Malik Barrow hopes last Thursday's season opener marks the start of a new beginning.

It's been a long road for the former Tampa Catholic and IMG Academy defensive lineman, who has dealt with serious injury setbacks since committing to Ohio State in the Class of 2016. Barrow tore his ACL as a senior at IMG, which he was still rehabbing when he reported to Columbus the following January. He made his playing debut for the Buckeyes as a redshirt freshman in 2017, only to tear the ACL in his other knee the second game of the season.

Barrow, who didn't play at all in 2018, announced his retirement from football last October so he could remain on medical scholarship at Ohio State. He never truly believed his football career was over, but he was on track to graduate from OSU in the summer of 2019 and hopeful by that point his recovery would allow him to attempt a comeback.

Upon earning his degree at OSU, Barrow reported to UCF at the beginning of camp as a graduate transfer with two seasons of eligibility remaining.

For Barrow, UCF made a lot of sense.

"I just felt like you don't have to leave the state to go win big games and be part of a top program," Barrow said. "You don't have to go a big SEC school. This school is a perfect fit. It's an hour away from my house. I have family over here in this neighborhood. I love it here. I have a lot of friends here already. The coaching staff, Coach Heup, talked to me every day during the whole recruiting process. It was a lot different... I knew it was a good fit for me."

While he's only been in the UCF program for a month, Barrow said the preparation to play started long before then.

"I've been doing this for the whole year, just getting ready," Barrow said. "Being in the weight room. Making sure my conditioning was up was much as I can, recovering from the ACL surgery I had. That's been the biggest thing for me, making sure my body was going to be ready for this level of football again. I was training with my old coaches at IMG, my high school, just working out. I'm so thankful they got me back right. It's a blessing."

Barrow said he was feeling a wide range of emotions prior to last week's opener against Florida A&M.

"It's been a couple years since I played at Ohio State," he said. "I'm extremely thankful to be out there. I wanted to seize that moment and make sure I was focused and locked in. No matter how many plays I got or when the coaches put me, I was ready. I let them know that. I was extremely thankful."

Barrow saw his number called during a series in the third quarter. He dominated all three plays he was in, resulting in a pair of quarterback hurries and a tackle for loss. His PFF grade for the game was 96.3, which was the highest among the defense.

"Dealing with the injuries at Ohio State and just everything I've been through, all the frustration, all the emotions built up in me," Barrow said. "I let it all out the three plays I had... It boosts my confidence up to another level knowing that I'm ready to go for the next game. Put me in and I'll do my best and help this team win."

It was also a special moment for his family, who were watching from the stands.

"My mom, seeing her at the game, that was crazy," Barrow said. "At Ohio State, they weren't able to travel to a lot of games. It felt like back when I was a young kid in high school at Tampa Catholic or IMG, having my family in the stands watching me. I feel like I'm at home. I'm having fun doing what I love. I feel great."

Barrow said he's loving it at UCF so far.

"This whole process has been great. Guys like Nate (Evans), the d-linemen, B-Hayes, just everybody, my roommates. We built this connection so quick. They brought me in like it was nothing. No coach told them to do that. No players told them to do that. We just build that connection. I'm liking it a lot."

UCF's next opponent, FAU, played Barrow's former school last Saturday. The Buckeyes jumped ahead early, ultimately winning 45-21.

"I talked to a lot of my friends at Ohio State, my old teammates," Barrow said. "We talked immediately after the game. They were telling me, 'Y'all got them next, right? They were telling me about FAU and what they saw, their tendencies. Regardless, we're still going to game plan. I think we're ready to go."

In seeing his return to the field, Barrow said he received a lot of positive messages from his old teammates, including from Chase Young, Jashon Cornell and Antwuan Jackson.

"I miss them, but it was fun watching them ball out," Barrow said.