’s so important to be open to change. Nothing stays the same 鈥� strategies are always evolving. It鈥檚 the same for us. You can鈥檛 be stuck on how you鈥檝e always done things. This is something that I have always loved about our university.

Our 麻豆原创 culture embraces being the disruptors. Change is our middle name. As a young university we鈥檝e had to be open to trying new things.

More than the championships and success, it鈥檚 my goal that members of our team leave with life skills. After college the ability to go out in the world and apply the discipline, structure and teamwork that they have learned from being a part of our team toward success in life. That is what our program is about. Learning to work together with people from different parts of the country and different backgrounds provides such an opportunity for growth. If you come in to 麻豆原创 as a freshman and you鈥檝e lived in the same town all your life and you鈥檝e gone to the same schools, same church and been around the same friends growing up, then use college to spend time with someone different than you.

I鈥檝e had members of our team tell me, 鈥淭his program has changed my life. If you can make it four years here in this program, you can do anything.鈥� I believe it is the camaraderie of a team environment and our emphasis on life skills that sets them up for success in life after college 鈥� it is a launching pad to bigger and better things ahead. We have hit so many milestones and reached so many goals already and we are just getting started.

Big 12, here we come. Let鈥檚 Go Knights, Charge On.

In 2017 and 2018, the 麻豆原创 football team rose to the height of popularity and disrupted the college football world with its 25-0 run that spanned 745 days. The accomplishment ranks among the NCAA Division I FBS鈥� top 25 longest winning streaks of all time, cemented 麻豆原创 as a national brand and exposed access barriers to the College Football Playoff.

The following story is the most detailed account reported of the program鈥檚 success, told exclusively by those who lived it. Read part one here.

Andrea Adelson, 聽ESPN senior writer: I remember sitting down with Josh Heupel in the spring of 2018 because the questions that everybody wanted to know were, 鈥淗ow are you going to keep this momentum up?鈥� 鈥淲hat was built here, how do you keep going?鈥� 鈥淵ou鈥檙e going to be changing schemes. You鈥檙e going to have a new defensive coordinator. A new staff. What are you going to do?鈥� 鈥淒oes that put pressure on you?鈥�

He said the most important thing he wanted to do that spring was learn from the players. Because the players had done it. And he had a lot of those players coming back.

Josh Heupel, 2018-2021 麻豆原创 football head coach: I think the success that the program had the year before I came in played a huge part in wanting to be a part of it. You had everything that you needed in a program to be successful. It felt like it was a unique place and time to be able to take over a program and have a chance to go win immediately.

It鈥檚 always important that your players feel that they have a say in the program to create buy-in from your players. The circumstances in the way that the staff and I were taking it over, it wasn鈥檛 a typical year one. Knowing that we were going to fast forward coming off that season, the expectations were to go compete for a championship and play in a big-time bowl game. You鈥檝e got to do that really quickly.

For me, it was important that from the very jump they understood that a lot of the things they felt really strongly about that helped them be successful are things that we again can incorporate into our program as we continue to build it moving forward.

Some of those things were really small 鈥� uniforms and how they travel. Some of those things were big as far as the buildup and what a Thursday and Friday looked like before you get to kickoff on Saturday afternoon. The last 48 hours, we really wanted to make them feel comfortable and feel like they were still in the same type of routine as they were getting themselves ready to play.

Andrea Adelson: I thought that was really smart of him because he didn鈥檛 come in here trying to destroy a foundation that was already built because he鈥檚 the new head coach and (say), 鈥淣ow we鈥檙e going to do things my way.鈥�

McKenzie Milton 鈥�19, 2016-18 starting quarterback: Coach Frost and coach Heup, they鈥檙e different guys. Different personalities. I think it was a challenge in our locker room initially to welcome him in with open arms.

Josh Heupel: Relationships and trust are built over time. When I took over, I said, 鈥淚鈥檓 going to have to trust you guys and just kind of give you some (trust) without some of those experiences if we鈥檙e going to go be what we need to be as a football team when we get to next fall. You鈥檙e going to have to do that as well.鈥� Each phase of our off-season, they got more comfortable.

Marc Daniels, longtime 麻豆原创 radio broadcaster: I believe we were penalized in the preseason rankings because we had a first-time coach in Josh Heupel. If Scott Frost came back in 2018, I believe we would have started in the top 10 and the same win streak happens, it would have been really hard to deny 麻豆原创 a playoff spot in 2018. If you go back and look how the first few weeks of the season began, there鈥檚 a good chance 麻豆原创 would have been in the top five before October. And I don鈥檛 know if they would have denied that. But they penalized 麻豆原创 because Josh was a first-time coach. I think we started 21st in the preseason poll and didn鈥檛 get the same bounce to get up there.

Michael Colubiale 鈥�17, 2013-18 tight end and special teams: Going into that year, we knew how good we were. I think everyone else knew how good we were, too. We were getting everyone鈥檚 best game. It was, 鈥淥h, we got 麻豆原创 this week, let鈥檚 put a big circle on it.鈥� Coming in and doing what we did versus UConn in a new system with a new coach kind of gave us a little more confidence going into the next games. We didn鈥檛 know what we were going to get. We were game planning for one style of defense and we鈥檇 come out and get a different style every single time. We had to adjust on the run, change our plays at halftime. It was definitely a grind.

This is where I feel like Heupel did a really good job. Our emphasis was 1-0 every week. We knew we won 13 straight, but Heupel, he beat it in our brains. I think I鈥檝e said it in 100 interviews: 鈥淥ur focus is to go 1-0 this week.鈥� Heupel really did a great job of making the guys buy into that motto. That鈥檚 what I feel like got us through that season a lot.

Josh Heupel: There was so much noise surrounding our program in a positive way, and there was certainly high expectations outside of it. I thought it was important to get our players to really focus on the path of how you become successful and understand that it doesn鈥檛 just follow you. It doesn鈥檛 just happen. You鈥檝e got to go make it happen. In our off-season, really started focusing on our daily habits and how we approach every single day.

As we got into the fall, that really became a really important motto for our football team. I thought our players bought into it and actually worked in that manner every single day and every single week. That was a huge part of our success.

Marc Daniels: I don鈥檛 want to take anything away from 2017 but you go into 2018 and the pressure begins to mount when the win streak goes to 14 and to 15 and it moves down the line. Here鈥檚 Memphis again. And I remember everything about this. All of a sudden the clouds come in. All of a sudden it begins to rain.

Josh Heupel: It was probably the wettest day I鈥檝e ever experienced on a football field as a coach or as a player.

Marc Daniels: We鈥檙e getting run off the field. We can鈥檛 stop Darrell Henderson. He鈥檚 running for touchdowns. Missing tackles. The offense is just sitting there, and we鈥檙e not doing anything.

Michael Colubiale: 30-17 鈥� Matt Wright 鈥�18 just drained a field goal right before half. We鈥檙e going into the locker room. Dudes were not looking too optimistic. I remember running to the tunnel and just waiting for everyone and just trying to tell everyone we鈥檙e still in this fight, we鈥檙e still in this fight. We鈥檙e playing with a pretty much broken McKenzie Milton.

McKenzie Milton: I was battling a grade 4 separated shoulder. I didn鈥檛 practice the whole week coming off of SMU.

Eric DeSalvo ’09, assistant athletics director of #content: I鈥檒l never forget his shoulder after the SMU game. He took his pads off and I鈥檓 like 鈥淥hhh!鈥� It was purple, yellow, blue.

Josh Heupel: I thought at halftime the ability of our leadership, Pat Jasinksi on the backside, Wyatt Miller 鈥�18, McKenzie Milton, to be able to get up in front of (the team) and understand that there鈥檚 a lot of things that have been built, this was a pivotal moment for our program and the course of this season, our ability to compete for a championship 鈥� which obviously a conference championship was the No. 1 goal that we had 鈥� those guys as much as anything were able to reset the entire locker room, bring some real calm to it and refocus us as we went out. Understand it was one play at a time. We were good enough in all three phases to go out and execute and come back in this football game.

McKenzie Milton: We were struggling to get momentum, pouring rain. We had a pass play. I scrambled up the middle, made a guy miss.

Marc Daniels: It鈥檚 4^th-and-1 on your side of the field and you鈥檙e thinking, 鈥淥K what are we going to do at the 29?鈥�

McKenzie Milton: I run to our sideline and I鈥檓 like looking at the (down and distance) and I鈥檓 like, 鈥淐oach, we鈥檝e got to punt.鈥�

Josh Heupel: The clock was starting to move in the wrong direction on us in the second half. Felt like there were a limited number of opportunities. We鈥檙e in a short yardage situation.

