UCF football will finally get some relief in Year 2 of the Big 12, with a much easier travel schedule after last season’s grueling road trips.
The Knights had to endure more than 17,000 miles of travel for six games, but that won’t be the case this year with a schedule that features five road contests and seven home games.
UCF opens the 2024-25 football season by hosting New Hampshire on Thursday, Aug. 29. It’s the first meeting with the Wildcats, who finished 6-5 last season, including 4-4 in the Coastal Athletic Association of the Football Championship Subdivision.
The Knights face another first-time opponent when they host Sam Houston State on Saturday, Sept. 7. The Bearkats finished 3-9 in their first season in Conference USA after transitioning from the FCS in 2022.
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UCF opens conference play on the road for the second straight season with a trip to Fort Worth, Texas, to take on TCU on Saturday, Sept. 14.
After a bye week, the Knights will host Colorado on Saturday, Sept. 28, led by Coach Deion Sanders. The Buffaloes finished 4-8 in Sanders’ first season and are returning to the Big 12 for the first time since 2010.
A much-anticipated contest with Florida awaits UCF the following week (Oct. 5) as the team travels to Gainesville to take on the Gators. This is the fourth meeting between the two in-state programs and the first since the Knights beat UF 29-17 in the Gasparilla Bowl on Dec. 23, 2021.
UCF returns home to face a familiar foe in Cincinnati on Oct. 12. The Knights have won two straight in the series, including last year’s 28-26 win at Nippert Stadium on Nov. 4, 2023.
The third road trip of the season takes UCF to Ames, Iowa, to face Iowa State on Saturday, Oct. 19. It’s the first meeting between the two programs.
The Knights return home for a two-game homestand against BYU (Oct. 26) and Arizona (Nov. 2). It’s the fourth meeting with the Cougars but the first since the 2020 Boca Raton Bowl. The Wildcats are making their first trip to UCF in their first season in the Big 12.
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The remainder of November features a pair of road games: Arizona State (Nov. 9) and West Virginia (Nov. 23), bookending a bye week (Nov. 16). It would be the first trip to Tempe for the Knights since 2002, a 46-13 loss to the Sun Devils. A trip to Morgantown, West Virginia, would be the first since 2003, a 36-18 loss.
The season wraps up at home against Utah on Black Friday (Nov. 29). It’s the first meeting with the Utes, who debut in the Big 12 after 13 seasons in the Pac-12.
UCF athletics director Terry Mohajir, who is on the Big 12 football scheduling committee, was confident in the strength of the Knights’ schedule.
“I have a prediction that we will have the best schedule in the history of UCF,” he recently told the Sentinel.
UCF (6-7, 3-6 Big 12) is coming off its first losing season under coach Gus Malzahn. The Knights begin spring football camp on March 11.
2024 UCF SCHEDULE
Aug. 29 vs. New Hampshire*
Sept. 7 vs. Sam Houston State
Sept. 14 at TCU
Sept. 21 BYE
Sept. 28 vs. Colorado
Oct. 5 at Florida
Oct. 12 vs. Cincinnati
Oct. 19 at Iowa State
Oct. 26 vs. BYU
Nov. 2 vs. Arizona
Nov. 9 at Arizona State
Nov. 16 BYE
Nov. 23 at West Virginia
Nov. 29 vs. Utah#
* Thursday
# Friday
Email Matt Murschel at [email protected] or follow him on X at @osmattmurschel.