The season that wasn’t: Close games haunt Knights’ 2011 campaign

So, let's face it: Most of us guessed wrong.

Really, really wrong.

It seems like forever ago, but does anyone remember the beginning of the season? Does anyone remember the types of predictions that were floating around for this football team?

9-3? 10-2? 11-1? Undefeated? Yep. All of them. And, though it seems hard to believe now, they were all being said with straight faces. But hindsight is always 20/20.

And we all did it.

The program had just had its greatest season ever, having won its second Conference USA Championship and beating Georgia in the Liberty Bowl; UCF was preparing to face what at least seemed like its easiest schedule ever.

So, in a way, it wasn't completely illogical and everyone seemed to hop on board. Students, fans and yes, media, too. This was going to be a big year for UCF football.

Then they started playing the games.

The Knights got off to a great start. They outscored their first two opponents, one of which was BCS-program Boston College, 92-3. It wasn't a bad start and it played right in with the hype.

So what was next? A quick trip to FIU to play the Panthers of the Sunbelt, widely regarded as a "gimme" before the team traveled to Provo, Utah to take on BYU, the season's real "big game."

But FIU had other plans and UCF lost.

When the Knights trudged off the field after the loss at FIU, something seemed different in the players' eyes.

In actuality, besides the unforeseen development of having lost to a Sunbelt program, the loss did little to ruin UCF's season.

At that point, the Knights could still win their conference. They could still have finished ranked. They could still have made a bowl game.

But as we know now, those things didn't happen.

Following the win over Boston College, UCF won only three of its next 10 games. Students, fans and media alike all learned together that maybe the schedule wasn't that ridiculously easy and maybe the team wasn't that good. If nothing else, we learned that the team was that young.

So, most of us came to find out we were wrong. Our lofty preseason projections of repeat conference championships and running the table were all wrong.

But how wrong were we really?

UCF was blown out once – against SMU. Six of the Knights' seven losses were by seven points or less. Head coach George O'Leary said it all season: They were a play or two away each game from having a really good season.

That doesn't count for much; "almost" never does in sports, but it does help with perspective. All of the Knights' wins were blowouts. Sure, there was a 10-point win over Marshall, which doesn't seem like a blowout, but that game was never really in question, and the final score was more reflective of the ongoing monsoon that day than whether UCF was ever in jeopardy of losing.

What does it mean?

It means the youth and inexperience of this program showed at the worst possible times. The Knights could not, and did not, win the close games. The mental toughness wasn't quite there this season. UCF either dominated opponents or barely lost to them, all in games they could have won. It's a bit maddening, to be frank.

But hey, there's a silver lining, right?

The team is returning a ton of starters, and as this season wore on, we consistently saw that UCF's future is in its freshmen and sophomores. That youth and inexperience will turn into leadership and experience, as is the way of things.

So be optimistic, Knights fans. How much of a choice do you have?

Though it may never actually be formally announced, the program seems set to join the Big East and reap the television dollars and recruiting boosts that come with that. The team will be better next season. I think that's a statement that can be made with a certain confidence.

And hey, here's perhaps the best thing about next season:

After finishing 5-7, maybe the expectations won't be quite as lofty.