
ORLANDO, Fla. — UCF coach Gus Malzahn is resigning after four seasons with the school. ESPN’s Pete Thamel was the first to report the move, which will see Malzahn to leave to take the offensive coordinator job at Florida State. Malzahn previously worked with FSU coach Mike Norvell during their time at Tulsa under then-coach Todd Graham from 2007-08. The Knights ended a disappointing 4-8 season in which they lost eight of their last nine games, the longest losing streak since 2015. Malzahn, 59, was in the fourth year of a contract through 2028. His buyout, it is reported, would have been $13.75 million. He finished 27-25 at UCF but lost 16 of his last 22 games and was a dismal 4-14 in two seasons in the Big 12. After back-to-back nine-win seasons in 2021-22, the Knights went 6-7 in 2023 and 4-8 in 2024. People are also reading... 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Roster limits in college sports put athletes on chopping block, coaches look for answers From the earth, for the earth: Why plant-based eating is here to stay This season started with high expectations as Malzahn made sweeping changes to the program. He retooled the strength and conditioning department and hired Ted Roof and Tim Harris Jr. as defensive and offensive coordinators, respectively. He also added nearly 50 new players to the roster, leaning heavily on the transfer market. UCF started by winning its first three games against New Hampshire, Sam Houston and a thrilling comeback at TCU, but offensive struggles saw the Knights tumble through a TBD-game losing streak to finish the season. Terry Mohajir hired Malzahn on Feb. 15, 2021, six days after he was hired to replace Danny White. The move came eight weeks after Malzahn had been fired at Auburn after eight seasons of coaching the Tigers. The two briefly worked together at Arkansas State in 2012 before Malzahn left for the Auburn job. “When he [Mohajir] offered the job, I was like, ‘I’m in.’ There wasn’t thinking about or talking about ...,” Malzahn said during his introductory press conference. “This will be one of the best programs in college football in a short time. This is a job that I plan on being here and building it.” UCF opened the 2021 season with non-conference wins over Boise State and Bethune-Cookman before traveling to Louisville on Sept. 17, where quarterback Dillon Gabriel suffered a fractured collarbone in the final minute of a 42-35 loss. Backup Mikey Keene would finish out the season as Gabriel announced his intention to transfer. The Knights would finish the season on the plus side by accepting a bid to join the Big 12 Conference in September and then by defeating Florida 29-17 in the Gasparilla Bowl. Malzahn struck transfer portal gold in the offseason when he signed former Ole Miss quarterback John Rhys Plumlee. Plumlee, a two-sport star with the Rebels, helped guide UCF to the American Athletic Conference Championship in its final season. However, Plumlee’s injury forced the Knights to go with Keene and freshman Thomas Castellanos. The team finished with losses to Tulane in the conference championship and Duke in the Military Bowl. Plumlee would return in 2023 as UCF transitioned to the Big 12 but would go down with a knee injury in the final minute of the Knights’ 18-16 win at Boise State on Sept. 9. He would miss the next four games as backup Timmy McClain took over the team. Even on his return, Plumlee couldn’t help UCF, on a five-game losing streak to open conference play. The Knights got their first Big 12 win at Cincinnati on Nov. 4 and upset No. 15 Oklahoma State the following week, but the team still needed a win over Houston in the regular-season finale to secure a bowl bid for the eighth straight season. From the moment Malzahn stepped on campus, he prioritized recruiting, particularly in Central Florida. “We’re going to recruit like our hair’s on fire,” Malzahn said at the time. “We’re going to go after the best players in America and we’re not backing down to anybody.” From 2007 to 2020, UCF signed 10 four-star high school and junior college prospects. Eight four-star prospects were in the three recruiting classes signed under Malzahn. The 2024 recruiting class earned a composite ranking of 39 from 247Sports, the highest-ranked class in school history. The 2025 recruiting class is ranked No. 41 and has commitments from three four-star prospects. Malzahn has always leaned on the transfer market, signing 60 players over the past three seasons. Some have paid huge dividends, such as Javon Baker, Lee Hunter, Kobe Hudson, Tylan Grable, Bula Schmidt, Amari Kight, Marcellus Marshall, Trent Whittemore, Gage King, Ethan Barr, Deshawn Pace and Plumlee. Others haven’t been as successful, such as quarterback KJ Jefferson, who started the first five games of this season before being benched for poor performance. Jefferson’s struggles forced the Knights to play musical chairs at quarterback, with true freshman EJ Colson, redshirt sophomore Jacurri Brown and redshirt freshman Dylan Rizk all seeing action at one point or another this season. This season’s struggles led to several players utilizing the NCAA’s redshirt rule after four games, including starting slot receiver Xavier Townsend and kicker Colton Boomer, who have also entered the transfer portal. Defensive end Kaven Call posted a letter to Malzahn on Twitter in which he accused the UCF coaching staff of recently kicking him off the team when he requested to be redshirted. 