July 13, 2007

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The 2007 football season will be a historic one for the UCF Knights as the team moves on campus to play its home games for the first time in school history. After 28 seasons at the Florida Citrus Bowl, the Knights will open Bright House Networks Stadium on Sept. 15 against national-power Texas in a game to be televised at 3:30 p.m. on ESPN2. With 19 starters returning, including nine on defense and eight on offense, UCF will look to make its first season at the 45,000-seat venue a special one.

The catalyst for the offense will be the run game and featured back Kevin Smith enters his junior season with 2,112 rushing yards and a spot on the preseason Conference USA first-team. His rushing total through his first two seasons was the most by a sophomore in UCF history. The steadying force for the defense will be a veteran secondary that features four returning starters who are all members of the junior class. Strong safety Sha'reff Rashad led the team with four interceptions and 10 pass break-ups in 2006 and will help anchor the secondary along with free safety Jason Venson and cornerbacks Joe Burnett and Johnnell Neal. The quartet has combined for 78 starts in their, respective, UCF careers. Neal is the lone member of the foursome to start all 25 games over the past two seasons.

QUARTERBACKS
Senior Kyle Israel enters his senior season as the lone signal caller on the roster with any game experience. The Orlando native made four of his five career starts in 2006, but did see significant action in four other contests during the season. He led the team in passing with 1,420 yards and his completion percentage of 65.1 was the third best single-season effort in school history. Head Coach George O'Leary has made it clear that the starting job is Israel's to lose.

O'Leary did sign three quarterbacks in his 2007 recruiting class, including JUCO-transfer Michael Greco, who is two years removed from his prep days at Cardinal Gibbons High School. His first year was spent at North Carolina State - the Knights' season-opening opponent, where he redshirted in 2005. Following a strong spring with the Wolfpack, Greco opted to transfer to Pearl River (Miss.) Community College for the 2006 campaign. He played in three games before a shoulder injury sidelined him for the season. Greco is eligible to play this season and has three years remaining for the Knights.

Both Joe Weatherford (Land O' Lakes, Fla.) and Nate Tice (Edina, Minn.) were prep standouts for their respective schools and both hail from strong football families. Weatherford is the younger brother of Florida State quarterback Drew, while Tice is the son of current Jacksonville Jaguars assistant head coach Mike Tice. The older Tice was a prep standout at quarterback for O'Leary at Central Islip (N.Y.) High School.

Behind Israel in the spring was redshirt sophomore Marquel Neasman. The dual-threat quarterback worked with the scout team in 2006 and did not see any game action.

RUNNING BACKS
All-Conference USA honoree Kevin Smith returns to bring stability to the Knights' ground attack. The junior from Miami has amassed 2,112 yards through two seasons at UCF and ranks among the top third-year backs in the country. A shoulder injury cost Smith the last two games of the 2006 campaign and limited his participation in the spring, but he has been given a clean bill of health entering fall camp.

Smith was not the only running back held out of contact during the spring as Shane Smith was also plagued with a similar shoulder injury. Listed as the No. 1 fullback, Smith could also see time as the featured back. He is one of the better pass catchers the Knights have coming out of the backfield.

Sophomore Phillip Smith had 49 carries for 176 yards as a true freshman and is vying for the No. 2 tailback slot going into the season. Seniors Curtis Francis and Neil Bittong will provide depth at the tailback and fullback positions, respectively. Francis, who has been the team's primary kick returner for three seasons, received a majority of the carries in the spring. Bittong has been used a short-yardage blocker the past two seasons.

True freshman Muhammed De'Reese is the lone running back from the Class of 2007. De'Reese scored 20 career touchdowns for Titusville (Fla.) High School and will be given an immediate chance to get in the mix with the offensive backfield.

WIDE RECEIVERS
Three upperclassmen provide the bulk of experience for the receiving corps. Junior Rocky Ross was second on the team a year ago with 36 catches for 531 yards and leads all returnees with those numbers. The Jacksonville native had a pair of 100-yard receiving games down the stretch, including a career-high 135-yard effort in the win at Memphis.

Senior Javid James was third on the squad with 24 catches for 278 yards. He had a career-high seven catches for 70 yards and his first career touchdown against Southern Miss. Junior Willie Thornton provides big-play potential for the offense as all four of his career touchdown receptions have been from at least 20 yards out. Thornton had a career-high 19 catches for 275 yards and three touchdowns in 2006.

Depth at the wide receiver position will come in the form of freshmen - both redshirts and 2007 signees. Jamar Newsome, Jevaughn Reams and Brian Watters are all listed at 6-foot-2 and saw an increased work load as redshirt freshmen during the spring. The trio will need to translate its vast potential into production this coming season.