McKenzie Milton: He鈥檚 looking at it, and he鈥檚 like, 鈥淎lright, let鈥檚 go bone here.鈥�

Josh Heupel: It was an aggressive call but one that I felt like we had to go execute at that point in the football game. I also had great trust in our guys and our entire football team. But in particular the guys up front. Our five bigs, our tight ends and our skill guys being able to execute in that situation. KZ looked at me and had a question in his eyes. But it was the right moment in that situation for sure.

McKenzie Milton: We hardly go under center. I鈥檓 like, 鈥淛ust don鈥檛 mess up this snap. Don鈥檛 fumble the snap.鈥� And when I did my part, handed it off, I鈥檓 like alright let鈥檚 see if this works out. At the time, I wasn鈥檛 sold on the call but luckily coach Heup, he had some big kahunas on that one. Trysten Hill made a great block, and Taj (McGowan 鈥�19) was untouched to the end zone.

It was a huge momentum swing in the game and our season and, really, that was one of, if not the most defining play of that win streak.

Marc Daniels: You look back and you go, 鈥淗ow in the world did 麻豆原创 pull that out?鈥� And while we had more games, down 17 at Memphis in 2018 鈥� that to me was the big (defining) moment.

McKenzie Milton: We gave everything in that game and we were able to be plus one. That鈥檚 a feeling I will never forget. The Peach Bowl was great, but it was also like a sense of relief, like 鈥淥kay we didn鈥檛 blow it.鈥� But that one was all odds were against us and we found a way.

Eric DeSalvo: That was huge. But we still weren鈥檛 getting any respect for pulling out these wins. We鈥檝e never been one to shy away from stirring things up. Our administration saw an opportunity to do that by strategically sending staff members to sites of College GameDay (Ann Arbor, Michigan, and Pullman, Washington,) with 麻豆原创 flags and signs to force the conversation.

And it鈥檚 clear that it鈥檚 becoming harder and harder to deny 麻豆原创鈥檚 relevance as the win streak continues, even if the pundits are downplaying the significance of the streak. So by the time we get to week 12 with Cincinnati and it鈥檚 a top-25 ranked matchup, we knew it was going to be very hard for College GameDay not to pick us. And yet, I think there was still a bit of shock that they actually did.

Michael Colubiale: That story of the 25-0 run had to have GameDay there, right? Seeing us as the center of a College GameDay was awesome. If you would have told me that in 2015, I would have said, 鈥淎lright, get out of here.鈥� The whole build-up, finding out that Sunday with the coming to your city video they put out.

Josh Heupel: I remember driving home Friday after work and everything is getting set up. The amount of traffic on Thursday and Friday through our campus, you could feel the buzz on campus, but you could feel it in the city too. Big moments, big games are what as a competitor you love to be in. You could feel from our players the excitement and energy, but also the focus and preparation all week long. It was an unbelievable environment.

Marc Daniels: The night before (the Cincinnati game), I鈥檓 on campus. I go to interview Josh for a pregame interview. As I am coming into the office, Chris Fowler, Kirk Herbstreit, they鈥檙e leaving and it just kind of hits you like, they鈥檙e here doing this game.

Andrea Adelson: I just remember how many people were out. And all of the signs. And just the sheer joy. The sheer happiness of every single person who was there even though they probably were sleep deprived and had been lined up since the day before. It didn鈥檛 matter. GameDay was there.

I feel that it legitimized the program quite honestly. Because anytime you get that stamp of approval from GameDay when they鈥檝e never been there before, it says you鈥檝e made it. You鈥檙e big time. You鈥檙e important enough for us to come and travel to see you in person. And I鈥檓 not just saying that as somebody who works for ESPN 鈥� I know there are several ACC schools who haven鈥檛 had GameDay who would LOVE GameDay to be there on their campus because it just adds that credibility to your program and to what you have built.

Linda Gooch 鈥�85, 麻豆原创 spirit coach and former cheerleader: (My husband) Alan (Gooch 鈥�84 鈥�89MA) and I have known Lee Corso for a long time. I get this phone call from him early in the week. I answer the phone, and he just goes, 鈥淟inda! It鈥檚 going to be epic!鈥� I鈥檓 like, 鈥淐oach?鈥� And he says, 鈥淚鈥檓 going to put the whole (Knightro) costume on,鈥� and I pull into a little cubby so I can really hear him. And he goes, 鈥淚鈥檓 going to put my people in touch with you but I鈥檓 putting the entire costume on. They鈥檙e building me a stage and everything. It鈥檚 going to be epic!鈥�

We were able to pull it off. We had I think it was 90 seconds to be able to get him into that costume and that head on. And it was epic. It was epic. Even today, when they do the intro to College GameDay, there it is.

McKenzie Milton: I just remember watching on TV in the morning and everybody getting excited. Seeing all the signs, it was cool. That place was rocking.

I鈥檝e got to admit, there were probably only two games where I was a little nervous. It was that one and the Peach Bowl. The first play from scrimmage I get a strip sack for a touchdown so it couldn鈥檛 have started much worse. But when they came out on offense their first series and they got two pre-snap penalties, that鈥檚 still the loudest stadium I鈥檝e ever played in.

It was the culmination of, wow we鈥檝e really done something special here and let鈥檚 keep it going. What else can we do? I don鈥檛 want to say that was the pinnacle of the streak. But that was my last full game I played as a Knight.

Andrea Adelson: I was at the USF game that year. In 2018 basically my job at the end of that season was to keep following 麻豆原创. They鈥檙e on a long winning streak. It looks like they鈥檙e about to play for another conference championship. They鈥檙e going to get into another New Year鈥檚 Six game. I was there expecting 麻豆原创 to win by two or three touchdowns. I think that鈥檚 what a lot of people expected heading into that game.

McKenzie Milton: The first time I was considering the NFL was that week. My dad calls me and he鈥檚 like, 鈥淗ey, I鈥檝e been talking to some people, we鈥檝e got a lot to talk about after these next two games.鈥� 鈥� But coach (Mario) Verduzco would always tell me, 鈥淵ou want to make God laugh, you tell him your plan.鈥� Sure enough, simple play we always ran, running the football, I take a helmet to the knee, and I got the worst knee injury in sports.

Mary Vander Heiden, 麻豆原创鈥檚 director of sports medicine and head football athletic trainer: Just like any other game we鈥檙e watching, looking for injury mechanisms. As soon as he was hit, we knew it was bad. I immediately started running. I don鈥檛 know that I鈥檝e ever run that fast in my life but got to him. Tried to protect him. I remember telling him, 鈥淒on鈥檛 look,鈥� and he鈥檚 like, 鈥淭oo late.鈥�

Andrea Adelson: The whole press box was silent. Nobody said a word because we were all stunned and frightened, to be honest, because it looked that bad from where we were sitting. We are objective sports reporters. We don鈥檛 have allegiances, we don鈥檛 root for teams, but we are human, and these are college athletes. Nobody wants anything bad to happen to anybody on a football field ever. … And the only thing I could think was, 鈥淧lease get up. Please get up and be OK.鈥� And I鈥檓 sure that鈥檚 what everybody around me in that press box was thinking.

Scott Frost: We were on a road trip at my next job and played a game on the road. We had just boarded the plane to fly back home and the 麻豆原创 game was on. So our entire coaching staff was watching it on the little TVs on the airplane and saw it happen. Made it a tough flight home for all of the coaching staff.

Mary Vander Heiden: My role in our emergency action plan is to focus on the patient. There was a lot of chaos, so I just stayed focused on McKenzie. And then they took him. And that鈥檚 always the hardest part too I think from my standpoint 鈥� as the head athletic trainer, I couldn鈥檛 go. Knowing just how bad it was going to be and then still having to stay to take care of the rest of the team and stay focused. I think that鈥檚 a part that people don鈥檛 realize is so hard for athletic trainers.

The one really big benefit of that day was that we were in an NFL stadium. If it would have happened anywhere else, I don鈥檛 know that we have the same result. You have three hours to save a limb once you鈥檝e lost vascular. He was in surgery in less than an hour under the top vascular doctor in the state at Tampa General.

Marc Daniels: He鈥檚 taken off. There鈥檚 the emotion of him being carted off. You don鈥檛 know the severity of it. And you鈥檙e like, 鈥淲hat does it do to these guys?鈥�

Darriel Mack comes in. At the time it wasn鈥檛 a big offensive game plan for him, and yet 麻豆原创 responds. Greg McCrae has an incredible game. 麻豆原创鈥檚 defense plays well and they win the game comfortably, 38-10.

