# 2025 UCF Knights football team
The 2025 [UCF Knights football](https://www.edgepedia.org/ucf-knights-football) team represented the [University of Central Florida](https://www.edgepedia.org/university-of-central-florida) in the 2025 NCAA Division I FBS football season as a member of the [Big 12 Conference](https://www.edgepedia.org/big-12-conference). The Knights finished 5-7 overall and 2-7 in conference play under head coach Scott Frost, who returned to the program for the first season of his second stint after leading UCF to a 13-0 season in 2017.[1](https://ucfknights.com/sports/football/schedule/season/2025) • [2](https://www.pff.com/news/college-football-preview-2025-ucf-knights) • [3](https://athlonsports.com/college-football/ucf-football-knights-prediction-preview-2025)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Record | 5-7 overall, 2-7 Big 12; 5-2 at home, 0-5 away[1](https://ucfknights.com/sports/football/schedule/season/2025) |
| Head coach | Scott Frost, first season of his second stint at UCF[2](https://www.pff.com/news/college-football-preview-2025-ucf-knights) |
| Roster turnover | 63 of 112 players were new to the program, including 36 Division I transfers and 18 true freshmen[4](https://ucfknights.com/news/2025/08/24/ucf-set-to-kickoff-2025-vs-jacksonville-state-thursday) |
| Home venue | Acrisure Bounce House, Orlando, Florida[1](https://ucfknights.com/sports/football/schedule/season/2025) |
| Milestone win | The 17-10 opener against Jacksonville State was UCF's 300th win in program history and its 10th straight season-opening victory[4](https://ucfknights.com/news/2025/08/24/ucf-set-to-kickoff-2025-vs-jacksonville-state-thursday) |
| Streaks ended | Houston's 30-27 win on November 7 snapped UCF's 8-0 run in the annual Space Game[1](https://ucfknights.com/sports/football/schedule/season/2025) |
| Bowl eligibility | Missed with five wins; the season-ending 21-41 loss at BYU left the Knights one win short[1](https://ucfknights.com/sports/football/schedule/season/2025) |
## Coaching change and roster rebuild
Frost returned to Orlando after the departure of former head coach [Gus Malzahn](https://www.edgepedia.org/gus-malzahn), inheriting a program coming off a 4-8 campaign in 2024.[3](https://athlonsports.com/college-football/ucf-football-knights-prediction-preview-2025) • [5](https://ucfknights.com/news/2025/12/18/2025-football-season-recap) His first stint had turned an 0-12 team in 2015 into a 13-0 squad in 2017, the only team in the nation to finish that season unbeaten, capped by a 34-27 [Peach Bowl](https://www.edgepedia.org/peach-bowl) win over No. 7 Auburn before he left for Nebraska.[4](https://ucfknights.com/news/2025/08/24/ucf-set-to-kickoff-2025-vs-jacksonville-state-thursday)
**Roster turnover was extreme.** Of the 112 players on the 2025 squad, 63 were making their debut on the roster: 36 transfers from other Division I institutions, six transfers from lower levels, two former Division I basketball players, one former [Minor League Baseball](https://www.edgepedia.org/minor-league-baseball) pitcher, and 18 true freshmen.[4](https://ucfknights.com/news/2025/08/24/ucf-set-to-kickoff-2025-vs-jacksonville-state-thursday) Only four players from the 2024 squad had started six or more games, with offensive lineman Paul Rubelt the lone returner to start all 12.[4](https://ucfknights.com/news/2025/08/24/ucf-set-to-kickoff-2025-vs-jacksonville-state-thursday) A three-way quarterback competition among Tayven Jackson, Jacurri Brown, and Cam Fancher carried into fall camp, and the running back position paired returning backup [Myles Montgomery](https://www.edgepedia.org/myles-montgomery) with Western Michigan transfer Jaden Nixon.[3](https://athlonsports.com/college-football/ucf-football-knights-prediction-preview-2025)
## Season results
UCF opened with three home wins, beating Jacksonville State 17-10 on Thursday, August 28, North Carolina A&T 68-7, and North Carolina 34-9, the latter against first-year coach [Bill Belichick](https://www.edgepedia.org/bill-belichick)'s Tar Heels.[1](https://ucfknights.com/sports/football/schedule/season/2025) • [4](https://ucfknights.com/news/2025/08/24/ucf-set-to-kickoff-2025-vs-jacksonville-state-thursday) The opener gave the program its 300th all-time win, its 10th consecutive season-opening victory, and extended UCF's winning streak under Frost to 14 games dating to his first tenure.[4](https://ucfknights.com/news/2025/08/24/ucf-set-to-kickoff-2025-vs-jacksonville-state-thursday)
