College football is back. We’ve got some Big 12 action to watch tonight. Yes, it’s a Thursday. And yes, it’s still college football.
Scott Frost is back in Orlando as the new (renewed?) head coach of the UCF Knights and his first game as a head coach in the Big 12 is against the Jacksonville State Gamecocks, who were previously coached by Rich Rodriguez before he left for West Virginia.
This should, theoretically, be a bit of an easy win for the Knights, and that might not be what some want to watch. But it’s still Big 12 football and I think it’s worth watching.
How to watch this Big 12 football game?
- Who: Jacksonville State (0-0) vs. UCF (0-0)
- When: August 28 at 6 p.m.
- TV channel: ESPN+
- Live Stream: Watch ESPN
How does this impact the Big 12?
It likely doesn’t have a drastic impact, to be completely honest. And that’s not me trying to take a shot at UCF. It’s just that they’re in the first year of a new coaching era and there will likely be a bit of a learning curve for Scott Frost and his coaching staff as they get used to the Big 12.
UCF isn’t a team that’s expected to have a huge breakthrough season this year, though it does look like they could win seven or eight games in 2025. The only way this game impacts the Big 12 (and UCF’s season) in a significant way is if the Knights are somehow shockingly upset in this game.
I just don’t expect that to happen.
Why should Texas Tech fans care about this game?
Great question. It’s not a Texas Tech game. It’s not a Big 12 conference matchup. It’s a game that involves a Big 12 team and a team that is relatively new to the FBS. But there is an interesting storylines here that I think is worth keeping up with.
Both of these teams are in the first year of a new coaching staff. Last season, the Gamecocks had Rich Rod. Now he’s over at West Virginia. Similarly, Gus Malzahn left UCF to go coach at Florida State as their offensive coordinator, and now Scott Frost is back in Orlando.
Does that coaching change have any sort of drastic impact on the outcome of this game?
I think it might for the Gamecocks more than it would for UCF. They changed course on head coaching philosophy and picked up a former Auburn co-defensive coordinator in Charles Kelly to be their head coach. I don’t know how that’s going to work with the way Jacksonville State was operating a season ago. As for UCF, they went from one offensive minded coach to another. I think that’ll be a less painful transition.