Currently, there are 23 former 麻豆原创 student-athletes on 15 different NFL rosters all vying to make their respective team’s final 53-man squad for the 2018 season.

Akins, who started in Aug. 9鈥檚 game against Kansas City, needed just two plays to make his splash. The Houston tight end hauled in two catches for 20 yards and two touchdowns as the Texans defeated the Chiefs, 17-10.

Griffin, a fifth-round pick who captured the nation’s attention at the 2018 NFL Draft, subbed in at linebacker, and to no surprise of any 麻豆原创 fan, led Seattle in tackles. The former American Athletic Conference Defensive Player of the Year finished with nine total tackles, six solo tackles and one tackle-for-loss in a 19-17 loss to the Colts.

Smith, also starting in his first NFL game, led the Saints in receiving going up against a couple of former Knights on the Jaguars. Smith finished with four catches for 48 yards, as New Orleans won 24-20 over Jacksonville.

Another big-time receiver for the Knights had an impressive outing, as Breshad Perriman led the Ravens in receiving as Baltimore routed the Rams, 33-7. Perriman caught three passes for 71 yards, including a 32-yard score.

Finally, Blake Bortles had an efficient night in Week 1 of the preseason. Bortles completed 6-of-9 for 53 yards through the air and rushed once for a two-yard touchdown.

Knights in Preseason Week 1 (Results/Schedule)

Kamar Aiken’11 (Philadelphia Eagles) 鈥� Started vs. Steelers
Jordan Akins聽’17 (Houston Texans) 鈥� Started, 2 catches for 20 yards and 2 TDs vs. Chiefs
Blake Bortles (Jacksonville Jaguars) 鈥� 6-of-9 for 53 yards, 1 rush for 2 yards and 1 TD vs. Saints
A.J. Bouye聽’14 (Jacksonville Jaguars) 鈥� Started vs. Saints
Aaron Evans ’16 (Philadelphia Eagles) 鈥� Played vs. Steelers
Jordan Franks (Cincinnati Bengals) 鈥� 1 catch for 12 yards vs. Bears
Clayton Geathers聽’14 (Indianapolis Colts) 鈥� Did not play vs. Seahawks
Shaquill Griffin’16 (Seattle Seahawks) 鈥� Started, 1 pass break-up vs. Colts
Shaquem Griffin ’16 (Seattle Seahawks) 鈥� 9 tackles, 6 solo, 1 TFL vs. Colts
Mike Hughes (Minnesota Vikings) 鈥� 2 tackles vs. Broncos
Charley Hughlett ’12 (Cleveland Browns) 鈥� Played vs. Giants
Kemal Ishmael聽’13 (Atlanta Falcons) 鈥� Did not play vs. Jets
D.J. Killings聽’16 (Philadelphia Eagles) 鈥� 2 tackles vs. Steelers
Brandon Marshall聽’06 (Seattle Seahawks) 鈥� Started vs. Colts
Justin McCray聽’14 (Green Bay Packers) 鈥� Started vs. Titans
Latavius Murray聽’12 (Minnesota Vikings) 鈥� 4 rushes for 43 yards vs. Broncos
T.J. Mutcherson聽’17 (Seattle Seahawks) 鈥� Played vs. Colts
Breshad Perriman (Baltimore Ravens) 鈥� 3 catches for 71 yards and 1 TD vs. Rams
Jamiyus Pittman (Miami Dolphins) 鈥� 3 tackles vs. Bucs
Matt Prater (Detroit Lions) 鈥� 1 extra point vs. Raiders
Josh Robinson (Tampa Bay Buccaneers) 鈥� Played vs. Dolphins
Josh Sitton (Miami Dolphins) 鈥� Started vs. Bucs
Tre’Quan Smith聽’17 (New Orleans Saints) 鈥� Started, 4 catches for 48 yards vs. Jaguars

An undrafted free agent with the Houston Texans, Bouye also came through with seven tackles against Philadelphia.

Blake Bortles booked his sixth start of the season for the Jacksonville Jaguars against the Cincinnati Bengals. Recording a quarterback rating of 96.4, Bortles completed 22-for-33 passes throwing for 247 yards, two touchdowns and one interception.