The 2007 recruiting class was heavy on skill position players and the area with the most upside might be at wide receiver. Chad Alexander, A.J. Guyton, Sydney Haynes, Ereck Plancher, Darnell Williams and Khymest Williams will each have a shot at earning playing time as true freshmen.

TIGHT ENDS
The duo of senior Mike Merritt and sophomore Corey Rabazinski provide experience for the Knights at the tight end position. Merritt is a three-year starter, who has been used primarily as a blocker. Rabazinski led all UCF true freshmen with eight starts a year ago and led his position mates with 12 catches and 145 yards.

Redshirt freshman Ricky Yates will give the Knights' quarterbacks another tall target. At 6-foot-5, Yates has a chance to work his way into the rotation at tight end.

Signees Jake Goray and Adam Nissley will provide added depth at the position. Goray enrolled in January and was able to get a head start on learning the offense during spring drills.

OFFENSIVE LINE
The Knights will return an offensive line that has more than 100 combined starts between them in 2007. The same five who started the last three games of the 2006 campaign are listed at No. 1 at their respective positions on the depth chart going into fall camp.

Senior Josh Sitton holds down his familiar right tackle spot for the third consecutive year. Sitton has made 25 consecutive starts at the position. Anchoring the left side of the line is tackle Patrick Brown. His 24 career starts at left tackle are the most by any junior in the nation going into the season.

Senior Kyle Smith made starts at both left guard and center a year ago, but has made the permanent move to center for the upcoming season. He leads all UCF linemen with 31 career starts.

Junior L.J. Anderson and sophomore Jeramy DeVane will man the guard positions along the offensive front. Anderson has 22 career starts at right guard, including 10 a year ago. DeVane cracked the starting lineup at left guard for the final three games of his true freshman season. Senior Dominic Ignelzi provides veteran depth to the offensive line. Ignelzi has made 13 career starts at left guard and appeared in 33 games for the Knights. Ignelzi will push DeVane for his old starting spot.

Providing the Knights with depth at the tackle positions will be redshirt freshmen Jah Reid and Mike Buxton. Both players are at least 6-foot-6 and weigh more than 310 pounds. Reid will back up Sitton at right tackle, while Buxton will be Brown's understudy at left tackle.

Junior Mike Lavoie will serve as Smith's back-up at center, while sophomore Ian Bustillo is listed behind Anderson at right guard.

DEFENSIVE LINE
The defensive line will be one of the more experienced units for the 2007 Knights. Anchoring that unit is three-year starter at defensive tackle Keith Shologan. His 33 career starts are the most on the team entering the campaign and he has not missed a game in three years. Sophomore Torrell Johnson is pencilled in to start along side Shologan in the interior of the line. He earned three starts as a true freshman and has dropped 30 pounds in the offseason.

Sophomore Travis Timmons, who had the lone interception among the UCF defensive lineman as a true freshman, and redshirt freshman Wes Tunuffi Sauvao will provide depth on the inside.

Senior Leger Douzable made the move to end towards the conclusion of the season and registered a career-high 3.5 sacks against East Carolina. He led the team with seven sacks. Classmate Emeka Okammor made the first seven starts of his career at defensive end a year ago, but has been a mainstay in the defensive line rotation appearing in 34 career games. A strong spring pushed junior Antonio Wallace to the top of the depth chart opposite Douzable. Wallace has appeared in 12 games and had five tackles for loss in 2006.

Senior Jared Kirksey and redshirt freshman Bruce Miller will also be in the mix for playing time at defensive end. Kirksey had three sacks in 2006.

LINEBACKERS
Three upperclassmen are slated to start at the linebacker spots in new defensive coordinator John Skladany's 4-3 scheme. Juniors Jordan Richards, who is coming off season-ending ankle surgery, and Cory Hogue will man the outside spots, while senior Steven Baker will play in the middle. Hogue has 15 starts under his belt, while Richards is not far behind with 11 starts in two seasons with UCF. Hogue and Richards have combined for more than 150 career tackles.

Baker made the move to linebacker during bowl practice in 2005, but was sidelined for the first four games of the 2006 season with a knee injury. He made two starts in eight games a year ago. Baker will be pushed by sophomore Chance Henderson, who started the final three games at middle linebacker in 2006 and registered a sack in each of the last two games.

Sophomores Kyle Fowler and Alex Thompson also saw action at linebacker a year ago and will be key contributors on special teams as well. Fowler is listed as Hogue's back-up at the strong side backer. Senior Blake Carter also had a nice spring working at linebacker and will serve as a back-up to Richards on the weakside.