Mary Vander Heiden: The next hardest thing was probably postgame, having to tell coach Heupel because I was not updating him throughout the game. Immediate shock, grief came over his face. I said, 鈥淚 will tell the team if you want me to, if you don鈥檛 have the words.鈥�

Michael Colubiale: I just remember being in the locker room after the game and tears were flowing. People were circled up praying. 鈥� He kind of shaped those past two seasons.聽 For him to not be there after the win or knowing he wasn鈥檛 going to be there was tough.

Mary Vander Heiden: I went back to Orlando on the team bus, and then turned right around in my car. I think I got back to Tampa at like 4 in the morning. I remember that was a rough car ride. I was by myself. Just praying. McKenzie comes from a very faith-based family, and at that point really that was all you could do. He was in the best hands, but it was still not guaranteed. It’s like less than 10% even walk again normally.

There was a lot of anxiety (at first) because he didn鈥檛 have movement in his foot. He had a drop foot, which is very common for that injury. I think that was the most scary (feeling) for McKenzie 鈥� not being able to move is just a different level of anxiety. But he had blood flow. Dopplers were really encouraging, strong heart beats. So that was really positive there.

The next best thing we saw was he wiggled his big toe. We were so excited. And I think even then, he was like, 鈥淲hat the? It鈥檚 a big toe?!鈥� I鈥檓 like, you don鈥檛 understand what that means. We have a chance.

There鈥檚 not many that are built that could have made it through all the things that he had to do (to take the field again three years later).

Josh Heupel: It was really hard for everybody. Coaches and players. But certainly the players. Just in the entire week to be able to handle the emotion of one of the great players and certainly the leader of the program, the locker room, having a horrific injury. Somebody that was so pivotal in all the success that had transpired as a football program in recent history.

And then you look at a young player (Darriel Mack 鈥�20) that has not started a football game that is going to get thrust into a conference championship setting.

Michael Colubiale: We needed to finish off what we started. Our last game playing here officially. Conference championship. The 10hana. There was a lot going on that week. It was unbelievable. Everyone in the stands knew we were playing for McKenzie Milton.

McKenzie Milton: Guys came and actually saw me the night before. Coach allowed them to come out past curfew and see me. Gabe (Davis), Bam (Brandon Moore 鈥�20), DJ (Darriel Mack 鈥�20) and those guys. They said, 鈥淲e鈥檙e going to handle business.鈥�

My mom was at the game. My dad was with me at the apartment. Obviously I was heavily medicated, but I knew exactly what was going on in the game. It was frustrating because you just want to be there with your guys to encourage them. I couldn鈥檛 play but you just want to be there to support them 鈥� like 鈥淐鈥檓on guys, we got this.鈥� I was going a little stir crazy in the apartment not being able to be there with them.

At halftime, I was just telling my dad, 鈥淭urn this off. I can鈥檛 watch this anymore.鈥� And then obviously halftime goes around and 10 minutes go by and I was like, 鈥淎lright, turn it back on.鈥� They came out in the second half lights out. Defense shut them out, Trystan was unstoppable and DJ willed the team to victory and took over.

Marc Daniels: I鈥檝e seen some magical performances over my years of broadcasting games and I can鈥檛 explain how Darriel Mack found a way to that moment in that night to rise above it all and have this unbelievable performance. Made me flash back to think about Daunte Culpepper 鈥� this guy that was just physically better than everybody and willed his team.

Hard to imagine that you went from the heartache of watching McKenzie go down and here a week later celebrating another championship knowing he鈥檚 still fighting. What a rollercoaster of emotion but also incredibly proud because of how the community came together and team and students and what it meant.

McKenzie Milton: Those (FaceTime calls postgame) are some of the best memories. I was proud of those guys, the way they fought. That just shows the heart and soul of that team. We always played for each other. I always played for my teammates, the brother to my left and the brother to my right. They always did the same.

Marc Daniels: It was tough to watch it (the win streak) end the way that it did. Because the (Fiesta Bowl) game starts and you get a pick 6 and (LSU quarterback) Joe Burrow may be still the hardest hit he ever took from Joey Connors 鈥�17 鈥�19MA 鈥� and by the way he never lost a college football game after that. But you鈥檙e thinking, 鈥淥h yeah, we鈥檒l find a way.鈥� And we didn鈥檛. It ended in a hard-fought game. LSU was a better team that day. And in a way, it was OK.

Michael Colubiale: Looking back now, and seeing how much talent LSU actually had on that field and competing the way we did with DJ who hasn鈥檛 been our quarterback all year, was amazing. That game could have easily been a shutout by LSU. The talent, Joe Burrow, Ja鈥橫arr Chase, Justin Jefferson, Devin White, they go down the next year 鈥� it鈥檚 them or the Miami team as the best college football team ever. Just being in an 8-point ball game with them is something to be proud of ourselves.

I remember not wanting to take my pads off. Just reflecting on how special the season and that our run was.

I remember leaving the game and talking to coach O (Ed Orgeron) after the game. He was just saying that we had an amazing team, an amazing run, we were one of the toughest games they had been in all year. Really, some respect from a guy that has been around college football for a while. Obviously, a bummer we lost our last game but a lot to be proud of.

Marc Daniels: You would have liked to see it continue, but I think you look back at the two-year journey of the win streak and 麻豆原创 had established its brand as that school that was more than just a fluke of 2017. That backed it up in 2018 and there are probably bigger things that lie ahead.

Josh Heupel: One of the things that I learned through my football journey but also as a coach having been through a bunch of seasons is, it鈥檚 not just the end destination that matters. That does matter and everybody is pushing towards that goal, but the journey is the greatest part of it. And just tried to convey (in the post-game locker room) I was so proud of what they had done in the past 12 months with our staff, what they had built.

It鈥檚 a legacy that鈥檚 going to last forever. That鈥檚 why you guys are doing this interview right now. It鈥檚 a really special group of guys that restaked a claim on the future of 麻豆原创 football.

McKenzie Milton: I think trendsetters, trailblazers, whatever you want to call it, that鈥檚 what we were. That鈥檚 what 麻豆原创 is going to continue to be.

Andrea Adelson: In my view, those two seasons really set the stage not only for playoff expansion but for 麻豆原创 to join the Big 12. Without those two seasons, maybe 麻豆原创 is attractive, but maybe not. I mean you can look down the road on I-4 at another school (South Florida) that鈥檚 in the state of Florida that hasn鈥檛 really had football success and is kind of left out right now of the power conferences and 麻豆原创 isn鈥檛. And a big reason why is because of the success they鈥檝e had on the football field.

But in my view what they did in 2017 and 2018 鈥� they showed and they proved that 鈥淲e can play with anybody.鈥� And I also believe that those two seasons allowed Cincinnati to make the playoff. Without 麻豆原创 leading the way, I don鈥檛 think Cincinnati is ranked as high as they were in the playoff in the season that they made it.

Nicole Auerbach, The Athletic writer: The fact that it was so difficult and it took so many things to align for Cincinnati 鈥� after everything that had happened with 麻豆原创 鈥� to get an invite to the 4-team playoff, I think all of that fed into this whole conversation we鈥檝e had about access. And what it means to start the college football season with a chance to be part of the marquee event, the postseason that everyone wants to be a part of. So, 麻豆原创 really brought all of that to the forefront.

I think what my mind goes to as someone who covers the College Football Playoff piece and that off-field issue and the expansion issue, was how much they pushed that conversation forward and helped us get to the 12-team College Football Playoff.

Andy Staples, On3 national college football host: (麻豆原创) kind of exposed the system for the closed system it was. And the system is changing now. There鈥檚 at least a small part of that due to what 麻豆原创 did.

Andrea Adelson: I feel like 麻豆原创 has done a lot to help change college football, to help change the perception of 麻豆原创 but also to prove to people, forget about a label. A label doesn鈥檛 matter. What can you do?

I think we learned that anything is possible at 麻豆原创. It doesn鈥檛 matter what your conference is, where you鈥檙e recruiting your players from, all that matters is getting your teammates, your coaches, your players, the administration to believe. That鈥檚 why I feel like those two seasons should be held up as these models for inspiration because that was a team that was really easy to root for because they were a team. They were an absolute team.

Shaquem Griffin: That鈥檚 what 麻豆原创 is all about 鈥� believing in yourself, believing in your people, believing in your team, and knowing that the whole nation of 麻豆原创 loves you, how can you lose? Like, really, how can you lose with that?

Scott Frost: You can use this or not use this. I hope 麻豆原创 keeps climbing. I think there will be some challenges ahead going into a new league, but if there鈥檚 one university that鈥檚 positioned to overcome those challenges and become a great, elite program, it鈥檚 麻豆原创.