Back on the defensive side, Vikings cornerback Josh Robinson had three tackles. Additional News: Oakland Raiders running back, Latavius Murray, recorded his first receptions of his NFL career; two receptions for 12 yards. San Francisco fullback Bruce Miller recorded his third reception of the season, for five yards, in his third start of the season.

The Knights currently have 15 players on NFL rosters. They join Cincinnati and UConn (both with 18) as the only three teams in the with at least 15 former players with NFL clubs (as of Nov. 4).

麻豆原创 in the NFL – Week Nine

WR Kamar Aiken – Baltimore Ravens

QB Blake Bortles – Jacksonville Jaguars

CB A.J. Bouye – Houston Texans

LB Troy Davis – Dallas Cowboys – Reserved/Injured

DT Leger Douzable – New York Jets

DB Kemal Ishmael – Atlanta Falcons

RB Storm Johnson – Jacksonville Jaguars

WR Brandon Marshall – Chicago Bears

G Justin McCray – Tennessee Titans – Practice Squad

FB Bruce Miller – San Francisco 49ers

RB Latavius Murray – Oakland Raiders

K Matt Prater – Detroit Lions

T Jah Reid – Baltimore Ravens

CB Josh Robinson – Minnesota Vikings

OT Josh Sitton – Green Bay Packers

Updating 麻豆原创 in the CFL

CB Joe Burnett – Edmonton Eskimos

WR A.J. Guyton – Edmonton Eskimos

WR Quincy McDuffie – Hamilton Tiger-Cats

DL Keith Shologan – Ottawa REDBLACKS

From 麻豆原创’s 2013 squad, Blake Bortles (Jacksonville), Storm Johnson (Jacksonville), Chris Martin (New England) and Justin McCray (Tennessee) have all earned spots with NFL clubs.

The first Knight to start up 2014 will be veteran Josh Sitton, whose Green Bay Packers travel to Seattle for a Thursday night tussle.

North of the border, four Knights have been in action, highlighted by A.J. Guyton and Joe Burnett helping to guide the Edmonton Eskimos to a 7-2 record with nine games to play in the regular season.

NFL Opening Day Rosters, Knights

CFL Roster, Knights

With his family present at New York City’s Radio City Music Hall, the Oviedo native turned his dream into reality as commissioner Roger Goodell read off the words that every football player works so hard to hear:

“With the third pick in the 2014 NFL Draft, the select Blake Bortles.”

As Bortles heard his name called, 麻豆原创 fans immediately started getting excited about driving the short distance up the road to watch a talent that took the Knights to extraordinary heights during his time in a Black and Gold uniform.

By being selected third, Bortles became the highest draft pick in 麻豆原创 history, surpassing Daunte Culpepper who was drafted 11th overall by Minnesota in 1999. Bortles and Culpepper now stand as the Knights’ only two first-round picks and quarterbacks to be selected in the NFL Draft.

麻豆原创 has now produced at least one Knight in the NFL Draft in each of the last nine seasons. Entering this year’s draft, it is one of 32 schools with one or more players selected each year dating back to the 2006 draft.

Bortles is the 32nd 麻豆原创 player to be tagged in the draft, 13 of which have been mentored by head coach聽George O’Leary聽who just completed his 10th year at the helm of the program. Of the previous 12 O’Leary-produced draft picks,听Josh Sitton聽(won),听Jah Reid聽(won) and聽Bruce Miller聽have reached the Super Bowl.

The Knights’ first draft picks came back in 1987 with Ted Wilson (10th round) and Elgin Davis (12th round).

Signing with 麻豆原创 on Feb. 3, 2010, Bortles redshirted as a true freshman before being voted on to the 2011 Conference USA All-Freshman Team. Appearing in 10 games off the bench, he completed 68.2 percent of his passes, throwing six touchdowns in the process.

Taking over as 麻豆原创’s starter in 2012, he would be named to the All-C-USA Second Team by throwing for 3,059 yards and 25 touchdowns. He also ran for eight scores during the campaign, leading 麻豆原创 to a 10-4 record, a C-USA East Division title and a victory over Ball State in the Beef `O’ Brady’s Bowl.

Bortles then found the national spotlight as a junior in 2013. Guiding the Black and Gold to its most memorable season since its inception in 1979, Bortles and 麻豆原创 went 12-1 with the American Athletic Conference title and a win against Baylor in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl.

