Tayven Jackson IS the guy! UCF fans react to Knights comeback win over Jacksonville State

​Tayven Jackson came off the bench to rally UCF in Scott Frost's return. 

Jackson, a former four-star prospect in the 2022 recruiting class, played at Tennessee and Indiana before transferring to UCF in January. Although Jackson did not win the starting quarterback job out of camp, he came in to replace an ineffective Cam Fancher and threw for 282 yards, including a game-winning 33-yard touchdown pass to DJ Black to beat Jacksonville State 17-10.

It was a happy ending to an otherwise lackluster return for Frost, who last coached at UCF in the 2018 Peach Bowl. The Knights struggled on offense in the first half and were held scoreless, which prompted one fan to count the total days since the Knights last scored under Frost and another saying "this was not the first half we had in mind".

The Knights struck first in the third quarter taking a 3-0 lead on a 24-yard field goal, but Jacksonville State would soon tie the game and then take a 10-3 lead early in the fourth quarter. 

By that point, the sharks were out and many UCF fans were having buyer's remorse, with one X user wondering why Frost wasn't showing any intensity on the sidelines.

But Jackson would come to the rescue and his emergence quickly lifted the spirits of the fan base. Most fans were ready to name Jackson the full-time starter going forward while some wondered how Fancher won the job in the first place.

With the win, Frost extends his winning streak at UCF to 14 games and that number should easily move to 15 next Saturday when the Knights host North Carolina A&T. After that, things get a lot tougher with Bill Belichick and the Tar Heels in town on September 20 and then the Big XII conference schedule starting with Kansas State on September 27.

Who knows what the future holds for UCF, but the Knights won their 2025 season opener and they might've found their quarterback. That is enough to make the fans happy for one night.