In 2017 and 2018, the 麻豆原创 football team rose to the height of popularity and disrupted the college football world with its 25-0 run that spanned 745 days. The accomplishment ranks among the NCAA Division I FBS鈥� top 25 longest winning streaks of all time, cemented 麻豆原创 as a national brand and exposed access barriers to the College Football Playoff.

The following story is the most detailed account reported of the program鈥檚 success, told exclusively by those who lived it. ESPN, when you鈥檙e ready to greenlight the 30 for 30 documentary 鈥� you鈥檙e welcome.

Scott Frost, 2016-17 麻豆原创 head coach: It鈥檚 hard to win a game, much less all your games. I think there鈥檚 got to be some magic.

McKenzie Milton 鈥�19, 2016-18 starting quarterback: The story of the win streak 鈥� I think it鈥檚 got to start in 2016 with coach (Scott) Frost coming in.

Shaquem Griffin 鈥�16, 2013-17 linebacker and team captain: I feel like that story started with coach Frost at the time where you were starting to see the dynamic and the culture of 麻豆原创 change.

Andrea Adelson, ESPN senior writer: Remember the situation that Scott Frost inherited. You鈥檝e got a winless team, and a locker room that鈥檚 in disarray. Nobody knows how to win. And that might sound simple to say, 鈥淥h, we just get together and win.鈥� That鈥檚 a hard thing to do when you have 100 guys in a locker room who may all be thinking about something different.

Scott Frost: One thing I will tell you, they were 0-12 the year before but coach (George) O鈥橪eary left a lot of really good players there. Sometimes things go your way and sometimes they don鈥檛, and when they don鈥檛, they can really go off the rails. But I give him credit for the players that were in the program and that I inherited.

Andrea Adelson: I was at Scott Frost鈥檚 introductory press conference. I remember that very vividly. I remember talking to (麻豆原创 vice president and director of athletics) Danny White and to Scott and having this sense that there鈥檚 going to be something different here now. A lot of those press conferences are just formulaic and cliches. But there was just a different sort of energy in that room.

Scott Frost: The first thing we wanted to do was create a brotherhood with the players that they would play for each other and love each other and love the coaches and show them an environment where the coaches would love them and really get them to believe again.

Shaquem Griffin: It was more of, 鈥淲e鈥檙e here for each other,鈥� not the other way around. I feel like in certain ways, when I first came in (to 麻豆原创), football was more like a business. We had to do this and we should just be grateful [to be there] 鈥� as opposed to, 鈥淚鈥檓 doing it because I care about you and I know that we care about each other.鈥�

Marc Daniels, longtime 麻豆原创 radio broadcaster: [The story of the win streak] kind of starts during 2016. Scott is in his first year. Makes the decision to start McKenzie and people kind of wondered about this undersized kid from Hawaii that they didn鈥檛 know much about. And yet I think people remember the double overtime loss to Maryland at home 鈥� we battled Maryland toe to toe, and you felt like it could be kind of interesting to watch the journey.

Scott Frost: We grew a lot that year. I don鈥檛 think the next year would have happened without 2016. Once you start 0-12, 6-6 seems pretty good. And then we got embarrassed in the (Cure) Bowl game. That鈥檚 a really good improvement from where we started, but I wanted the guys to set their sights higher. I told them that I was tired of people congratulating us for going 6-7. I wanted to make sure that the goals in the guys鈥� mind were as high as the goals in my mind and the coaching staff鈥檚 mind.

Michael Colubiale 鈥�17, 2013-18 tight end and special teams: I think the story of that 25-0 run really starts in the offseason going into that 2017 season. If you would have asked anyone on the team if you thought we would have ran the table for not just one year but two years, they would have probably called you crazy just because of all the stuff that was going on that offseason.

McKenzie Milton: I had a good spring ball but just really wasn鈥檛 in a good mental space. Honestly considered quitting football and moving back home. It was around finals week where I just had a mental breakdown.

Andrea Adelson: He鈥檚 thousands of miles away from his home in Hawaii here in Orlando, and that 2016 season was rough. He got booed (by 麻豆原创 fans at the Cure Bowl).

Scott Frost: We didn鈥檛 start him at the beginning of the season because we knew he had some growing to do, just like the rest of the team. I don鈥檛 think he was quite ready when he came in (for injured senior Justin Holman 鈥�16). He made some spectacular plays. But he also made some bone-headed plays, which when you鈥檙e a freshman in college, that鈥檚 going to happen.

But he led us to that (2016 Cure) Bowl game. He didn鈥檛 play great in that bowl game, but we didn鈥檛 play very well around him either. And inevitably it鈥檚 the head coach and the quarterback that get most of the praise, and it鈥檚 the head coach and the quarterback that get most of the blame when things don鈥檛 go well.

McKenzie Milton: Going through my freshman year, like a lot of college kids when they leave home for the first time, they want to go out, have a good time and things like that. I just feel like there鈥檚 no room for that 1) if you鈥檙e professing God and 2) if you want to be a world-class athlete 鈥� it just doesn鈥檛 add up to what you鈥檙e saying you want to be. I think it was more so just an identity crisis in terms of putting a lot of my identity into football, and really, in all honesty, some substance issues, too, off the field. Really just taking a look at myself in the mirror and was professing one thing but not really living like that.

And I think Twitter didn鈥檛 help. You鈥檇 read the positive and the negatives. And there were a lot more negatives that year, and all that fills your mind. That self-doubt starts to creep in and part of you doesn鈥檛 feel wanted in a way.

I turned off my phone. Got off social media. Wasn鈥檛 in contact with anybody on the team really. Kind of fell off the face of (the) Earth and not a better place to be than Hawaii when you want to do that. I was in contact with coach Frost and (麻豆原创 Director of Sports Medicine) Mary Vander Heiden, just giving them updates on how I was doing. If it wasn鈥檛 for the help of Scott Frost and Mary Vander Heiden, I definitely wouldn鈥檛 have made it back to 麻豆原创 during that time.

Michael Colubiale: We showed up day one (of offseason strength workouts) and he wasn鈥檛 there. We had a leadership council that I was a part of, and we had multiple meetings on just kind of where he was and what was going on. McKenzie was friends with a lot of dudes on the team and (his) phone wasn鈥檛 working. Not returning texts. Like his calls weren鈥檛 even going through. Frost let us know that he was back home in Hawaii. We were kind of sitting there not knowing what was going to happen going into the year.

McKenzie Milton: I was just doing some soul searching and at the end of the day, always put my faith in Jesus Christ. I got baptized. And that was really it for me. [I had a] conversation with my dad where he said, 鈥淭he first grown man decision you made was to not stay home here, and decommit from Hawaii and go play football at 麻豆原创. You鈥檝e never been one to quit.鈥� So really it was my dad pushing me to see it through. That is the reason my mom came out here (to Orlando). I don鈥檛 think a lot of people know that either. I needed that support system. So my mom started living with me and that made it a whole lot more comfortable to come back. I鈥檝e got to thank my parents for sacrificing time away from each other for a long time.

Michael Colubiale: We [the leadership council] had keep-it-real meetings in the summer before fall camp.

Steve Seay, 麻豆原创 director of Leadership and Career Development Strategies, and leadership council oversight: I still have those meetings pop up on my calendar. Tuesdays at 4 p.m. What was rewarding was that we set out a framework of; If you鈥檙e going to be a championship team, everybody鈥檚 got to be pulled together. If you鈥檙e going to talk the talk, you鈥檝e got to walk the walk. That council was able to hold the rest of their teammates accountable because they first held each other accountable and to a higher standard. And they would 鈥� for the most part in a diplomatic way 鈥� be able to bring up issues and it was handled at a level that didn鈥檛 involve yelling, screaming or anything like that. It was handled very professionally. The athletes in that room made a difference. That was leadership. I was quite uplifted with the way they interacted.

Michael Colubiale: I remember having a vote with the leadership council on if we wanted to bring McKenzie back. It was a tight vote to bring him back. I think this why we were who we were 鈥� we didn鈥檛 care who you were, we were going to try to hold you accountable.

McKenzie Milton: I had to earn the trust of the guys back. I started with meeting with the leadership council. Just, 鈥淕uys, I was in a very bad headspace, and for me to be the best I could be for you guys, I had to get myself right first.鈥� There was definitely some that welcomed with open arms, and some that were like, 鈥淒ude, we鈥檝e been here the past month and a half busting our butts, why would we want you here?鈥�

Michael Colubiale: He knew that trust was hard to earn, and he had to start over again.

McKenzie Milton: I just had to control what I could control. And it was hard. There were practices where I鈥檇 go into coach Frost鈥檚 office and be like, 鈥淐oach, man, nobody really on the team wants me here, I鈥檓 done.鈥� But having a guy like (junior offensive lineman) Tyler Hudanick 鈥�19 waiting outside coach鈥檚 office until I got out to make sure I was good, having teammates like that (helped me get through it).

