The magic of UCF’s 2017 season has long since faded.
Back then, Scott Frost was a second-year head coach guiding the Knights to a 13-0 finish behind record-setting quarterback McKenzie Milton, who was just 19 when the unprecedented season began.
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Now, Frost enters Year 2 for the second time in Orlando, while Milton, now 28, oversees the team’s signalcallers. No longer an AAC powerhouse, UCF is coming off a 5-7 season and scrambling to gain ground in the Big 12.
As his team enters the offseason, Frost acknowledged that a repeat of 2017 is unlikely — even if that success helped fuel his return after a failed tenure at Nebraska.
Still, he senses something building.
“It’s hard to catch lightning in a bottle,” Frost said Tuesday. “You have to have a little luck and a lot of preparation and the right people. We have the right people, though, and I think the character and talent on this team is going to give us a chance.
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“We’ll see how far that carries us.”
Frost set an almost unreachable standard during that perfect season. UCF fans now understand what is possible — even if it’s far less probable in a deeper conference and a more transactional era of college football.
“That was a long time ago, feels like a different lifetime to me,” Frost said. “That doesn’t have much impact on who we are now. I hope we can repeat similar success. But it really has nothing to do with 2016 and 2017.
“It has to do with this team.”
Even so, Frost sees parallels.
The 2016 Knights endured a transition, learn new schemes and culture while finishing 6-7. By the following spring, signs of a breakthrough were emerging.
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During his first spring back at UCF, he faced familiar challenges as he did during his debut season as a head coach. A 5-7 season would follow.
Frost experienced similar growing pains his first season back. But after wrapping up spring practices last Saturday, he believes this team could be on a similar trajectory.
“It all kind of came together with the second year of guys being around us and playing for each other and coming together,” he recalled. “We got rid of some guys that didn’t fit what we wanted on the field and off, and everybody else kind of came even closer together — and then something special happened.
“We’re working down that same avenue right now, so we’ll see what it means.”
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A major factor will be the health of quarterback Alonzo Barnett III. The James Madison transfer and 2025 Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year was limited during the spring after leading the Dukes to the College Football Playoff.
Frost said Barnett could have practiced by the end of spring practice, but the staff chose caution.
Barnett’s talent and experience should allow him to catch up quickly.
“I’ve watched him throw and do a lot of things that make me really confident about where he is, even with the understanding of our offense,” Frost said. “He’s played a ton of football, not really worried about him at all.”
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Barnett will benefit from the return of the Knights’ two top receivers, tight end Dylan Wade and receiver Duane Thomas Jr., along with the addition of Monmouth FCS All-American Josh Derry, who “was awesome all spring,” Frost said.
UCF’s offensive line has grown under new coach AJ Blazek, while Frost likes the depth at running back.
Defensively, experience stands out. Linebacker Lewis Carter leads the after he posted a team-high 92 stops in 2025. The secondary returns several players who started games, including cornerback Jayden Bellamy.
Of concern is replacing All-Big 12 defensive end Malachi Lawrence, whom the Dallas Cowboys selected No. 23 in the NFL draft, and 2025 bookend Nyjalik Kelly.
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“It’s going to be tough for the defensive end group,” Frost said. “They can get there, but we lost two really good guys. Other than that position, we’re pretty clearly better at every spot.”
Edgar Thompson can be reached at egthompson@orlandosentinel.com.
