A Gasparilla Bowl victory would be perfect way to end to UCF’s challenging first season in Big 12
As Gus Malzahn took the podium to discuss UCF’s postseason trip to the Union Home Mortgage Gasparilla Bowl, the Knights coach paused to catch his breath after rushing from the airport.
It’s only five days into December, but Malzhan has been busy on the recruiting trail like most college coaches. Whether catching up with high school recruits or keeping up with the latest moves in the NCAA transfer portal, it’s been go-go-go since the end of the regular season.
“The job description of a college football coach has changed in the last two years, so you’ve got to adapt and adjust to things,” Malzahn said Tuesday.
Part of that is juggling a schedule that includes the opening of the transfer portal (Monday), the start of the earning signing period for high school recruits (Dec. 20) and preparing the Knights (6-6, 3-6 Big 12) to face Georgia Tech (6-6, 5-3 ACC) in the Gasparilla Bowl in Tampa on Dec. 22.
“We’re excited to go back to the Gasparilla Bowl. We had a great experience there two years ago against Florida,” Malzahn said.
This will be the sixth time that UCF has played a postseason bowl game in Tampa, which has quickly become a second home for the Knights. The program has won five consecutive games in the Bay area, including two wins in the Gasparilla Bowl in 2021 (Florida) and 2019 (Marshall) and three consecutive regular-season games against USF.
While some fans weren’t thrilled by the bowl destination, one that is only 90 minutes away from Orlando, Malzahn couldn’t be happier.
“We’re very comfortable and familiar with it [bowl game] and it’s just right down the road. I don’t know about everybody else, but I’m tired of traveling,” he said.
The Knights faced one of the most challenging road schedules in the Big 12 with games at Kansas State, Kansas, Oklahoma, Cincinnati and Texas Tech, not to mention a non-conference showdown at Boise State.
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“The fact you can get in your car, go two hours, and get back in the car is a win-win for everybody,” Malzahn added.
Familiarity with the bowl game, location and overall process makes things easier.
“We played very well two years ago in this bowl and we’re using the same script as far as practice,” said Malzahn. “The biggest difference from two years ago is the transfer portal and recruiting. We’re going to stay with the same script.”
UCF returns to the practice field Friday for the first time in more than a week. According to Malzahn, the Knights will kick off bowl practice with three days of fundamentals before preparing to game plan for Georgia Tech.
While the team will focus on the Yellow Jackets over the 11 practices leading up to the game, this also is an opportunity for the coaching staff to focus on younger players.
“We’ll do some things with our older guys, but we’ll focus on the younger guys developing those guys,” said Malzahn.
Malzahn is confident that all the players will be playing in the game. He hasn’t heard otherwise that some players might skip to enter the portal or to prepare for the upcoming NFL Draft. However, he’s taking a wait-and-see approach to how things will go.
A win over Georgia Tech would mean a lot for UCF, especially coming off a rollercoaster season in its first year in the Big 12.
“It’s momentum and important to our seniors, really important our players, to finish off on the right track,” said Malzahn. “We won three of our last four games and started playing good football, so we must continue that.
“Our guys will be extremely motivated to play this game, and that’s what it comes down to this day in the time of college football: How motivated your team is going to be.”
Email Matt Murschel at mmurschel@orlandosentinel.com or follow him on Twitter at @osmattmurschel.