I think more than anything, the guys could always tell I tried to be as genuine as possible with every interaction with them. I always came from a place of love and trying to understand where they were coming from.

Michael Colubiale: I think he showed his commitment in practice. He showed his commitment in the locker room with the guys during camp because camp is a grind. You鈥檙e with those dudes all day every day. Just win the respect there 鈥� show up early, obviously playing how he played on the field, he just kind of earned it during that first couple weeks of camp and ran away with that starting job. I think he knew that all his commitment needed to be to 1) earning our trust back and 2) being who he was on the field.

Scott Frost: I think anytime you鈥檙e going to accomplish a lot, usually it helps to have gone through something pretty hard. And sometimes those things that we go through that are hard are the things that shape us into the person that鈥檚 capable of taking on something great.

It was just a unique year. We were able to start camp earlier because of an NCAA rule so we started it as early as we could and we gave guys a bunch of days off during camp that I think helped keep them fresh.

Michael Colubiale: The (first game) FIU game we came out and put up basketball numbers 鈥�63 points 鈥� on them.

Scott Frost: We had a team (Memphis) fly to Orlando and then get on a plane and fly back out, and we didn鈥檛 get to play. And then a hurricane where the guys helped (the National Guard) with filling sandbags, and that kind of brought us together but we missed another game (Georgia Tech).

So it wasn鈥檛 easy in a sense that everything was laid out and structured like a normal football season. We kind of had to overcome a lot and adapt to a lot, and again I think that helped make the team better.

Michael Colubiale: We played like eight or nine straight after that with no bye week so we had to be locked in. We had to be playing for not only ourselves, but the brothers next to us.

Andrea Adelson: The players to me were really the key to what happened. They were the underdog story, not just from a 鈥淕roup of Five鈥� perspective but from a player perspective, right? You have a team filled with players that were overlooked their whole lives and a university that has been overlooked in the state of Florida their whole life, and a football program that has been overlooked by the entire country for their whole life except for maybe a Fiesta Bowl season with Blake Bortles. Starting to find this energy but also this chemistry that made them feel invincible. And you could see that every time they lined up. This team never felt like they were going to lose. That no matter what happened in a game, they were going to win.

Scott Frost: I remember the TV announcer at Maryland, the night before, he said, 鈥淗ow do you think this is going?鈥� I said, 鈥淗onestly if we win this one, we鈥檙e going to go on a run.鈥� That set the stage, that one. 鈥� I鈥檝e talked to McKenzie about this. There were about five games that season that were one-score games that could have gone either way. To be honest, coaches don鈥檛 really win those games. Players win those games. Because in those moments a play has to be made to help win the game, and all coaches can do is set the stage and try to train and prepare the athletes to go make it happen.

From a defensive stop at SMU to Bam (Brandon Moore 鈥�20) causing a fumble at Navy to Tre (Neal 鈥�18) getting an interception at Memphis to Mike Hughes returning a kickoff against USF 鈥� the spirit that McKenzie and Shaquem had kind of permeated our team, and they were confident, and they went out and made all the plays that mattered at the right time.

Marc Daniels: That鈥檚 what made 2017 into 2018 so fun 鈥� those teams just found a way to win.

Scott Frost: The most nervous I was was SMU. I鈥檒l be honest, I probably called my worst game of the year in that game. My wife was due on a Tuesday and that game was on that Saturday and I remember some of the supporters of the program were kind enough to me to have a plane waiting in case my first child was going to be born. I had been at the hospital half the week.

It got to the end of the game, and we were only up a score, and SMU had the ball and they had been moving the ball pretty decent against our defense. I remember looking out on the field and they were playing a song. Usher, 鈥淵eah.鈥�

Shaquem Griffin: So we played (NBA) 2K. And there鈥檚 something called the intimidator badge. And it was like, 鈥淲hat can we do to intimidate them?鈥� I was like, shoot, we鈥檙e going to go out there dancing. They鈥檙e going to think we don鈥檛 care about fourth down. You鈥檙e going to go for it? We鈥檙e just going to stop y鈥檃ll.

So we started dancing and you could see them looking at us. You could see the offensive line and the team looking like, 鈥淥h, they are too hype.鈥� It wasn鈥檛 (a feeling of) OK, we got to get a stop and we were all tense. It was like, loosen up because we鈥檙e going to give it to these guys. That was fun.

Scott Frost: I was nervous, biting my fingernails off trying to make sure we held onto the undefeated record. I went over to coach (Erik) Chinander and I was going to get him to have them stop dancing and he goes, 鈥淟et 鈥檈m be, coach, let 鈥檈m be.鈥� Just like the rest of the games they got it done. That鈥檚 how confident our guys were.

Michael Colubiale: I remember being a part of a lot of big games in 麻豆原创鈥檚 history. The lead-up and the anticipation to that (2017) USF game was bar none the most must-win game we had to have, in my opinion, in 麻豆原创 history. I don鈥檛 think we are sitting here today if we lose that game.

Our biggest rival. Conference championship implications on the line. At home, senior night. Not sure if it鈥檚 our last game in the Bounce House. Not sure what our coach is going to be doing (with head coach job openings). So winning that game, that was a grind.

Scott Frost: That (USF) game is so interesting because we were on the way to really winning big, I think. Offense was clicking early in the first half. We put up a bunch of points. They basically changed their defense and ran something that they had never run 鈥� put a bunch of DBs on the field to try to match our speed, went to kind of a 3-3 stacked type defense. We practiced against it, but we weren鈥檛 expecting to see it in that game, so all the lead-up to that game we hadn鈥檛 really prepared for it. And it took the guys a while to adjust. I give USF credit, they fought back into the game, and it became just an unbelievable contest and football game.

Marc Daniels: I do remember a couple times during a commercial break saying to myself, 鈥淗oly smokes, what am I watching here?鈥�

Scott Frost: Got to the end and we scored on a little screen to Otis (Anderson) to take the lead and in my mind I kind of thought that鈥檚 it. And then we had a busted coverage, and they threw a long touchdown pass.

Marc Daniels: I remember turning to my color analyst Gary Parris before the kickoff to (Mike) Hughes and I said, 鈥淭here鈥檚 still so much time for both teams to do things here.鈥�

Scott Frost: I鈥檓 not sure I had completely recovered from the shock of them scoring fast. I had my head buried in a play sheet trying to figure out a set of four or five plays that I thought would get the ball down the field and get a field goal to win the thing. Jovan Dewitt was our special teams coach, and I鈥檝e heard him tell this story about 20 times, but Mike came up to him right after USF scored, and I鈥檓 sure we all had stressful looks on our faces, and Mike told Jovan, 鈥淒on鈥檛 worry about it, I got ya.鈥�

Marc Daniels: They had a kicker who could kick into the end zone. When they kicked it to Mike I was really surprised and when he made the second cut, I saw the angle and he鈥檚 gone. I鈥檓 watching Mike, and in the corner of my eye that鈥檚 where I saw cabanas, and that鈥檚 where I came up with the 鈥渞eservation for six.鈥� But I鈥檓 also able to see our sideline explode. And as Mike is jetting down the field, I could see Scott Frost with two hands up in the air almost like, 鈥淕ood, because I didn鈥檛 want to start calling plays again.鈥� Although I think he had faith in McKenzie. But it was an unbelievable moment.

Michael Colubiale: The place just erupted. If you were to define 麻豆原创 in one play, I feel like it would be that single play.

Marc Daniels: And still you鈥檙e holding your breath because South Florida had the ball marching toward midfield with time left on the clock.

Andy Staples, On3 national college football host: I can tell you right now (what is the defining moment of the win streak). I was there. I could feel it underneath me as I鈥檓 in the press box on Black Friday when Mike Hughes runs back the kickoff and he鈥檚 not. supposed. to. score. Because if he just takes a knee at the 1, they kick a field goal and walk off the field. But instead he scores and they have to make it extra dramatic, and Richie Grant 鈥�20 has to punch the ball loose and Shaquem Griffin has to jump on the fumble. And the place was bouncing. It was really bouncing. You could feel everybody jumping up and down. It was incredible.

I鈥檝e covered a lot of really good football games. I was at the Vince Young Rose Bowl. I was at the Boise State Statue of Liberty. A Michigan State-Wisconsin game that ended with a Hail Mary in overtime. I鈥檝e been at some of the best games in college football history. That鈥檚 one of them. 麻豆原创 over USF on Black Friday in 2017 is one of the greatest college football games ever played.