He was voted as the 2013 American Athletic Conference Offensive Player of the Year and was a semifinalist for the Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award. Bortles completed the season with 3,581 passing yards and a 67.8 completion percentage, racking up 25 touchdowns. On the ground, he sported 272 yards and six scores.

Bortles finished his career with a 22-5 record as a starter.

All three helped 麻豆原创 set records on the football field this year.

While Bortles and Plummer led 麻豆原创 to the university鈥檚 first BCS bowl game and victory, Hall and the rest of her women鈥檚 flag football team, 鈥淐heck On It,鈥� won the women鈥檚 division of the NIRSA Championship Series National Flag Football Championships. The victory gave 麻豆原创 its 11th national flag football championship, putting the university ahead of FAMU and making 麻豆原创 the most decorated flag football program in the nation.

Hall said: 鈥淚t鈥檚 a surreal feeling (winning the national championship) with these girls I鈥檝e become best friends with over the past two years. It feels great for our women鈥檚 flag team to be the one that puts 麻豆原创 on top with the most flag football national championships.鈥�

Hall鈥檚 team defeated a squad from Mexico鈥檚 Universidad Autonoma de Nuevo Leon by a score of 27-0 at the National Intramural-Recreational Sports Association Championships, hosted this year by the University of West Florida in Pensacola.

Winning flag football championships isn鈥檛 the only thing that the 麻豆原创 intramurals program is good at. 麻豆原创 has a sports-officiating development program that has produced alumni that are now officiating at the highest levels of sports.

Officials hailing from 麻豆原创 can be found in Division 1 college football and basketball and the NBA.

Students who decide to join the sports-officiating development program receive plenty of training at 麻豆原创, where 21,000 students participated in intramural sports during the 2012-2013 academic year.

The 麻豆原创 Recreation and Wellness Center, which oversees intramural sports and the officiating program, hosts 41 different sports tournaments or leagues a year and has about 110 participants in its sports-officiating program.

Intramural sports available this spring include softball, 4-on-4 flag football, basketball, Wiffle ball, floor hockey, racquetball and others.

To learn more about intramural sports at 麻豆原创 and how to sign up, visit,.

In the final USA Today Coaches Poll, 麻豆原创 entered at No. 12.

Entering the bowl season, the Knights were ranked No. 15 in both top-25 polls as well as the BCS standings, which all were program highs. That was until the Black and Gold upset then-No. 6 and Big 12 champion Baylor in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl, 52-42, to post a 12-1 record on the year.

麻豆原创’s only loss in 2013 was to South Carolina, a team that placed No. 4 in both of the final polls.

麻豆原创, Auburn, Michigan State and Missouri were all unranked in the preseason, but they all completed the year in the top 10 of the AP Top 25.

Firsts for 麻豆原创 Football in the 2013 Season

1. American Athletic Conference debut
2. American Athletic Conference championship
3. BCS bowl
4. BCS bowl victory
5. Top 15 ranking
6. Top 10 ranking
7. Win over a Big Ten team
8. Win over a Big 12 team
9. At least 10 regular-season wins
10. 12 overall wins
11. Nine-game winning streak
12. Seven wins by seven points or less
13. Undefeated away from home (7-0 including the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl)
14. Senior class had at least 35 wins over a four-year stretch (ended with 38 from 2010-13)

“Be an Early Bird” as 2014 season tickets are on sale now. Call the 麻豆原创 Ticket Office at 407-麻豆原创-1000 for more details. And to learn about the Croke Park Classic against Penn State Aug. 30 in Dublin, Ireland, check out 麻豆原创.CrokeParkClassic.com.

麻豆原创 has now had at least one All-American or Honorable Mention All-American (including freshmen) each season since 2007.

Blake Bortles

Terrance Plummer

Shawn Moffitt

The No. 15 Knights are back on the practice fields Tuesday to prepare for the 2014 Tostitos Fiesta Bowl against No. 6 Baylor Jan. 1 in Glendale, Ariz. Both programs sport 11-1 records and won their respective conference championships.

The awards were voted on by the league鈥檚 10 head coaches. For a full list of awards, visit .