**Conference play turned the season.** The Knights lost five straight from late September through early November: 20-34 at Kansas State, 20-27 to Kansas, 11-20 at [Cincinnati](https://www.edgepedia.org/cincinnati), 45-13 over [West Virginia](https://www.edgepedia.org/west-virginia) at [Homecoming](https://www.edgepedia.org/homecoming), then 3-30 at Baylor and 27-30 to Houston in the Space Game.[1](https://ucfknights.com/sports/football/schedule/season/2025) The West Virginia win on October 18 was UCF's first victory in the month of October as a Big 12 member, and both teams started backup quarterbacks, Tayven Jackson for the Knights, because of injury.[1](https://ucfknights.com/sports/football/schedule/season/2025) The Houston loss ended UCF's 8-0 all-time record in the Space Game, its annual home game tied to the program's space-themed identity.[1](https://ucfknights.com/sports/football/schedule/season/2025)
The final stretch was harsher. UCF fell 9-48 at then-No. 6 Texas Tech on November 15, a result the AP described as the Red Raiders' third straight impressive victory, then beat Oklahoma State 17-14 on Senior Knight before closing with a 21-41 loss at No. 11 BYU that left the Knights at five wins, one short of bowl eligibility.[1](https://ucfknights.com/sports/football/schedule/season/2025) • [6](https://apnews.com/article/f6cb71854683a848f6b49ca09e243f8f)
## By the numbers
The split between home and road results defined the season: UCF went 5-2 at Acrisure Bounce House and 0-5 away, with no neutral-site games.[1](https://ucfknights.com/sports/football/schedule/season/2025) All five wins came against non-conference opponents or the two weakest Big 12 results on the schedule, and the Knights finished a perfect 5-0 against teams with new or interim head coaches in 2025, beating Jacksonville State, North Carolina A&T, North Carolina, West Virginia, and Oklahoma State.[4](https://ucfknights.com/news/2025/08/24/ucf-set-to-kickoff-2025-vs-jacksonville-state-thursday) Frost's return was one of 30 new-head-coach situations across FBS that season, and UCF faced four of those programs on its schedule.[4](https://ucfknights.com/news/2025/08/24/ucf-set-to-kickoff-2025-vs-jacksonville-state-thursday)
Frost, speaking on national signing day during the season, called college football "broken" because of unregulated spending on players, a remark made amid a broader 2025 landscape in which top-level football saw 32 coaching changes.[7](https://apnews.com/article/409bdf670c30a35065411513b2687096)
## References
1. [2025 Football Schedule, UCF Athletics](https://ucfknights.com/sports/football/schedule/season/2025)
2. [College Football Preview 2025: UCF Knights, PFF](https://www.pff.com/news/college-football-preview-2025-ucf-knights)
3. [UCF Football: 2025 Knights Season Preview and Prediction, Athlon Sports](https://athlonsports.com/college-football/ucf-football-knights-prediction-preview-2025)
4. [UCF Set to Kickoff 2025 vs. Jacksonville State Thursday, UCF Athletics](https://ucfknights.com/news/2025/08/24/ucf-set-to-kickoff-2025-vs-jacksonville-state-thursday)
5. [2025 Football Season Recap, UCF Athletics](https://ucfknights.com/news/2025/12/18/2025-football-season-recap)
6. [AP Top 25 poll preview, AP News](https://apnews.com/article/f6cb71854683a848f6b49ca09e243f8f)
7. [Big 12's Brett Yormark says college athletics needs legislation that's stalled in Congress, AP News](https://apnews.com/article/409bdf670c30a35065411513b2687096)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Sports, games, and recreation › Other team and ball sports › Rugby and other football codes › College, minor, and international American football › College football programs › 2025 season articles*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license