UCF football: 3 takeaways from War on I-4 victory over USF in Week 13

Looking at three key takeaways from UCF football’s War on I-4 win over rival USF, including Jeff Scott’s game management and Josh Heupel’s closing ability.

The War on I-4 is one of the younger rivalries, but between geography, institutional similarities, USF blocking UCF from joining the Big East, blowouts, injuries, and wild finishes it is one of the most exciting rivalries.

With their win, UCF made it four straight wins in the series and tied to overall series at 6-6. They did everything to give up the lead, though, as their young defense lost confidence and had to hang on for dear life.

Still, a win is a win, especially in a rivalry game. That, of course, doesn’t mean that there isn’t plenty to take away from UCF’s 58-46 win over their archrival. So, here are three major takeaways from Friday afternoon’s game in Tampa.

3. It’s time to move on from Randy Shannon

One of the most exciting and important hires for Josh Heupel was Randy Shannon. The former Miami Hurricanes head coach was the Florida Gators defensive coordinator the year before. He was supposed to be a great recruiter, particularly of South Florida, and could mentor Heupel through his first head coaching job.

Early on, it seemed to work fairly well. As UCF went from 3-4 to Shannon’s 4-2 there were occasional struggles, but the Knights almost always adjusted well.

Since then, the defense has simply regressed. They ended up allowing 31.4 points in the regular season, and were destroyed by an atrocious USF offense. Granted, the defense has dealt with tons of injuries, opt outs, and player dismissals, but can those issues justify the disaster this season has been?

Probably not, especially because UCF isn’t even recruiting to their capability with Shannon in tow. It won’t be easy, but there needs to be a spark on this side of the ball.