CORNERBACKS
Juniors Joe Burnett and Johnell Neal have been fixtures at cornerback for the past two seasons, combining for 45 starts between them. Neal made a temporary switch to safety for the USF and Southern Miss games a year ago, but finished up the season starting the final eight games at his accustomed left cornerback position. He was the first cornerback in UCF history to lead the team in tackles with 66 takedowns. Burnett had just one interception after picking off five passes his freshman season.

Sophomore Emery Allen made two starts at cornerback and served as the team's primary nickel back. True freshman Darin Baldwin got an early jump to his UCF career, enrolling in January. Baldwin was impressive enough in the spring to move up to No. 2 on the depth chart behind Burnett. Baldwin will be joined by fellow true freshman Justin Boddie in pushing the veterans for playing time.

SAFETIES
Sha'reff Rashad and Jason Venson round out a quartet of juniors slated to start for new defensive backs coach Earnest Collins. Rashad led the team with four interceptions and 10 pass break-ups in 2006. He was third on the team with 55 tackles, while Venson was second with 63 tackles. Venson started the final six games of the season at free safety for the Knights.

Junior Breon Rogers will serve as Venson's back-up. Rogers earned one start a year ago vs. Pitt and had five tackles in seven games.

The Knights' depth in the defensive backfield will be bolstered by a strong recruiting class that features safeties Kamar Aiken, Alphonso Bryant, Derrick Hallman and Reggie Weams.

SPECIALISTS
The Knights will have deep snapper Michael Buscemi back for the third- straight year. Buscemi was named to the Coaches' All-Conference USA second team in 2006.

Senior Michael Torres will look to be more consistent in 2007 after making 17-of-24 field goal attempts in his first season with the Knights a year ago. Torres made eight consecutive field goals at one point and kicked game-winners against Marshall and Memphis on the road. Torres will be pushed by newcomer Jake Howard, who spent his first two seasons at UCF with the soccer team.

Torres is listed as the No. 1 punter as well entering fall camp, but he should get a strong push from true freshman Blake Clingan, who was ranked among the top five punters in the country coming out of Coral Springs (Fla.) High School.

Junior Joe Burnett was named the Conference USA Preseason Special Teams Player of the Year in a poll of the league's head coaches. Burnett has two punt returns for touchdowns in his career and had a 50-yarder last year en route to earning first-team All-C-USA honors.

Senior Curtis Francis returns to his primary role as the team's kick returner. He has more than 1,000 yards in returns during his three years at UCF.

2007 SCHEDULE
The 2007 schedule features four new opponents for the Knights, including a pair of new Conference USA West Division foes. The schedule also currently features four nationally-televised contests, two regional contests and a live video stream on ESPN360. UCF opens the campaign with a pair of non-conference opponents the squad has never met on the gridiron, while the two new C-USA west teams on the schedule will be the final two contests for the Knights in the regular season. The Knights' opener is on the road at NC State on Sept. 1.

The team's first home contest at Bright House Networks Stadium is scheduled for a 3:30 p.m. kick on ESPN2 when UCF will face national-power Texas for the first time in school history on Sept. 15. The match-up with the Longhorns is the first of three consecutive home tilts for the Knights, who open conference play against Memphis the next Saturday on Sept. 22. UCF closes out the homestand with a non-conference game with Louisiana. The Ragin' Cajuns are one of two teams the Knights are undefeated against on their 2007 docket. UCF is 3-0 against Louisiana-Lafayette and also owns a 4-0 mark against league foe UAB. The Knights face the Blazers in Birmingham in a CSTV primetime game at 7:30 p.m. on Nov. 10.

The first conference road game for the Knights is at East Carolina on Oct. 6, where the squad will look for its second-straight win in Greenville after a 30-20 triumph in 2005. Next, the Knights will look for their first victory over budding in-state rival USF in Tampa on Oct. 13. The Bulls have taken the first two contests in the series. This is the third-straight year the two teams will have met. The contest with Tulsa on Oct. 20 is a rematch of the inaugural Conference USA Championship game played at the Citrus Bowl in December of 2005. The Knights will look to avenge their 44-27 loss to the the Golden Hurricane at Bright House Networks Stadium.

UCF ventures away from a Saturday contest only once this season when it matches-up with Southern Miss on ESPN's Sunday Night College Showdown. The Knights, who had three non-Saturday games a year ago, and Golden Eagles play at 8 p.m. on Oct. 28. The first homecoming game at Bright House Networks Stadium will be on Nov. 3 when Marshall visits Orlando. Kicktime is set for 3:30 p.m. and the game will be televised regionally by Comcast/Charter Southeast Sports. The Knights travel to Texas for just the third time in school history on Nov. 17 when they are slated to face SMU in Dallas. The Knights and Mustangs will be meeting for the first time in school history. UCF closes out the regular season on Thanksgiving weekend when they clash with UTEP on Saturday, Nov. 24. Kicktime is to be determined.