Knights Look For First Win Over Big East Opponent
November 1, 2002
Kevin Deutsch
Knightsnews Staff Writer
The Golden Knights will play host to the Syracuse Orangemen on Saturday, marking the first time the teams have faced each other at the Citrus Bowl. In their only previous match-up, last year at Syracuse, UCF was defeated 21-10.
This season, the Knights are confident they can get their first ever victory against the Orangemen, and get their record back to .500.
“It would be a great move for us and our program-period,” said UCF defensive-end Elton Patterson. “We’d like to go out and beat Syracuse next week and remain undefeated for the rest of the season, our goal is to win out.”
Syracuse comes in with an overall record of 2-6, but their unique offensive schemes are something the Knights will have to be prepared for. The option is a play the Orangemen love to run, and also one the Knights have not seen much of this year.
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“They’re very diversified in their plays.” Said UCF head coach Mike Kruczek. “You only have so much time to work on plays that you think the other team will run. But the option is something you have to work on extensively, simply because you don’t see it all that often. When you don’t practice it on a day-in, day-out basis you’ll have mistakes. You can cover it systematically, but it’s not common--that’s what makes it interesting.” The Knights (3-4), have been criticized the past two seasons for not winning games that are “program-makers,” or games that solidify a school’s position as bowl- contenders. This weeks game presents another opportunity for the Knights to win a game against a well-balanced, widely respected team. The Orangemen play in the Big East, a conference long-considered to be one of the best in the nation, and a win for UCF would be one of the biggest in school history. “We really need to treat this as a conference game because this is a big game against a good team and to win a game against a team like this is very important to us,” said UCF tight-end Michael Gaines. “We just need to go out there and play like it’s our last game.” |
TB Alex Haynes(4) and QB Ryan Schneider(17) |
The game will be the last non-conference match-up for UCF, and marks the end of a three-game homestand for the Knights. Success away from the Citrus Bowl has been hard to come by for the Knights, who are 1-3 on the road. Coach Kruczek knows that Saturday’s game will be pivotal in setting the tone for the rest of his teams’ season, and that hitting the road with a big win under their built can only help their confidence.
"I think they see what needs improvement and hopefully this week we'll try to get that rectified,” said Kruczek of his players. “A victory this week will extend the confidence level of this team to go on the road again and compete against our MAC opponents.”
