UCF football on the verge of greatness

Now is the time.

There's still plenty of room.

Jump on the UCF football bandwagon while you still can.

For the casual fan, for those whom have been on the fence, or for those of whom have popped in and out of fandom on whether to invest themselves in the Knights, now is the time.

These words aren't meant to call or single out fans. Think of it more as a rallying of troops to bring more support.

These are exciting times, during the formative years of the program, to be a UCF football fan. Success is on the horizon for this team. It's so close you can see it, taste it and feel it.

The Knights have even gotten a glimpse of it by making their third bowl game in the last five years under George O'Leary — the program's first appearances in college football's bowl season.

The Knights may be winless in bowl games and may have suffered a disappointing 45-24 loss to Rutgers in the St. Petersburg Bowl, but just a day later, UCF got word of its most significant recruiting news ever, all but washing away any displeasure of how the season ended.

The dubbed "Miami-trio" of quarterback Jeffery Godfrey, wide receiver Joshua Reese and cornerback Jammal McClain from Miami Central High School all committed to UCF the next day, despite rumors that the three were headed to USF.

Godfrey, who threw for 2,748 yards and 36 touchdowns his senior year,  is 3-star recruit, but was a four at one point, and is rated the 8th best dual-threat quarterback in the country while Reese is a 4-star, and McClain is a solid prospect.

Godfrey will enroll early at UCF to compete in spring practice for the starting job, which is one of the main reasons he chose UCF because it offered the opportunity of early playing time.

He also has lofty goals and eyes a championship for UCF,  but not a just a conference championship, a national championship.

"My goal is to get UCF to the national championship," Godfrey said in an interview with UCFsports.com. "That's what I want to do, and that's my goal. I want to come in and make a great impact for myself and the UCF team."

Over the past five seasons, UCF's recruiting classes have continued to include more highly regarded recruits each year, and this year was no different. UCF is on the cusp of developing something to be proud of, but it's just going to take some time. Just be patient and hang in there UCF fans. It will happen.

A football program has got to start somewhere and to use a perfect cliché: Rome wasn't built in a day and well neither can football programs.

UCF's in-state recruiting rivals weren't always at the top either.

Just think, UF wasn't always what it is now. Heck, even 34 years ago, when Bobby Bowden, one of  college football's greatest coaches of all-time, stepped foot in Tallahassee, the Seminoles weren't what they are now.

But amidst all of the heat and negativity from the media and fans, what O'Leary and his staff have done is lay a foundation for building a successful program.

Whether UCF develops into a powerhouse remains to be seen but given the recent success and that UCF is in the talent-rich state of Florida that has a boat-load of recruiting potential, good times appear ahead for UCF fans.

Which is why now is the time to be a true fan, when everything isn't quite there yet as UCF football seeks its identity.

True fan-hood is tested during these times, during the highs and lows and the struggles a program or sports organization goes through before it becomes consistently successful.

The UCF fans that have hung in there should be applauded for sticking around when it would be very easy to jump ship to the successes of UF and even USF.

And when all is said and done, the winning will be even sweeter when everything comes together.