College Football
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Central Florida 48, Florida Atlantic 14
When: 7:00 PM ET, Saturday, September 7, 2019
Where: FAU Football Stadium, Boca Raton, Florida
Temperature: °
Head Official: Michael Roche
Attendance: 30811

In his first collegiate start, UCF true freshman quarterback Dillon Gabriel threw for two touchdowns and ran for another to lead the No. 18 Knights to a 48-14 win over Florida Atlantic in a lightning-shortened game on a hot and humid night in Boca Raton, Fla.

With 4:20 left in the game, officials from both schools agreed to end the game early after lightning forced the teams to leave the field.

Gabriel, who shared reps in the Knights' season-opening 62-0 win over Florida A&M with Notre Dame transfer Brandon Wimbush, played most of the first three quarters, completing 7 of 19 pass attempts for 245 yards.

Quadry Jones replaced Gabriel; Wimbush did not play.

The Knights' trio of Greg McCrae, Otis Anderson and Adrian Killins Jr. set the tone on the ground in the first half. Each ran for a score as the Knights compiled 208 yards on the ground and a 28-6 halftime lead.

In total, UCF rushed 47 times for 312 yards, with five players each scoring a touchdown.

The Knights (2-0) took the opening drive and marched down the field in just 1:37 to open the scoring, with McCrae darting in from 6 yards out.

On UCF's next possession, Gabriel showed a deft touch and connected with Jacob Harris for a 57-yard score and 14-0 lead.

The Owls (0-2) settled down on defense, and the offense behind quarterback Chris Robison was able to move the ball. FAU crossed midfield six times but was unable to cash in for a touchdown, totaling only two field goals in the first half.

With their passing game ineffective, the Knights went back to the ground and were rewarded when Killins dragged defenders across the goal line from 11 yards out and a 21-0 lead.

The Owls finally got on the board on their seventh possession. With 2:51 left in the first half, Vladimir Rivas connected on a 48-yard field goal, the first points given up by UCF in 2019.

After Anderson burst through the defense from 39 yards out to give UCF a 28-3 lead, Rivas added another field goal, this time from 31 yards out, and FAU trailed 28-6 at halftime.

Gabriel found a wide-open Killins midway through the third for a 74-yard touchdown for a 35-6 advantage.

The Owls found the end zone on a 3-yard run by Larry McCammon III early in the fourth.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
Rushing
Central Florida   Florida Atlantic
Greg McCrae Player Malcolm Davidson
14 Attempts 8
93 Yards 64
6.6 Avg Yards 8.0
1 Touchdowns 0
0 Long 0
Receiving
Central Florida   Florida Atlantic
Gabriel Davis Player Harrison Bryant
3 Receptions 4
98 Yards 51
32.7 Avg Yards 12.8
0 Touchdowns 0
0 Long 0
Team Stats Summary
 
  Yards Scoring Defense
Team Tot Rus Pas TD FG INT Sck FF
Central Florida 574 312 262 7 0 1 5.0 0
Florida Atlantic 314 137 177 1 2 0 1.0 0