UCF picked up where it left off last season, cruising past Connecticut 56-17 Thursday night in East Hartford, Conn.

Quarterback McKenzie Milton completed 24 of 32 passes for 346 yards and five touchdowns in a little over three quarters as the No. 21 Knights (1-0, 1-0 American Athletic Conference) ran their winning streak to 14 games.

Wide receiver Tre Nixon, a transfer from Ole Miss, had five receptions for 101 yards and two touchdowns while Dredrick Snelson had six catches for another 90 yards. Freshman backup quarterback Darriel Mack Jr. led UCF in rushing with 70 yards -- all on one play -- to eclipse Milton's 50 rushing yards.

Quarterback David Pindell passed for 266 yards and rushed for a game-high 157 on 22 carries for the Huskies (0-1, 0-1 AAC).

In addition to three turnovers, the Huskies hurt themselves with penalties, with two pass interference calls coming deep in UCF territory and a holding call that nullified Pindell's 50-yard touchdown run.

Milton was 13 of 16 for 205 yards and three touchdowns in the first half alone in leading the Knights to a 28-10 lead at the intermission.

After a slow start, Pindell finished the first half passing for 116 yards and rushing for 92, doing most of his damage in the second quarter when he passed for 84 yards and rushed for 50.

But turnovers proved fatal for the Huskies. They fumbled on their first series after driving to UCF's 36-yard line, and Pindell threw an interception in the closing seconds of the half on first down at UCF's 25.

The Knights scored on their first two possessions of the second half and led 42-10 after three quarters, then scored on running back Greg McRae's 36-yard reception on the second play of the fourth.

The game was delayed for nine minutes when UCF sophomore defensive back Aaron Robinson was injured while covering the opening kickoff. He was taken off the field on a stretcher. The report from the locker room was that he was moving his extremities.

--Field Level Media