No. 12 UCF used an 18-point first-quarter lead to secure its 18th straight victory on Saturday night, beating SMU 48-20 in front of an announced crowd of 40,856 at Spectrum Stadium.
The Mustangs (2-4, 1-1 AAC) started the scoring as Kevin Robledo connected on a 31-yard field goal with 10:30 left in the first quarter. From there, the Knights (5-0, 2-0 AAC) took over.
On the offense’s first possession, Adrian Killins capped off a nine-play, 65-yard drive with a 15-yard touchdown to give UCF its first lead, one that it never lost. On the ensuing kickoff, Rashard Causey forced a fumble that kicker Matthew Wright recovered inside the red zone. Three plays later, McKenzie Milton found Dredrick Snelson for a 14-yard score.
After Otis Anderson found the end zone from four yards out a few minutes later, the Knights had a 21-3 lead.
Milton’s fourth interception of the year set up a Mustang touchdown to bring the game to 21-10, but Wright later hit on field goals from 45 and 34 yards out to give the Knights a 27-10 halftime lead.
The second half was more of the same for UCF, as it scored on its opening drive of the third quarter. Defensive lineman Trysten Hill finished off an 11-play, 88-yard drive with a one-yard touchdown run on fourth and goal.
The Knights were solid on defense throughout, twice forcing the Mustangs to settle for a field goal inside the 20. Overall, the unit held SMU to 320 yards of offense. The second touchdown of the game for SMU came with just 36 seconds left in the fourth quarter.
Milton, who came into the game having totaled six touchdowns in back-to-back weeks, finished his night 18-of-34 for 278 yards and two touchdowns to one interception. He left the game for one drive in the second quarter after taking a hard hit, but returned shortly after.
Killins was UCF’s go-to guy on offense, totaling 113 yards and a touchdown on the ground. It was the fourth 100-yard rushing game of his career. Tre Nixon and Snelson led the way in the passing game. Nixon caught six passes for 97 yards and a touchdown while Snelson went for 72 yards and a score on six catches. Overall, the offense put up 541 total yards.
UCF will go for its 19th consecutive victory next Saturday, hitting the road to take on Memphis. Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m.
