UCF's 2022 football schedule will feature nine of 12 games within the State of Florida.
As part of the season ticket renewal package sent to fans on Tuesday, UCF confirmed next year's home slate of seven games. The takeaways:
-As expected, UCF will host Louisville (Sept. 10) and Georgia Tech (Sept. 24) of the ACC. Both games are the back end of home-and-home series: The Knights shellacked GT 49-21 in 2020, while Louisville got the best of UCF, 42-35, earlier this season.
-A previously scheduled road game at FIU has been dropped in favor of a home game against South Carolina State of the FCS, likely for the opening weekend. The FIU series was initially slated to be a home-and-home affair in 2020 and 2021, however the 2020 game at the Bounce House was canceled due to COVID issues within the FIU football team. Rumors have swirled since the spring UCF would drop the Miami trip to FIU in 2022, which is now confirmed.
-To wrap up the non-conference slate, UCF will visit FAU on Sept. 17. That series was announced earlier this year with FAU coming to Orlando in 2025.
-The American Athletic Conference opponents will remain the same for what could be UCF's final year in the league before joining the Big 12. The home slate will include Cincinnati, SMU, Navy and Temple, while UCF confirmed the road opponents will consist of ECU, Memphis, Tulane and South Florida.
-Finalized dates will be announced in early 2022.
UCF is touting the home slate as the "best in school history" and it's hard to disagree. The games vs. ACC opponents will be hot tickets, while Cincinnati could be coming off a College Football Playoff appearance. SMU is currently ranked in the top 25, while Navy is always a draw.
Seven games will originate from the Bounce House, but UCF could see majority crowds at FAU and South Florida if past trends are any indication.
The schedule is great for travel. There are only three true "road games" outside of the state: ECU, Memphis and Tulane. Personally, I'm glad UCF fans will get to experience road games at those schools one last time. Outside of South Florida, ECU and Memphis have represented two of UCF's bigger rivals in the American (and previously Conference USA). And UCF fans always love trips to New Orleans.