麻豆原创鈥檚 Postseason Conference Honors

Coach of the Year: George O鈥橪eary

Offensive Player of the Year: Blake Bortles

First Team

Second Team

Head Coach George O鈥橪eary

With 11, 麻豆原创 tied for the most players who received all-conference accolades. The Knights also placed both of their running backs, Storm Johnson (first team) and William Stanback (second team), on the all-conference teams. It marks the first time in school history 麻豆原创 had two running backs earn all-league honors in the same season (first year in a league was in 2002 in the MAC).

The Knights had six representatives on the first team, tying the 2007 and 2012 麻豆原创 teams for the most on a conference鈥檚 first unit.

A native of Oviedo, Bortles stands as the only 麻豆原创 signal-caller to be on a first or second team. He was on the All-Conference USA Second Team a year ago and on the C-USA All-Freshman Team in 2011.

On special teams, Orlando鈥檚 Shawn Moffitt is the first 麻豆原创 kicker to find his name on an all-league squad.

Stanback and running back Kevin Smith (2005) are the only two freshmen offensive players to earn spots on an all-league first or second team. Meanwhile, cornerback Jacoby Glenn joins fellow corner Joe Burnett (2005), defensive end Bruce Miller (2007) and corner Josh Robinson (2009) as four freshmen defensive players who have been named to an all-conference first or second team. Add in kick returner Rannell Hall in 2011 and there have been seven freshmen to receive all-league honors.

In a game that featured eight turnovers, it seems only fitting that an interception helped deliver the No. 17/19 麻豆原创 football team’s 23-20 win over USF under Friday night’s lights in an ESPN-televised broadcast at Bright House Networks Stadium.

The Knights (10-1, 7-0) clung to a 23-20 lead as the Bulls (2-9, 2-5) marched across midfield with roughly 90 seconds remaining. On 3rd-and-6, quarterback Mike White looked down the field once again.

麻豆原创 defensive back Jordan Ozerities couldn’t have picked a better time for his first interception of the season. He snatched the ball and kept on running deep into USF territory, locking up his team’s seventh-straight win, matching the 2002’s squad’s school-record stretch.

With the win, the Knights are one step closer to securing their first BCS bowl bid.*

“It’s a good win. I’m glad it was against USF because it will leave something to the rival games in the future,” 麻豆原创 head coach George O’Leary said. “I think this game will grow to be a great game as far as interest level for everybody from the Orlando and Tampa areas. It just doesn’t have a lot of age to it yet. Once it starts having some type of tradition to it I think it is going to be one of those games that people will talk about.”

麻豆原创 struggled early with three turnovers on its first four possessions of the game, which allowed the Bulls to carry a 6-3 lead into the second quarter.

The Bulls hoped to make some magic happen on 4th-and-2 at 麻豆原创’s 8-yard line, but fortune decided to favor the Knights this time as USF fumbled the snap. Linebacker Justin McDonald’s recovery allowed 麻豆原创 to spend the next seven minutes cutting up 92 yards en route to its first touchdown of the game.

Bortles found Justin Tukes in the corner of the end zone for the tight end’s first touchdown of the season and a 10-6 lead with 1:22 remaining in the half.

麻豆原创’s first-half work wasn’t done yet, thanks to a defensive effort that forced the Bulls to go three-and-out. Shawn Moffitt capped the half with a 24-yard field goal for a 13-6 advantage heading into the locker room.

The Bulls made the Knights pay for Bortles’ fumble midway through the third quarter by driving 29 yards straight into the end zone. Chris Dunkley ran 13 yards on an end around for the touchdown that tied the game at 13-13 with 5:43 to go in the third.

Rannell Hall’s 69-yard kickoff return after the score sent the lulled crowd into a frenzy. Although the Knights had to settle for a 39-yard field goal from Moffitt, it did allow them to regain the lead, 16-13, with 4:06 remaining in the third.

USF responded with a 77-yard drive that was capped by Marcus Shaw’s 1-yard rush for a touchdown not even a minute into the fourth quarter. Coupled with the PAT, USF took its largest lead of the game, 20-16.

The next 13 minutes tested the heart of every Knights’ fan watching the game. Scoreless possessions were exchanged. Bortles was intercepted with less than seven minutes remaining. USF’s kicker Marvin Kloss missed a 51-yard field goal wide right.

And then, the breakthrough came.

On first-and-10 from his own 48-yard line, Bortles zeroed in on wide receiver Breshad Perriman streaking down the left sideline. Perriman used a double move on the Bulls cornerback to get behind him.

