UCF football: 3 bold predictions vs. Cincinnati in Week 12
UCF football welcomes Cincinnati to the Bounce House this Saturday. Here are three bold predictions for what should be the game of the week in the AAC.
During UCF’s 25-game winning streak, it blew out Luke Fickell coached Cincinnati teams twice, by a combined score of 89-36, including a 38-13 win for College GameDay’s 2018 visit to Orlando.
Then, last season, Cincinnati beat UCF and ended both the Knights’ 31 straight games with more than 30 points scored and 19-game winning streak within the AAC.
Despite what happened last season, Fickell believes that UCF holds the upper hand in this matchup in some regards.
Fickell on UCF:
— Justin Williams (@Williams_Justin) November 17, 2020
"The reality is that they have a (conference) championship and we don't. It's not like we think that we're something different...They're still in a better place than we our. Our job is to get to where they have been, and we haven't done that yet." #Bearcats
UCF needs this game to keep their conference championship hopes alive. Cincinnati needs a win that pops on their resume for the College Football Playoff Committee. It’s game on.
3. Daniel Obarski doesn’t miss
There’s a lot of reasons that UCF lost to Memphis, most notably by blowing a three-score lead. Kicker Daniel Obarski took most of the blame, however, because he missed a potential game-winning kick as time expired.
It wasn’t the only issue he’s had kicking this season.
A missed chip shot against Tulsa could have changed the dynamic of that game, too. In total, he’s missed five field goals and two extra points on the season, and it’s clear he’s got a case of the yips.
Yes, it’s been five games in a row that Obarski has missed at least one kick, but if UCF wants to beat Cincinnati they need touchdowns not field goals. Josh Heupel has proven to be an aggressive coach in the past, and he’s likely to go for it in any fourth-and-short situations, limiting the opportunities to miss a kick.
Beyond that, it’s about time for Obarski to break from his slump, and this game is a great opportunity.