Andrea Adelson: My brother-in-law was in town for Thanksgiving. And he鈥檚 from Michigan so he鈥檚 got preconceived ideas about, 鈥淲hat is 麻豆原创? Let鈥檚 just go to this game and see what this is all about.鈥� So he went with my husband Eric, who is now a professor here at 麻豆原创. The two of them sat in the stands, and I was at the game covering as a reporter. 鈥� When we get in the car at the end of the game, 麻豆原创 has won, my brother-in-law turns to me and he was like, 鈥淭hat was the most fun I鈥檝e had a football game in quite some time.鈥�

And remember at that time in 2017, 麻豆原创 was ranked behind a three-loss team in the playoff ranking. Seven two-loss teams. I think they were like 15th going into that game. So people like my brother-in-law, who were from Michigan, didn鈥檛 think 麻豆原创 belonged anywhere near the conversation. But after he watched that game, his mind changed a little bit. And that to me is just a great example of how 麻豆原创 won people over in 2017.

Shaquem Griffin: When we beat USF, we knew who we were fitting to play.

Michael Colubiale: We knew what we had on the line. We had a New Year鈥檚 Day game on the line. We knew we were getting the best of them (Memphis). The whole coaching situation (Frost potentially accepting another head coaching job) was in our heads as well. I don鈥檛 know if that was a little bit of a distraction. But maybe, sort of kind of.

Marc Daniels: It鈥檚 the week of the Memphis championship game. And Scott had for the most part made up his mind. No one knew publicly where the story is going. [I saw him] outside of the student center. He was sitting in a golf cart. 鈥� And we just sat there talking. He opened up. I don鈥檛 know why. The stress had obviously piled up. And I asked a question, 鈥淲hy are you going, if you鈥檙e going?鈥� And he goes 鈥淲ell, it鈥檚 kind of complicated. My dad always wanted to see me coach Nebraska. And could I not have my dad see that if the opportunity is there?鈥�

Shaquem Griffin: We knew (Memphis) would do whatever it takes to win because we already beat them before. I know some people were like, 鈥淥h, well, It鈥檚 hard to beat teams over and over again.鈥� I feel like it鈥檚 hard to be disciplined and do the same thing over and over again. It鈥檚 not about who you鈥檙e playing. It鈥檚 about who is going to be firing on all cylinders and is going to handle their business and be disciplined to what they need to do. And we came in ready to do that. Everybody was dialed in. We are in the moment. This is now. I protect you. You protect me. I got you. You got me. We got each other and let鈥檚 finish this. That was the mentality.

Michael Colubiale: I just remember it being a shootout. I think that鈥檚 a good word for it. It was just a story of quarters, really. We鈥檇 beat them one quarter, they鈥檇 beat us the next. It was a fun game. We kind of showed why maybe we belonged in the conversation for the playoff I think because of how much talent was on the field that day.

McKenzie Milton: In double overtime we ran a triple option, and I got to about the 2-yard line, tried running over the corner and right when I hit the corner, I separated my throwing arm, like my shoulder. I was just thinking, 鈥淥h, no.鈥� We were on the 2-yard line, trying to score. So I think we handed the ball off one or two more times. Otis (Anderson) punched it in, and I鈥檓 on the sideline like, defense just get a stop here, just get a stop. Because I鈥檓 trying to throw and it feels like somebody is stabbing my shoulder.

Michael Colubiale: It was a storybook ending. Shaquem Griffin 鈥� a story himself 鈥� just makes a play at the end of the game.

Shaquem Griffin: I was just running at the quarterback. They didn鈥檛 bump me at all, and I was like I鈥檝e got to get to him as fast as possible. That was probably the hardest I ever tried to run. I was like, I just have to put my hand in front of his eyes or something. I wasn鈥檛 even worried about the tackle. I just had to blind him some way, some how.

When we ran into each other, I鈥檓 looking back like, 鈥淲here鈥檚 the ball, what鈥檚 happening?鈥� I see Tre Neal with his hands up.

McKenzie Milton: Tre Neal gets a pick. I didn鈥檛 even really see it. I was just like, 鈥淭hank God I don鈥檛 have to go back out for triple overtime.鈥�

Shaquem Griffin: My eyeballs flooded with tears. I鈥檓 like, I鈥檓 not fitting to jump up right now. I just have to take all this emotion in. It hit me. It was hard work. And I felt it.

Michael Colubiale: I remember storming the field, celebrating with the guys, everyone is going crazy and then Frost running all over the place. He was in tears.

Scott Frost: Coming off that field after that win was so exciting, and I was so happy for the players. But I knew there was change coming.

McKenzie Milton: Nebraska is really the only place he would have left 麻豆原创 (for). His dad was ailing at the time and that was the only place he was going to leave (for). It was just one of those things 鈥� their coach was getting fired and that was his home.

Marc Daniels: I鈥檝e said this on my radio show, I鈥檝e written about it 鈥� it may have been inevitable that Scott was going to coach Nebraska. I don鈥檛 know if he wanted it to be as quickly as it happened.

Shaquem Griffin: I always respect and commend coach Frost for his transparency and his honesty because he didn鈥檛 have to. I feel like he was open and vulnerable with us. You can鈥檛 be upset about something like that. You can鈥檛 be mad about it. We only respected him so much more because we saw how hard it was for him.

Michael Colubiale: Winning that game and then having to sit down and go from the highest of highs to the lowest of lows and listen to Frost spill out his heart and tell us how thankful he was for us and how hard the decision was, it was tough having to hear it. But at least he was able to let us all know. And we all knew how much he cared for us.

McKenzie Milton: I don鈥檛 think there was a dry eye in the team meeting room after the Memphis game. I came in there late because I was celebrating with my family and coach was sitting on the side and the whole team was crying. I broke down too because I knew we lost our coach. What we didn鈥檛 lose was the brotherhood within that. And we got to thank coach Frost for helping instill that.

Scott Frost: I was having a hard time holding it together because I cared so much for those guys. Tre鈥橯uan Smith was pretty special to me. And I remember hugging him, and him putting his arm around me and said, 鈥淚t鈥檚 alright, coach. We鈥檝e both got journeys to take.鈥�

That was a tough decision for all of us. Looking back, I think a lot of people would have done a lot of things different through that time. What鈥檚 tough about making decisions like that is the timing that they come. You have to make those decisions in the middle of the season when you鈥檙e tired, when you鈥檙e exhausted. All I鈥檒l say is, I can鈥檛 really describe to you how emotional I was because I don鈥檛 think my heart really wanted to leave. 麻豆原创 was a special place to me then and it always will be.

We made a decision that there鈥檚 no way we weren鈥檛 going to give the players the best opportunity to finish the season they started and the undefeated season. So the coaching staff, we wanted to come back (for the Peach Bowl) and help see it through. Because of our bond with the university and our players.

Marc Daniels: An incredibly uncomfortable month leading up to the game because you had a coaching staff that was at practice in the morning and then putting the colors of another program on to go recruit and the awkwardness of that.

Michael Colubiale: I remember going out to practice and (the new coaching staff of Josh) Heupel and (Glen) Elarbee and all these guys are lining up giving us high fives, and coach [Sean Beckton] and all these guys are on the field waiting for us and I鈥檓 like, 鈥淲hat world are we living in right now?鈥�

Scott Frost: I remember one day we went out on the practice field and it was supposed to be a half-padded practice and some of the leaders on the team I think were acting out a little because they didn鈥檛 want to see us go. And the whole team showed up on the field without pads on.

Michael Colubiale: I think it was one of the first practices back after we had a little break. We see that we鈥檙e having a full-padded practice. I think we were all in on we鈥檙e not going to practice in full pads that first day back. Frost hasn鈥檛 been here. Why should we come out on day one and practice in full pads? Guys don鈥檛 like practicing in full pads, if you don鈥檛 know that.

So I remember we all came out in helmets only. Coaches have a practice plan all scripted out for what we鈥檙e wearing. We (were supposed to have) a full-tackle period. So we all come out in helmets, Frost is our coach but not our coach, just sitting there watching everyone roll out in helmets. He鈥檚 livid.

Scott Frost: It took a really good job by the players and the coaching staff to get everybody back focused on the task at hand. I actually turned the music off for the first time since I had been there, and we practiced in the silence. We had a heart-to-heart talk afterwards and cleared the air.

Michael Colubiale: We get done with practice. We take a knee. I feel like this is why we won the Peach Bowl.

Frost sits us down and kind of tells us what he鈥檚 been doing. He just got off a plane that morning. He flew to California. Flew back. I think he got back at 6 a.m. He rolls right up to the facility 鈥� he was there to help coach us.

