UCF Football: 3 takeaways from disappointing loss to Pitt in Week 4

3. Pitt out-played UCF in key moments

It seemed as if the play calling by UCF head coach Josh Heupel got tight when the game got tight. There were a couple of times they ran the ball in an attempt to either cover a third down or a fourth down in short yardage situations instead of using the height and strength advantage they had against the Panthers defensive backs.

Just as the Knights didn’t get frazzled when the Panthers ran out to a big lead, the Panthers didn’t get frazzled when the Knights came back and took the lead. Both teams looked tired by the fourth  quarter because of the heat, but it was the Panthers who came up with the big plays to win the game in the end including the “Pittsburgh Special”.

In the last sequences of the game, Pitt was able to make plays on offense because their offensive line kept Ryan Pickett clean. The UCF offensive line had issues all game long with the Panther defensive front.

In addition, Dylan Gabriel looked like a freshman late in the game taking a few sacks instead of getting rid of the ball.