Central Florida 31
Navy 21
Saturday, October 21, 2017 03:30 PM
(ET)
No. 20 Central Florida tops Navy, stays unbeaten
The Sports Xchange
Oct 21, 2017
ANNAPOLIS, Md. -- Adrian Killins Jr. ran 15 times for 122 yards and two touchdowns, and McKenzie Milton threw for one score as No. 20 Central Florida beat Navy 31-21 on Saturday in an American Athletic Conference contest.
The Knights (6-0, 4-0 AAC), who were 0-12 in 2015, are off to the best start in school history.
Milton completed 15 of 23 passes for 233 yards.
Navy (5-2, 3-2) was led by quarterback Zach Abey, who ran 25 times for 126 yards. He has rushed for more than 100 yards in eight straight games, a school record. But Abey, who tried just four passes, was shaken up on a run with 11:16 left in the third quarter and left the game. He was replaced by Garret Lewis, a fellow junior.
Killins, a sophomore, went 79 yards on a touchdown run with 12:08 left in the third quarter for a 21-14 lead. Matthew Wright's 35-yard field goal with 2:41 left in the third quarter made it 24-14.
Navy cut the lead to 24-21 with 12:50 left in the game on a 7-yard run by fullback Anthony Gargiulo. Then linebacker Micah Thomas intercepted Milton with 10:08 left to give Navy a shot at the go-ahead score. But Darryl Bonner fumbled with 7:07 left, and the Knights took over at their 46. A 10-yard touchdown run by Otis Anderson with 3:30 left made it 31-21.
Slotback Malcolm Perry scored on a 75-yard catch-and run with 12:23 left in the third quarter to tie the game at 14.
The Knights took the opening kickoff and went 64 yards on 10 plays as Milton passed six yards to Tre'Quan Smith for a 7-0 lead.
Late in the second quarter, Navy drove 92 yards on 12 plays for the tying score, as Abey ran six yards for a touchdown. The kick by Bennett Moehring made it 7-7 with 4:46 left in the first half.
The Knights took a 14-7 lead with 2:46 left in the first half as Killins ran for a touchdown to cap a five-play drive that was aided by a 58-yard kickoff return by Mike Hughes.
UCF entered the game averaging 50.6 points per contest, the best mark in the nation.
NOTES: Navy head coach Ken Niumatalolo and UCF QB McKenzie Milton are both from Hawaii. ... The Knights host Austin Peay next Saturday while Navy is off until playing at Temple on November 2. ... It was the first time UCF met a service academy school in football. ... Knights head coach Scott Frost has had his name mentioned as a possible successor to Mike Riley at Nebraska if things continue to go poorly for the Huskers. Frost is a former Nebraska quarterback who took the Knights to a bowl game last season. ... Navy OLB Jerry Thompson missed the game with an injury. Justin Norton started in his place. ... The Midshipmen were also without FB Chris High, who has 402 yards on 89 carries this season.
Oct 21, 2017
ANNAPOLIS, Md. -- Adrian Killins Jr. ran 15 times for 122 yards and two touchdowns, and McKenzie Milton threw for one score as No. 20 Central Florida beat Navy 31-21 on Saturday in an American Athletic Conference contest.
The Knights (6-0, 4-0 AAC), who were 0-12 in 2015, are off to the best start in school history.
Milton completed 15 of 23 passes for 233 yards.
Navy (5-2, 3-2) was led by quarterback Zach Abey, who ran 25 times for 126 yards. He has rushed for more than 100 yards in eight straight games, a school record. But Abey, who tried just four passes, was shaken up on a run with 11:16 left in the third quarter and left the game. He was replaced by Garret Lewis, a fellow junior.
Killins, a sophomore, went 79 yards on a touchdown run with 12:08 left in the third quarter for a 21-14 lead. Matthew Wright's 35-yard field goal with 2:41 left in the third quarter made it 24-14.
Navy cut the lead to 24-21 with 12:50 left in the game on a 7-yard run by fullback Anthony Gargiulo. Then linebacker Micah Thomas intercepted Milton with 10:08 left to give Navy a shot at the go-ahead score. But Darryl Bonner fumbled with 7:07 left, and the Knights took over at their 46. A 10-yard touchdown run by Otis Anderson with 3:30 left made it 31-21.
Slotback Malcolm Perry scored on a 75-yard catch-and run with 12:23 left in the third quarter to tie the game at 14.
The Knights took the opening kickoff and went 64 yards on 10 plays as Milton passed six yards to Tre'Quan Smith for a 7-0 lead.
Late in the second quarter, Navy drove 92 yards on 12 plays for the tying score, as Abey ran six yards for a touchdown. The kick by Bennett Moehring made it 7-7 with 4:46 left in the first half.
The Knights took a 14-7 lead with 2:46 left in the first half as Killins ran for a touchdown to cap a five-play drive that was aided by a 58-yard kickoff return by Mike Hughes.
UCF entered the game averaging 50.6 points per contest, the best mark in the nation.
NOTES: Navy head coach Ken Niumatalolo and UCF QB McKenzie Milton are both from Hawaii. ... The Knights host Austin Peay next Saturday while Navy is off until playing at Temple on November 2. ... It was the first time UCF met a service academy school in football. ... Knights head coach Scott Frost has had his name mentioned as a possible successor to Mike Riley at Nebraska if things continue to go poorly for the Huskers. Frost is a former Nebraska quarterback who took the Knights to a bowl game last season. ... Navy OLB Jerry Thompson missed the game with an injury. Justin Norton started in his place. ... The Midshipmen were also without FB Chris High, who has 402 yards on 89 carries this season.