You could see the red in his eyes. He was tired. He could have not been there, really. But he chose to be there. He didn鈥檛 miss a single practice when we were leading up to the Peach Bowl. It was like, 鈥淟isten, guys, I鈥檓 fully committed to you guys 鈥� I know I鈥檓 the coach somewhere else right now but until after this game, we鈥檙e going to win this game and we鈥檙e going to finish the story.鈥� A lot of the guys, I know myself, we kind of all felt a little different after that speech.

And then he made us run some gassers. We鈥檙e like, 鈥淎lright, alright, OK. I guess so.鈥�

Scott Frost: I think that day was really important to make sure that we could approach the game the right way and finish it the right way. Shaquem played a big part in getting us pointed in the right direction. Chequan Burkett 鈥�16 played a big part in that, too. With everything changing the way it was, I don鈥檛 think the team could have gone and won without great leadership, and we had those type of players on the team.

Marc Daniels: (Scott Frost and I) did our final pregame interview before the Peach Bowl. And before I clicked record, I said, 鈥淲hat鈥檚 going to happen tomorrow?鈥� And he said, 鈥淚 don鈥檛 know. We might get blown out because I could have done better in the month to prepare these guys. But if they win 鈥� and I wouldn鈥檛 be shocked if they win 鈥� it will be because of guys like Shaquem and Adrian Killins 鈥�21 and Otis and Chequan Burkett and McKenzie because they carried this team for the last month. If we win, it will be because of them.鈥�

Scott Frost: I didn鈥檛 know what to expect. I didn鈥檛 know how motivated our team would be. I knew we were playing a team (Auburn) that had beaten Georgia and Alabama who were in the national championship game. And watching them on tape, they were a different animal than what we had played physically.

Shaquem Griffin: When we started to have interviews, I always felt like there was targeted questions of how can we stop them, and it wasn鈥檛 how are they going to stop us? At one point we sat back and said, 鈥淲hy are they trying us, like this don鈥檛 mean nothing to us? Why are they trying us like we can鈥檛 stop them?鈥� Oh this is the No. 1 line in the country. We don鈥檛 care.

We鈥檙e going to watch film just like they do. We鈥檙e going to play just like they do. Why are you not asking them how they are going to stop McKenzie and the pass? I鈥檓 not hearing those questions. At the end of the day, we鈥檙e going to play 麻豆原创 football and hopefully they can keep up with it because it goes fast.

McKenzie Milton: I really didn鈥檛 practice much throwing until the week of the game and didn鈥檛 go fully live until the actual game. I just had some patches and tape and Icy Hot. 鈥� . It was frustrating but luckily my feet were still good, my legs were still good, so I was able to run around and get in a rhythm.

By no means did we play a perfect game. I think our defense played extremely well, but offensively it was one of our sub-par games, especially for me. But you just find a way. Chequan Burkett pick six for a fifth-year senior. Antwan Collier, true freshman, making a pick at the end. Guys just making timely plays when we needed to and that was our MO that year. We found a way in those close games.

Scott Frost: I don鈥檛 think there will ever be a team in college football history again that starts 0-12 and goes 13-0 in two seasons. Go undefeated in two seasons. It just doesn鈥檛 happen. There鈥檚 too much that has to change. Too much work that has to be done.

McKenzie Milton: My brother Pomi Milton 鈥� shout-out Pomi 鈥� he told me before the game, 鈥淗ey, after the game you gotta say, 鈥楥ancel the playoff.鈥� 鈥� I was like, 鈥淥ooh, I like that.鈥� So it was in the front of my mind. We had to handle business first and foremost. And I鈥檓 glad (then Director of Athletics) Danny White ran with it with the national championship so we were on point with that.

It (鈥淐ancel the playoff鈥�) was wholeheartedly serious 鈥� what else do you want us to do? We ran the table. We beat ranked opponents and you have us sitting at 12. There was disrespect the whole time. You got three-loss SEC teams who had mediocre play from the quarterbacks, and things like that. You look at our roster top to bottom, we had a D-line that was as good as anybody in the country. We had guys in the secondary that could play man coverage. We had a bunch of receivers that are still playing in the NFL. And a quarterback who could make some plays. 鈥� We truly believe we could have beat anybody in the country and would have beat anybody in the country if we had the opportunity to play them.

Andrea Adelson: That game meant a lot to the players because they needed to show, we鈥檙e good enough to beat an SEC team, we鈥檙e good enough even though, our head coach is leaving, to carry this forward into the next season.

This wasn鈥檛 the end of the road for the players, even though it was the end of the road for Scott Frost. To me, it felt almost like a beginning for the players because they knew this was an opportunity they had to seize. And, boy, did they seize that opportunity.

Andy Staples: That season probably did more for (麻豆原创) than I can think for any season doing for any program. Maybe the 2006 for Boise State that ended with the Statue of Liberty play in the Fiesta Bowl. … Everybody knew after 2017 what 麻豆原创 football is whether they lived in Orange County, Seminole County, Osceola County or whether they lived in the other Orange County in California. It made them a viable, national brand.

Andrea Adelson: I thought it was fabulous what Danny White did, saying, 鈥淲e鈥檙e national champions.鈥� Because, well, why not? How many other programs have self-declared a national championship? Go in Alabama鈥檚 media guide and start scrolling to see how many national championships they have versus how many they鈥檝e actually won on the field. There鈥檚 a disparity there.

So the publicity that it brought to 麻豆原创 was terrific but it also brought a backlash to 麻豆原创 鈥� so that headed into 2018 it wasn鈥檛, 鈥淗ey, look at all these great players with this underdog story.鈥� It was, 鈥淚 can鈥檛 wait until those guys lose so they can shut up.鈥� Watching that entire dynamic play out to me was completely fascinating because everybody loves an underdog until the underdog tells you how great they are and then they don鈥檛 love you anymore.

With 1:08 remaining in 麻豆原创鈥檚 Nov. 16, 2013, road football game at Temple, I realized I had taken the elevator from the press box too soon.

By this point, I had written my story of 麻豆原创鈥檚 football team losing and its Bowl Championship Series (BCS) dream crashing. I went downstairs at Lincoln Financial Field to soak up as much of the atmosphere as I could from the final moments of the game.

With the Knights trailing 36-29, I was standing in the tunnel as Blake Bortles rolled away from one defender, then hesitated and took a hit as he released the pass towards J.J. Worton. The receiver went full stretch, one arm held out. Somehow, he came down with the ball.

A security guard in a yellow jacket standing at the end of the tunnel turned and sprinted past me screaming at the top of his lungs. I started furiously typing a new version of the story into my phone. Then I hopped up into the stands to watch the rest of the game play out.

The pass to Rannell Hall. The field goal. The win. (I saw it all.)

I jumped back down into the tunnel and eventually got the color (for my story) I was looking for.

My lede from that night was fitting considering where I had seen the drama unfold: 鈥淭he man who had soared to keep 麻豆原创’s dream season alive could not hold back tears as he walked through the tunnel at Lincoln Financial Field.鈥�

If I close my eyes, I can still feel the adrenaline of many of those deadlines 鈥� the shaky fingers over a keyboard after the Knights did something special to keep the dreams of a BCS bowl alive. Panicked typing in Happy Valley, Memphis, Louisville, Philadelphia, Orlando and Dallas.

How many ledes had I re-written? A few, for sure. And yet, even as those crazy endings unfolded 鈥� Will Stanback鈥檚 forced fumble in Memphis, Bortles鈥� floated pass to Jeff Godfrey in Louisville, Brandon Alexander鈥檚 tipped pass against Houston, Worton鈥檚 full-stretch snag in Philly 鈥斅爏omething felt right about it all.

This was supposed to happen.

I arrived in Orlando, Florida the year prior, leaving my hometown newspaper to cover a school I knew more as Central Florida than 麻豆原创. I didn鈥檛 make the change just to cover George O鈥橪eary鈥檚 football team. As I tried to decipher the right next step in my career and did research on 麻豆原创, I learned about a school I thought could matter on a national landscape. 麻豆原创 was set to move from Conference USA to the Big East, the student population was exploding, the campus expanding. There was a real story to tell here, I thought. One that went beyond sports. It was about college realignment 鈥� the old powers versus a new school trying to shove its way into the conversation.

I had no idea.

Over the next year the scope of that story would change. The Big East folded. The American Athletic Conference was born. The path to a power conference narrowed. And yet 麻豆原创 still seemed on the verge of something. I felt it from the first time I sat in the press box at the Bounce House.