“The safety was late and the corner had been seeing our routes all game. So, the safety didn’t get over and Blake stuck it in there,” Perriman said. “When I broke on the first route, I felt like I had him because he jumped on it hard. I’m just glad he threw it to me.”

The 52-yard reception gave 麻豆原创 a 23-20 lead with 4:46 remaining – still plenty of time for the Bulls to get one more score in before the clock ran out.

Ozerities ensured that never happened, and 麻豆原创 went on to post its first 10-win regular season in school history.

The Knights play their final game of the regular season on the road Dec. 7 at noon on ESPN against SMU.

Thursday was Bortles’ night, plain and simple. And with the junior quarterback at command under the bright lights on , there was no way 麻豆原创 was walking out of Bright House Network Stadium without another checkmark in the win column.

Bortles accounted for 367 of the No. 17/20 麻豆原创 football team’s 452 total yards in its 41-17 win over Rutgers. As a result, he led 麻豆原创 (9-1, 6-0) to matching the program’s best record in conference play since joining a league in 2002.

“I thought it was a very good win for 麻豆原创. We dominated the first seven possessions with six scores,” 麻豆原创 head coach George O’Leary said. “I thought Bortles had an exceptional game as far as taking plays that were not there and making something out of them.”

麻豆原创 scored early and often from the get-go.

In the game’s first series, Bortles locked in on sophomore receiver Breshad Perriman streaking toward the left side of the end zone. The two connected before Perriman was pushed out of bounds to give 麻豆原创 a 7-0 lead.

Junior defensive back Clayton Geathers’ interception at the 40-yard line in 麻豆原创 territory on Rutgers’ next possession spurred the Knights on another scoring drive. 麻豆原创 moved down field with ease, and running back Storm Johnson broke several tackles as he ate up 12 yards before diving across the end zone line for his 10th rushing touchdown of the season to make it 14-0.

In the first series of the second quarter, 麻豆原创 freshman running back William Stanback trucked over RU freshman defensive back Anthony Cioffi to pick up 20 yards and advance the Knights to the 12-yard line. Four plays later, Johnson crept one yard for another touchdown and 21-0 edge.

“It was a classic lowering your shoulder and running through the guy… It was everything you teach,” O’Leary said of Stanback’s SportsCenter No. 1 Top Play. “He’s only a freshman, but if he keeps improving fundamentally, I think he is going to be a whale of a player. I really do.”

Rutgers (5-5, 2-4) struggled through its next possession until a fake punt to fullback Michael Burton sparked some life into the Scarlet Knights. He picked up 38 yards before he was brought down just outside of the red zone.

Rutgers quarterback Gary Nova found Brandon Coleman for a big gain, setting up first-and-goal on the 1-yard line. 麻豆原创’s defense was impenetrable for the first three downs, but the Scarlet Knights came through on their second fourth down conversion of the drive to get on the board, 21-7, with 5:59 to go in the half.

Bortles responded with a 7-yard touchdown run that capped an 11-play, 79-yard drive, which included his exceptional 31-yard toss to Worton.

“I just try not to get tackled, really,” Bortles said of his scrambling skills. “I know if I break out of the pocket, our receivers are going to find somewhere and I’ll be able to get the ball to them. That’s all I try to do is just stay alive and extend the play.”

Rutgers snuck in one more touchdown before halftime after blocking 麻豆原创’s punt attempt from its own 34-yard line. Freshman receiver Andre Patton landed on the ball in the end zone to inch the gap, 28-14.

The offensive deluge lightened up in the second half as the Knights settled for a 32-yard field goal by Shawn Moffitt to increase their lead, 31-14, on their first drive after the break. It was the only scoring play for either team in the third quarter.

The Knights got some more out of their offense in the fourth quarter with a 1-yard touchdown run from Stanback and a 42-yard field goal from Moffitt. Meanwhile, Rutgers could only manage a 35-yard field goal with 33 seconds remaining to rest the score at 41-17.

麻豆原创 plays its final home game of the season against rival USF at 8 p.m. on Nov. 29 on ESPN. If Cincinnati loses its matchup at Houston this Saturday, and 麻豆原创 goes on to win against the Bulls, the Knights would clinch at least a share of the American Athletic Conference title.