The Acrisure Bounce House fell silent as Houston safety Kentrell Webb caught the game-sealing interception to sabotage UCF's Space Game dominance in Friday's 30-27 nail-biting victory.
It was a back-and-forth battle, filled with responsive drives by each team and a record-setting night by safety Phillip Dunnam, who is the first Knight to have three interceptions in a game.
As UCF (4-5, 1-5 Big 12) kicked off to Houston (8-2, 5-2 Big 12), the 9th annual Space Game launched into orbit. Fans donned light blue gear to match the SpaceU colors and slamed their bam bam cheer sticks to generate loud, drowning noise.
The Knights started the game with excellent defense, shutting down the Cougars' offense led by quarterback Connor Weigman and his favorite target, wide receiver Amare Thomas. Weighman completed 21 of 31 passes for 223 yards, two touchdowns and three interceptions
Weigman's connection with Thomas was the limelight of their offense in the first half. The duo linked for a 13-yard completion, the only positive play of their first drive before UCF got several stops to force a fourth down.
As Weigman stepped back in the pocket, looking for his receivers, defensive tackle Derrick LeBlanc raised his hand in the air to tip the pass and force a turnover on downs.
Unfortunately, UCF couldn't capitalize on its opponent's turnover. The defense returned to the field after 37 seconds of rest, but forced the Cougars to punt the ball after five plays.
Wide receiver Duane Thomas Jr. returned the punt for 30 yards and received a positive roar from a charged-up crowd and got the team into Houston territory.
Quarterback Tayven Jackson zipped a dot to a wide-open tight end Dylan Wade for 24 yards to enter the red zone. Now in a prime scoring position, the haunting self-inflicted mistakes returned at the worst possible moment.
Wade picked up a 10-yard holding penalty, pushing UCF back to the Cougars' 22-yard line.
"Penalties are frustrating," offensive lineman Preston Cushman said. "Pushes you behind the sticks and it's hard to come back from that. Those are little things we need to fix, can't have penalties."
The team couldn't earn the lost yards in the following plays and settled for a 37-yard field goal by kicker Noe Ruelas to put the Knights up 3-0.
After drawing first blood, Dunnam intercepted Weigman to toward the end of the first quarter. His pick was a precursor to a turnover-heavy second quarter.
Wide receiver Mekhi Mews muffed a punt and linebacker Jayden McDonald recovered the fumble. The recovery led to running back Myles Montgomery punching in a 1-yard touchdown to push the lead to 10.
A turnover on downs, an interception and a muffed punt, Houston needed to score to keep the game within reach. The Weigman-Thomas partnership connected for a 64-yard touchdown to cut into the deficit.
Down seven, the Cougars would score another touchdown — this time, on defense — to take their first lead of the game. Linebacker Latreveon McCutchin recorded his first career interception, picking off Jackson and taking it back to the house for a pick six.
UCF quickly responded with another touchdown to regain the lead. Jackson connected with Wade for a 23-yard gain, marching into the red zone for running back Jaden Nixon to take the field in one of the Knights' memorable formations: the wildcat. Nixon sprinted to the left and tiptoed on the sidelines to score a 15-yard touchdown.
"I'm glad I caught the snap, I didn't fumble it," Nixon said. "We did a great job blocking it up on the left side and everything like that."
Up 17-14, the Knights would repeat the Cougars' previous touchdown-pick six sequence. Dunnam intercepted Weigman again, returning it 43 yards for another touchdown.
Kicker Ethan Sanchez made a 40-yard field goal to end the half for Houston, as UCF led 24-17.
The Cougars would tie the game in the third quarter behind the legs of running back Dean Connors. Connors would rip a 25-yard rush, converting a third down and entering the UCF 10-yard line. He then caught a pass from Weigman to run it in for a 9-yard touchdown.
In the following Houston drive, Dunnam would burden Weigman with his third interception. The Knights capitalized on the turnover with a field goal to end the third quarter.
The fourth quarter was a nail-biter. Sanchez nailed two field goals to give his team the lead, 30-27. Coach Scott Frost went with a shocking change at quarterback with under two minutes and 30 seconds in the game.
Davi Belfort, the redshirt freshman, took the field.
"We needed someone who could get away from the pass rush," Frost said. "Maybe create something, and for the most part, it worked."
The Brazilian Knight showed no fear, as he stepped up and made crucial plays to keep his team alive. Belfort had a 19-yard and 17-yard run, avoiding Cougar defenders and put UCF in scoring position. However, he made one vital, game-sealing mistake.
Belfort saw an open Thomas Jr. in the end zone for the game-winning touchdown, but he underthrew him. Webb intercepted Belfort's underthrown pass, and snapped the Knights' undefeated winning streak in Space Games.
Houston handed UCF its second home loss, and now they must face their most difficult challenge: road games. They have lost all three of their road games.
Frost and his team travel to Texas once more to face the No. 9-ranked Texas Tech Red Raiders at the AT&T Stadium next Saturday at 3:30 p.m. on FOX.