UCF Knights @ BYU Cougars Football Preview

The Brigham Young Cougars need a win not just to shore up their bowl hopes, but to save face. One week after a disgraceful performance, the new member of college football’s Independent schools simply needs to restore lost confidence in its own locker room… and throughout a decidedly shattered fan base.

It will be a first-time matchup this Friday night when Central Florida visits BYU in Provo, Utah. A previous relationship between BYU athletic director Tom Holmoe and UCF athletic director Keith Tribble led to a quick scheduling of this home-and-home series as BYU filled its first independent schedule. And while the two schools are far apart geographically, among other ways, they also share some similarities, especially in the desire to have a better seat at the BCS table—something still yet to be determined with conference expansion still unsettled.

Meanwhile, on the field this season, both teams have scored wins over BCS opponents, BYU a squeaker on the road against Ole Miss, and UCF a convincing home win over Boston College. Both are coming off disappointing losses as well. The Knights, the defending Conference USA champions, were stifled on the road against Florida International, a deciding score coming when quarterback Jeff Godfrey fumbled   and FIU returned it for a touchdown and eventually a 17-10 win. BYU had similar troubles, exponentially worse, however, fumbling six times (two returned for touchdowns) on the way to an embarrassing 54-10 home loss to rival Utah.

UCF struggled to move the ball, at least more than in its previous two games, by netting only 300 total yards. The Knights lost both the turnover and penalty battle against FIU, dropping their first game of the season last week. They head to Provo for a final non-conference game before jumping into Conference USA play in two weeks. Central Florida will look to get its run game back on track against the Cougars. After averaging 275 rushing yards per game through the first two games, the Knights were held to just 119 yards on the ground against FIU, averaging just three yards per carry instead of its average of almost six. Upper-classman Ronnie Weaver and Brynn Harvey look to get churning again after a bad week. A win for UCF gets them on track for another special season.

But if UCF thinks it has problems with its run game, they pale in comparison to BYU’s. The Cougars netted just 11 rushing yards in last week’s blowout loss, and are averaging a paltry 48 rushing yards per game, good for 118 th  in the nation. The lack of run production has put extra strain on Jake Heaps and the passing game. With all focus on the passing game, BYU’s hope to utilize down-field threats Ross Apo and Cody Hoffman has been hindered. The run game appeared to be going decently well last week, but it seemed after first-quarter fumbles from Josh Quezada and J.J. DiLuigi, BYU shied away from the run game the rest of the night. A strong game would also go a long way to repair BYU’s image that was damaged after last week's shellacking, as coach Bronco Mendenhall admitted concerns that the team’s credibility as a relevant power was hurt. With BYU’s defense playing very well, the Cougars’ focus is definitely on improving a surprisingly-impotent offense. A win would get BYU breathing a bit more easily and on track for a solid season.

Another bad loss? The Cougars hope they won’t have to go there when Friday night’s game is done and dusted.