If there is to be a football coaching change at UCF following a dismal 2024 campaign, the decision will come from above Gus Malzahn.
Following Saturday evening’s 31-21 loss to West Virginia, one which resigned the Knights to their seventh loss in eight games and ended their consecutive bowl game streak at eight years, Malzahn refuted rumors floated earlier in the week that he could consider retirement.
“Yeah, I don’t know where that came from. I’m not retiring,” the 59-year-old coach said.
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With UCF mired in a five-game losing streak, coach Gus Malzahn fired his defensive coordinator Monday and also announced he’ll no longer call offensive plays for the Knights.
Ted Roof, in his first year with the program, was dismissed two days after a 37-24 loss to then-No. 11 BYU dropped UCF to 3-5, 1-4 in the Big 12. Malzahn replaced him with Addison Williams, who was defensive coordinator a year ago when the Knights went 6-7 in their first season in the expanded conference.
First-year offensive coordinator Tim Harris Jr. is taking over the play-calling duties that Malzahn initially relinquished to Darin Hinshaw in 2023 to give himself more time to manage all aspects of the program as the Knights made the transition to the Big 12 from the American Athletic Conference.
“Both of these decisions are my decisions,” Malzahn said. “What’s best for our team. As a leader, as a head coach, that’s what you’ve got to be thinking. That’s what I did. Looking forward to going through this process the last four games with that.”
FootballScoop’s John Brice wrote Monday in his coaching carousel piece that it was “worth monitoring things” at Central Florida, adding that Malzahn was “well-positioned to retire if he chooses to do so.” CBS Sports, in a story coauthored by Brandon Marcello regarding Deion Sanders’ future, suggested UCF would be an intriguing fit for Coach Prime if Malzahn were to retire due to his Florida upbringing and recruiting chops within the state’s most powerful programs.
Malzahn led the Knights to consecutive nine-win seasons in 2021 and ’22, but he has since posted the first two losing records of his 13-year career. Overall, UCF is 28-23 under Malzahn ahead of its home finale Friday night against Utah, including a 5-12 record in conference games since joining the Big 12.
In July 2023, Malzahn agreed to a four-year contract extension that runs through the 2027 season. He is due to make $5 million next year and $5.5 million in 2026 and ’27, according to a term sheet provided to USA TODAY by UCF’s athletics association.
That would put the ball in the court of UCF athletic director Terry Mohajir and Alexander Cartwright, the university’s president since 2020. Both were in attendance for Saturday’s game in West Virginia.
Malzahn hired Roof ahead of this season to help reshape a struggling defense. He’s also hoping that giving up offensive play-calling responsibilities to Harris will spark the offense, too.
“I’m a football coach first, but as a leader and as a head coach, you’ve got to do what’s best for your team,” Malzahn said. “This is what’s best for our team. This is what’s best for me as a head coach.”
Roof arrived at UCF from Oklahoma promising a more aggressive style of play designed to revitalize the pass rush and put more pressure on opposing quarterbacks.
But the Knights have struggled, ranking 115th in the nation with only 11 sacks through eight games. They’re 12th in the 16-team Big 12 — 79th nationally — in total defense, yielding 379.1 yards per game.
“This has been a grind on our guys,” Roof said during his weekly availability on Sunday. “The part of it when they invest so much time and energy and effort to this and don’t get the results they want can be disappointing. But the leadership is strong. At the same time, I think they can understand how close we are to breaking through.”
UCF’s typically fast-paced offense, which has featured three different starting quarterbacks, has also struggled to score points.
The Knights are 20th in the nation in total offense at 454.8 yards per game. They are 51st in scoring offense, though, at 30.4 points per game. In Big 12 play, UCF is averaging 434.4 yards per game, but just 25.6 points per game.
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