Group of Five: 2017 college football Week 3 power rankings
By Zach Bigalke
Like several other teams in this week’s Group of Five Power Rankings, UCF was sidelined by Hurricane Irma in Week 2. As a result, they missed the chance to take on Memphis in a de facto New Year’s Six elimination game. Nevertheless, the Knights look more and more like a legitimate contender in the American Athletic Conference.
UCF throttled Florida International in their season opener, taking down the Golden Panthers 61-17 in Orlando. Knights quarterback McKenzie Milton was 16-of-21 for 360 yards and four touchdowns, while backup Noah Vedral completed 10 of his 12 attempts for another 79 yards in the air.
The ground game also got into the scoring mix. Though the backfield averaged just 3.3 yards per carry as a team, UCF added another four rushing touchdowns to go with Milton’s passing scores. The Knights defense also forced three fumbles and an interception, preventing FIU from having any chance at a comeback.
In addition to the canceled Memphis game, UCF’s Power Five test at home against Georgia Tech was also canceled this weekend. Scott Frost‘s team will not take the field again until September 23, when they head to Maryland to face a quickly-improving Terrapins team. If they can get a statement win over a Big Ten program, they will jump into the top five of the Group of Five Power Rankings.