Knights look to knock USM out of Top-25

On paper, the No. 23 Southern Miss Golden Eagles (8-1, 4-1) may not seem like the ideal opponent ahead on the schedule for a UCF (4-5, 2-3) squad that has struggled and needs to win two of its last three games just to gain bowl eligibility.

It's also a road game at M.M. Roberts Stadium, more affectionately known as "The Rock" and regarded as a tough place to get a road win. It is a place the Knights have won just once, their sole win against the Golden Eagles at any location, coming back in 2007.

On paper, it doesn't look good for UCF, but that's not to say the Knights necessarily see it that way.

Taking on a good Southern Miss team at home may be just the challenge this team needs to rally.

"I'm real excited about this game," defensive tackle Victor Gray said.

Gray also explained that all the motivation he and the team need can be found through a brief history lesson.

"A lot of people might now remember, but when we got ranked last season [Southern Miss] was the first game after our [becoming] ranked, and they knocked us out," Gray said. "They're in the Top 25 this season. It's kind of like a payback game. You go up there and get your revenge."

Indeed, fresh off the program's first appearance in the national polls, the Knights could not handle the Golden Eagles and talented quarterback Austin Davis, losing 31-21 in Orlando.

What's more, Southern Miss beating UCF isn't anything new. The Golden Eagles have taken five of the six meetings between the schools.

It's a fact that isn't lost on the upperclassmen, especially the seniors.

"For me as playing for us since my redshirt freshman year, I've never gotten a chance to beat these guys," tight end Adam Nissley said. "I redshirted in 2007 when they beat them down in Hattiesburg. And it's just something I want to be able to do before I leave here. So that's more of a personal standpoint, you know the seniors. We've been kind of thinking about that, too."

While last year was widely regarded as the most successful in UCF's history, players with the squad still remember the disappointing loss to the Golden Eagles, one that prevented the Knights from perhaps ascending even higher in the polls.

Now, with Southern Miss having a prolific season of its own, UCF's upperclassmen are presented with an opportunity they say they relish, regardless of how disappointing the Knights' season has been to this point.

"The guys who have been here [since] last year understand what this game means to us," Gray said. "We're expecting a dogfight."

O'Leary says Bortles will play

The way UCF coach George O'Leary tells it, there will be no suspense this week.

Backup quarterback Blake Bortles will see the field Saturday in Hattiesburg.

"He needs to play. I had that conversation with [offensive coordinator] Charlie [Taaffe] today about it. … I've seen enough of him on the practice field; you've got to get him in the game," O'Leary said on Tuesday. "That's no more an option – it's a demand."

The statement, however, was not aimed at a dig or condemnation of Knights quarterback Jeff Godfrey, who is still the team's starter. Rather, O'Leary expressed his belief that quarterbacks, specifically young quarterbacks like Godfrey and Bortles (a sophomore and redshirt freshman, respectively), often have trouble managing an entire game.

"Very few young kids can manage the whole game until you settle them down," O'Leary said. "I think Jeff's made a lot of good plays, but I think there's a certain time you need to put him on the sideline so he can get his breath and see what's going on. He's still young at that position."

Bortles, who has had success in his limited appearances scattered throughout the season, has also earned the opportunity in the eyes of his coach.

"And the other reason is he's earned the right to get on the field, in my opinion," O'Leary said. "He needs to be on the field."

This and that

— Reports surfaced prior to Tuesday's weekly press conference that UCF may be close to scheduling a home-and-home series with Oklahoma. O'Leary said that was not yet the case.

"Kansas State is still on our schedule," O'Leary said. "Basically, that's the holdup on everything. If – the ifs, if West Virginia gets to the Big 12 next year, if Missouri leaves, they're going to need a game one way or another. If those people stay, that game may not happen. So that's where we'll need a game. But we're talking to a number of people right now regarding that game. Oklahoma's one of them, all right, but there's nothing with that right now and there won't be until I OK it."

O'Leary also added that the one-time visit to Ohio State next season that is largely regarded as a done deal to be played on Sept. 8 still needs to have a final contract signed.

— Current Knights do their best to keep up with former Knights in the NFL. Former UCF defensive end and rookie fullback with the San Francisco 49ers Bruce Miller scored his first NFL touchdown Sunday against the Redskins, and current tight end Adam Nissley took notice and congratulated his former teammate.

"That was awesome. I texted him after the game after I saw it," Nissley said. "Last year, he made fun of me because he had more touchdowns then I had."