{{pageModel.leagueAbbr}} {{pageModel.subtitle}} | Las Vegas Review-Journal
College Football
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Central Florida 46, South Florida 39
When: 7:00 PM ET, Saturday, November 26, 2022
Where: Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, Florida
Temperature: 75°
Head Official: Tim Rich
Attendance: 32217

Backup quarterback Mikey Keene tossed a touchdown pass with 20 seconds left and No. 22 UCF escaped with a 46-39 victory over host South Florida on Saturday night in Tampa, Fla.

The Knights had to rally after squandering a 24-point lead in the third quarter.

UCF earned a berth in the American Athletic Conference championship game. The Knights (9-3, 6-2 AAC) will play regular-season winner Tulane in New Orleans next Saturday.

Keene took over in the second half when starter John Rhys Plumlee left the game after apparently aggravating a hamstring injury.

Plumlee rushed for 133 yards and was 9-of-9 passing for 73 yards and a score in the first half in leading UCF to a 28-0 lead midway through the second quarter and a 28-7 cushion at the break.

Keene finished 15-of-19 passing for 129 yards and hit Javon Baker with a 41-yard pass to South Florida's 29-line on the final drive before connecting with Alec Holler on a 14-yard strike for the decisive score. He also had a TD pass to Kobe Hudson.

Byrum Brown was 13-for-20 passing for 140 yards and a touchdown and rushed for 109 yards and two touchdowns for the Bulls (1-11, 0-8). His 42-yard TD run gave the Bulls a 39-38 lead with 7:02 remaining, but his final pass into the end zone as time ran out fell incomplete.

Brian Battie posted his fifth consecutive triple-digit rushing game to tie a school record set by Jordan Cronkrite in 2012. Battie ended up with 144 yards on 19 carries, including a 14-yard touchdown run.

After their early dominance, the Knights had a disastrous third quarter.

The Bulls scored on Brown's 4-yard run to start the second half, then took advantage of UCF fumbles on consecutive series to add two more scores to outscore the Knights 22-3 in the third quarter.

The Bulls had a scoring opportunity end early in the second quarter when Brown's fumble at UCF's 4-yard line sailed into the end zone, where Justin Hodges recovered for a touchback.

The Bulls put together a 15-play, 75-yard scoring drive capped by Brown's 2-yard pass to Sean Atkins with just 40 seconds left in the second quarter before the flood gates opened in the third quarter.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
Rushing
Central Florida   South Florida
John Rhys Plumlee Player Brian Battie
8 Attempts 19
133 Yards 144
16.6 Avg Yards 7.6
2 Touchdowns 1
0 Long 0
Receiving
Central Florida   South Florida
Javon Baker Player Jimmy Horn Jr.
3 Receptions 5
51 Yards 50
17.0 Avg Yards 10.0
0 Touchdowns 0
0 Long 0
Team Stats Summary
 
  Yards Scoring Defense
Team Tot Rus Pas TD FG INT Sck FF
Central Florida 547 345 202 6 1 1 1.0 2
South Florida 438 298 140 5 1 0 1.0 2