The first game I covered was a 40-20 win against East Carolina in 2012. I watched Bortles throw for 269 yards and a score and run for another 62 yards and a touchdown. The next week it was an overtime win over Southern Miss and Bortles threw for 272 yards and a couple more scores. You could tell the potential here was off the charts. As that season unfolded, the sense got stronger. Not just about Bortles, but about something brewing in this team. And as the pages turned to the 2013 season, it felt like the football team could serve as a microcosm about the story the school was trying to sell:

鈥淗ey, look at us. We can be much more than you think. We already are.鈥�

The inkling that the season might have something special in store started to turn to alarm bells in Happy Valley. No offense, of course, to Akron University or FIU (Florida International University), but those wins to start the season were expected. Rolling up to Penn State was a real marker for the team.

I felt like that game was my first real college football experience. The atmosphere was insane 鈥斅�92,855 people all dressed in white. As the sun went down, the crowd seemed to get louder. What stuck with me was that 麻豆原创 was clearly the better team, but Penn State pushed itself back into the game. 麻豆原创 having to hold on to win by three sort of set the tone for the season 鈥� nothing was going to come easy, nothing was going to be clean.

The way that game went down聽鈥� the key defensive stops needed, an important third-down conversion to keep the game-killing drive alive 鈥� was also vital for the team. 麻豆原创 had been so close to a marquee win so many times under George O鈥橪eary (former 麻豆原创 head football coach). This win gave belief and showed they could gut it out. It took character.

I remember O鈥橪eary didn鈥檛 love the way I phrased a question in the postgame press conference, but he knew it was one of those wins that could change things.

“Right now, with the stage of the program and where we’re at, we can build on a win like this,” he says.

That win set up such a huge week ahead of the South Carolina game. It would feature two players that ended up being in the conversation for the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL Draft: Bortles and Jadeveon Clowney. It was also the first time in my career I was covering a team that was the talk of the sports landscape in the market.

The game was moved to ABC Network. Tailgating hours got extended. Steve Spurrier was coming, which always added another layer at the Orlando Sentinel. The hype was there.

The game didn鈥檛 go 麻豆原创鈥檚 way. The Knights led at halftime, but probably should鈥檝e had a bigger advantage. They ended up falling short. In the moment, it felt like a missed opportunity. Really, I think it was an indicator that 麻豆原创 was right there with one of the better teams in the country at the time.

What鈥檚 funny is it wasn鈥檛 the loss that week that nearly cost 麻豆原创 the special season, it was the hangover from South Carolina. The Liberty Bowl was a decidedly different atmosphere than Happy Valley or a packed Bounce House (formally known as FBC Mortgage Stadium at 麻豆原创). But if people were paying attention, they saw the beginnings of something happening there with the Tigers. 麻豆原创 wasn鈥檛 ready for it. Everyone could see it was a trap game, and yet 麻豆原创 walked right into the trap.

When I look back on the season, that was the only game I felt like 麻豆原创 got lucky.

The Knights were bad. Memphis was better. But sometimes fate intervenes. In this case, it was the hit from Stanback on the kickoff. I remember hearing the crowd gasp when it happened, and at first no one could tell that the ball came out and that 麻豆原创 scored. I remember looking around and asking what was going on. 鈥淒id he fumble? Did he fumble?!鈥�

And then I realized I had a new story to write. Two touchdowns in nine seconds. A 17-10 deficit flipped into a 24-17 win. Somewhere on a thumb drive in one of my desk drawers is a copy of the 鈥淜nights Lose鈥� version of the Memphis game.

The season had plenty more drama left and plenty of other alternate stories that were never published.

The next week was Louisville. Man, what a four-week stretch of football. Of all the regular-season games, this one remains the freshest in my memory. It was such a great game. The crowd was incredible. The Friday night primetime聽 slot made it feel special. By this point, the excitement about covering a potentially important season was taking hold. Everyone knew what a win on the road at a top 10 Louisville team would mean: a national ranking; a path to a BCS game. It was Teddy Bridgewater versus Bortles. But even then, I don鈥檛 think people believed 麻豆原创 had a chance.

There are two plays that stick out to me so clearly. One is how the game ended. The other? The bobbled punt snap midway through the third quarter. As a reporter, you don鈥檛 really have rooting interests in a game, but that doesn鈥檛 mean you鈥檙e immune to the normal human emotions of the drama you鈥檙e watching unfold. I remember that feeling in the pit of my stomach as the return went the other way. The idea of covering a BCS bowl was fading. The crowd was going nuts. You could feel the wave of momentum wash over the stadium.

Here are the two texts I sent my wife during the game. The first was right after that fumbled punt.

鈥淭his could get ugly.鈥�

The second was 鈥� a bit later in the game.

鈥淗oly. Crap.鈥�

There were haymakers thrown back and forth. A 21-point third-quarter deficit erased. And then there was that last drive. Seventy-five yards. Two big throws to Josh Reese. And then that final Bortles pass 鈥� Hall鈥檚 fingertip away from a different result.

What a game.

But this is how the whole 2013 season went. Four of the next six games would be decided by five points or less. I鈥檓 still benefiting from the amount of deadline work I got in 2013.

Amidst all the heroic moments on offense, it鈥檚 easy to forget the defensive play that saved the season. Houston. Fourth and goal from the seven-yard line with 20 seconds left. A freshman quarterback dropping back. A pass in the hands of a receiver. Alexander doing just enough to deflect it and win the game.

The next week at Temple was Worton鈥檚 all-time catch, which landed him an ESPY nomination. It鈥檚 easy to forget, too, that 麻豆原创 needed a big play in the fourth quarter to beat a bad USF team that year. A 51-yard touchdown pass from Bortles to Breshad Perriman won that game, 23-20.

And then there was my favorite non-football memory of the season: asking 麻豆原创 players what 鈥渨intry mix鈥� meant ahead of a game in an ice storm at SMU (Southern Methodist University). Sadly, that video has been lost somewhere in the Orlando Sentinel鈥檚 archives. That game was no sure thing, either. 麻豆原创 had already clinched a BCS bowl on Thursday night, which didn鈥檛 help, I鈥檓 sure, but it took multiple defensive stands in the fourth quarter to get out of Dallas with a 17-13 win.

So here we are, nearly 1,800 words into this piece, and I鈥檓 finally getting around to the game that really, truly introduced 麻豆原创 to the general college football population. It鈥檚 funny how much goes into it 鈥� the ups and downs, the near-misses, the 鈥渁lmosts鈥� along the way 鈥� and in the end it鈥檚 just parts of the stories that are remembered.

I remember arriving in Glendale, Arizona, and participating in the early media availabilities and feeling like 麻豆原创 was still underappreciated. It made me question myself. Maybe I was too close to this team. Maybe those one-score results were an indication that this team wasn鈥檛 as good as its record. In the press box on the night of the game, the Orlando Sentinel鈥檚 longtime columnist Mike Bianchi and I traded predictions. I couldn鈥檛 decide what was going to happen.

I definitely did not predict what would take place.

It鈥檚 funny watching that game now. I don鈥檛 really remember it feeling so close in the first half. I felt like 麻豆原创 was in control.

One thing that stands out about the 2014 Fiesta Bowl was that it highlighted the job the late Charlie Taaffe did as offensive coordinator that season. His use of the run-pass option was so good. Clearly, he had found and exploited a weakness he saw on tape. And even as Bortles struggled early in the game, 麻豆原创 was able to keep Baylor off balance enough to stay in it.

When Bortles came alive in the second half 鈥斅爃e ended up throwing for 301 yards and accounting for four touchdowns聽鈥� the Knights took control. The defense, too, earned some respect. It was a match-up between the high-flying, record-setting Baylor offense and O鈥橪eary鈥檚 old-school approach. With Tyson Summers calling the plays, 麻豆原创 held its own.

It was a deserved win. And it changed minds about what the ceiling looked like for 麻豆原创.

Seven wins by seven points or fewer. A marquee victory in a BCS game. Bortles going No. 3 overall in the NFL Draft a few months later. It was such a fun season to cover. A decade later, it鈥檚 incredible to see how much more the program went through and achieved before finally getting entry to the Big 12 Conference. I know a lot of people will point to Scott Frost鈥檚 undefeated season as 麻豆原创鈥檚 big moment in the spotlight, but I still think it was 2013 that started it all.

The yellowed newspapers from that season sit in my office still. It鈥檚 a bit weird that they look as old as they do, that it鈥檚 been a decade since 麻豆原创鈥檚 first magical ride. It鈥檚 probably time to find a spot on the wall for some of them.

Paul Tenorio served as the Orlando Sentinel’s beat writer for 麻豆原创 from 2012-14. He currently is a senior writer for The Athletic who covers soccer and has previously written for the Washington Post, FourFourTwo, ESPN and MLSsoccer.com.