Scott Frost Bets on Alonza Barnett III to Push UCF Back Toward the Postseason
UCF finished 5-7 (2-7 Big 12) in 2025, the opening chapter of Scott Frost's second stint in Orlando falling well short of the standard he set the first time around, when he took the Knights from 0-12 to 6-7 and then to an unbeaten 13-0 season capped by a Peach Bowl upset of Auburn. The defining move of the offseason came in January, when Frost landed James Madison transfer Alonza Barnett III to settle a quarterback room that cycled through multiple starters and never found rhythm a year ago.
Offense
Barnett was the 2025 Sun Belt Player of the Year, throwing for 2,806 yards on 58 percent passing with 23 touchdowns against eight interceptions, adding 589 yards at 4.8 a carry on the ground while accounting for 38 total scores and pushing JMU into the College Football Playoff. Across two seasons as a starter he has passed for 5,414 yards and 49 touchdowns and run for 1,031 more with 22 scores, and he returned faster than expected from a late-2024 knee injury to put that campaign together. Coaches eased his spring workload after a long year, which let FIU transfer Keyone Jenkins, a 33-game starter, and Boise State transfer Kaleb Annett compete for the backup job, with heralded true freshman Rocco Marriott adding depth. Barnett gives UCF a proven dual-threat winner at the game's most important position after the offense managed just 24.3 points per game and reached the end zone on only 55 percent of its red-zone trips.
The passing game returns its top producers. Duane Thomas Jr. paced the Knights with 53 catches for 528 yards, tight end Dylan Wade chipped in 43 receptions for 523 yards and five touchdowns, and Waden Charles contributed 26 grabs for 290 yards as a true freshman. The headline addition is Josh Derry, a 5-9 senior and FCS All-American at Monmouth who caught 72 passes for 1,123 yards; Frost has raved about his playmaking, and he has the profile to become the go-to target on the outside. That is a deep, experienced perimeter, and one of the clearer strengths on the roster.
The backfield is a near-total reset after the graduations of Myles Montgomery (705 yards) and Jade Nixon (554). Louisville transfer Duke Watson brings the juice, having averaged 8.9 yards per carry as a freshman in 2024 before an injury-shortened follow-up. FCS Central Arkansas transfer Landen Chambers arrives off a 1,273-yard season, and former top recruit Taevion Swint, who redshirted through injury in 2025, should factor in as well. The room has the speed to be explosive if it stays healthy.
Up front is the roster's biggest worry, with only one full-time starter back. Right tackle Preston Cushman returns after starting all 12 games, but the rest leans on the portal. Buffalo transfer Henry Tabansi, a 25-game starter, slots in at tackle, with UConn's Brady Wayburn, Michigan State's Cooper Terpstra and Connor Meadows filling out the interior. The newcomers will have to live up to real expectations in a hurry for the offense to click.
Defense
The interior carries some experience. RJ Jackson Jr., a Tulsa transfer, started 11 games and posted 33 tackles with 1.5 sacks, while 355-pound Horace Lockett, whose season ended with an injury after four games, draws rave reviews from the staff and is the one to watch inside. Edge is the defense's biggest question: the Knights recorded 27 sacks a year ago, but 10 of them left with Nyjalik Kelly and Malachi Lawrence. Returners Isaiah Nixon (24 tackles, 3.5 for loss) and Sincere Edwards must grow into larger roles, and Akron transfer Bruno Dall, who logged 8.5 tackles for loss and seven pass breakups off the edge, is counted on immediately.
Lewis Carter anchors the front seven after a team-high 92 tackles with a pair of sacks, earning fourth-team all-conference recognition. He is joined by Wisconsin transfer Tackett Curtis, who logged 40 tackles as a freshman at USC in 2023 and started seven games for the Badgers last fall. It is a smart, physical group with starting pedigree.
The secondary is the clear strength and returns nearly intact, having ranked among the nation's best pass defenses in 2025. Jayden Bellamy is the standout, a senior corner who started all 12 games and broke up eight passes with an interception on his way to fourth-team all-Big 12 honors; he projects as the unit's top pro prospect. Antione Jackson started every game and added 39 tackles with five breakups, nickel Braeden Marshall picked off two passes, and Demari Henderson led the group with 61 tackles. Harvard transfer Ty Bartrum, an FCS All-American who piled up 83 tackles with two forced fumbles and a pick, deepens what shapes up as one of the Big 12's better back ends.
The specialist spots are a full reset. Texas transfer Will Stone brings a big leg and handled kickoffs for the Longhorns but has never attempted a field goal in a college game, an open question at placekicker. Wisconsin transfer Atticus Bertrams steadies the punting after averaging better than 41 yards a boot, and the coverage and return units are being rebuilt around them.
Overview and Prediction
UCF is open about its aim of contending in the Big 12, and the schedule offers a path: a soft nonconference slate against Bethune-Cookman and Georgia State around a trip to Pitt, then a league draw that includes home dates with TCU, BYU, Baylor, Arizona State and Iowa State and road tests at Houston, Oklahoma State, Kansas and Colorado. The consensus pegs the Knights in the lower third of the conference, projected around 13th to 15th, with a bowl bid the realistic ceiling if the pieces fit. Barnett makes that plausible; a rebuilt offensive line and an unproven pass rush are the reasons for doubt.
This is a pivotal year for Frost, whose 24-14 mark in three seasons back in Orlando still trails the bar he set a decade ago. Protect Barnett and get the front seven generating pressure, and UCF returns to the postseason. If not, the questions about Frost's long-term future in Orlando will only grow louder.