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Hearts' January transfer plans as a speedy forward comes into contentionDan Casey was rather amused to be the subject of a ‘viral’ clip recently, if only with the benefit of hindsight and from a position where his controversial red card against Kilmarnock had been overturned. The Motherwell defender is hoping though that he can attract attention for all the right reasons when his team take on Rangers at Fir Park tomorrow . Casey’s dismissal against Killie after a spot of handbags with Danny Armstrong drew derision and disbelief from football fans all over the world, particularly as referee Chris Graham stuck by his on-field call after viewing the incident on the VAR screen. Thankfully for Casey, justice was finally done after an appeal, with his punishment downgraded to yellow, and he is now hoping to repeat his feat of last season when his headed goal saw Motherwell shock Rangers in a 2-1 win at Ibrox. And, perhaps, go viral once more. “The reaction was a bit funny,” Casey said. “I don't know, it was a Friday night and there weren't many games on. It just seemed to get a lot of attention - probably not for the right reasons. “My phone was melting with all the messages. It was a funny one. It would have been nicer if it was because I got a goal - not being sent off. It's just one of those things. I hope the next time I go viral it’s for something better! “That was frustrating, but thankfully the right result came out at the end. It's not a great look for the league. I don't think anyone there on the day could even believe it happened. “But listen, people make mistakes. In every walk of life, mistakes are made so I think we just need to get on with it. The appeal was won thankfully and we just need to move on. Read more: Motherwell 1 Kilmarnock 1: Huge refereeing decision dominates Fir Park stalemate Celtic 4 Motherwell 0: Engels shines as champions get back to winning ways “It was a funny one. And I think everyone's seen it was a funny one. But nobody's perfect, so there are no grudges held. “Everyone makes mistakes, and we move on from it.” Unfortunately for both Casey and Motherwell, they have more than just that red card incident to shake off, after their 4-0 humbling at Celtic Park on Boxing Day. Their history against Rangers at Fir Park also doesn’t bode well for the Steelmen’s chances tomorrow, having not won on league duty against the Ibrox side since Boxing Day 2002 – though they did beat them comfortably in the relegation playoffs back in 2015. “I wasn’t aware of the history, but we won at Ibrox recently, which is probably a harder place to do it,” Casey said. “We know that we can do it. It's going to be a very tough task. We just need to prepare for that and look forward to a good opportunity to go and put the Celtic result behind us. (Image: Craig Foy - SNS Group) “We had a game plan and we were doing quite well in the first half, carrying it out pretty much to a tee. We knew we weren't going to create much and we had to take any opportunity we had. “We had to make sure we were clinical and you hoped you would get one or two when the game sort of opened up a bit. So, to concede just on half-time is a bit of a killer. “We could have still scored at the start of the second, but we were unlucky when it got cleared off the line. “But after that, we just let our standards drop and it was very disappointing.”MIAMI – Typically when the call “UCLA” is made from the sideline, it’s for a simple pass-and-cut motion off a screen set on the side of the foul line. For the Miami Heat, when coach Erik Spoelstra turns to his bench and shouts “UCLA,” there’s an entirely different connotation. It means it’s time for Kevin Love and Jaime Jaquez Jr. to jump into action, as in the duo of UCLA alums, the Heat’s Bruins off the bench. “I usually just turn to the bench and say ‘UCLA,’ so they both know to get off the bench and go in there,” Spoelstra said, with the Heat taking on the Phoenix Suns on Saturday night at Kaseya Center. “And they sit by each other by their lockers. Yeah, they do have a good connection.” Even with the age difference, Love at 36, Jaquez at 23, the UCLA connection is real, albeit with Love leaving the Bruins in 2008, when Jaquez was just 7. While the Heat rotation has been altered by injury and illness, including absences by both Love and Jaquez, Spoelstra said there is an ongoing comfort playing the two together. “That goes from last year, too,” Spoelstra said of Jaquez’s rookie season. “They had good chemistry. When we’re pretty consistent with our rotation – it tends to change – when we’re stable, usually those two guys are going in roughly the same time.” Those comments came after Spoelstra again advocated for Love ‘s ongoing value. “You need veteran experience that is real in this league,” Spoelstra said. “This league, as has been well documented, has gotten younger. And you need guys that have done it, know how to communicate to different guys in the locker room and still can do it out on the court. Related Articles “Kevin’s skill set is super high. He can do so many things that can help you offensively. He helps our best players and he’s really smart. So that ties a lot of things together for us. And then his rebounding for us is something that’s really welcomed.” Having scored his first NBA points on a dunk Monday night in Boston, undrafted Heat rookie forward Keshad Johnson said a followup text made the moment even more memorable. “Nassir Little, he texted me and said there’s less than 5,000 people in the world that said they scored an NBA basket. So that changed my whole perspective,” Johnson said of his teammate with the Heat’s G League affiliate, the Sioux Falls Skyforce. “For me to tell my children or whoever I tell in the future that I got it on a dunk, that’s going to be a bigger story to tell.” Having thrived in his G League action on his two-way contract, Johnson said he would expect the same benefit for Heat first-round pick Kel’el Ware, who currently is with the Skyforce. “With the game reps, it’s going to automatically prepare him for when he comes back here.” Johnson said. “That’s going to help him a lot. Ultimately, the game will slow down for him, and he’s also going to get his wind. This is all going to be for a benefit.” Ware is scheduled to be back in action Sunday with the Skyforce against the G League affiliate of the Denver Nuggets. Heat center Bam Adebayo will hold his annual toy drive Monday at Kaseya Center for 1,000 pre-selected children ages 4-13 from various foundations across the Miami area. “This event is one of the highlights of my year,” Adebayo said. “The holidays are a time for giving, and there’s nothing more rewarding than seeing these kids so happy as they choose toys and enjoy the festivities. I’m honored to be able to bring some joy to their lives during this special time.”