Meet The 2026 UCF Knights: Countdown To Kickoff - No. 23 Jordan Nunuha and Jayden Burnett

Welcome to UCF Knights on SI's countdown to kickoff!

In this series, we are going to introduce you to every single player on the 2026 UCF football roster so that you can know what to expect from them or even pinpoint the ones you want to follow throughout the coming season. We are going to go through the Knights' roster in reverse jersey-number order, with the day each player's entry is published corresponding to the number of days remaining until UCF's season-opener on Sep. 3 at 7 p.m. against Bethune-Cookman.

For this entry, we have two players with the same jersey number. So, with 23 days to go, let's meet UCF wide receiver Jordan Nunuha and linebacker Jayden Burnett:

Who is Jordan Nunuha?
What did Nunuha do last season?
What role is Nunuha going to have in 2026?
Who is Jayden Burnett?
What did Burnett do last season?
What role is Burnett going to have in 2026?

1. Who is Jordan Nunuha?

Welcome to UCF, @jordanunuha_ ⚔️ pic.twitter.com/V0dWKHewAD
— UCF Football (@UCF_Football) February 4, 2026

Position: Wide Receiver

Class: Freshman

Height/Weight: 6-foot-3 / 195 pounds

Hometown: Nānākuli, Hawaii

High School: Saint Louis School

Wide receiver Jordan Nunuha is the Knights' latest addition to arrive from quarterback coach McKenzie Milton's home state of Hawaii.

After playing both football and basketball for Saint Louis School, Nunuha committed to the Knights in January over offers from, according to 247Sports, San Diego State, Washington, Hawaii, Nevada and Oregon.

2. What did Nunuha do last season?

In his senior season at Saint Louis School, Nunuha caught 38 passes for 605 yards and 10 touchdowns.

3. What role is Nunuha going to have in 2026?

During the Knights' local media day, Milton said Nunuha would be a good player for the Knights "in due time." Considering UCF's depth at the wide receiver position with experienced players like Duane Thomas Jr., Waden Charles, Josh Derry, DayDay Farmer and Jonathan Bibbs, with tight end Dylan Wade likely also playing a factor in the passing attack, Nunuha has the opportunity this season to learn from them without needing to have the pressure of performance on the field right out of the gate.

4. Who is Jayden Burnett?

Very exited for my commitment to The UCF Knights⚔️ #home #AGTG Special thanks to my coaches for all their hard work. @JaredClark2 @CoachJonHaskins @Coach_Brady @Mooney_FB @UCF_Recruiting @UCF_Football @Callaghan_UCF @247Sports @Rivals pic.twitter.com/IR9XApgmDQ
— Jayden Burnett (@Jayden_Burnett2) May 4, 2026

Position: Linebacker

Class: Freshman

Height/Weight: 6-foot-2 / 210 pounds

Hometown: Sarasota, Florida

High School: Cardinal Mooney High School

Jayden Burnett committed to the Knights in May, selecting them over an offer from Miami made a couple of months earlier, which he wrote in an X post was the first Division I offer he received.

The Sarasota native played both football and basketball at Cardinal Mooney High School, averaging 5.6 points per game in the latter sport, according to MaxPreps.

5. What did Burnett do last season?

Burnett made 113 tackles, 70 of them solo, in 2026. He also tallied 21 tackles for loss, 10 quarterback hurries, four interceptions, 25 passes defended, three fumble recoveries, three punt blocks and three field goal blocks, according to MaxPreps. He even returned one of his fumble recoveries and two of his interceptions for touchdowns.

These all helped the Cougars go 14-1 and earn the FHSAA 2A State Championship.

6. What role is Burnett going to have in 2026?

Considering Burnett joined the Knights after spring practice, he would have to play a lot of catch-up if he was to earn playing time in 2026. However, with players ahead of him like Lewis Carter, Jayden Jennings, Jahleel Culbreath, Tackett Curtis, Rashad Henry and recent returner Cole Kozlowski, that is looking unlikely to be the case.

However, with a majority of those players entering their senior seasons, Burnett does occupy a space where he is part of a quartet of true freshman linebackers alongside Preston Hall, Dylan Bennett and Matthew Occhipinti that could help anchor the position room for seasons to come. So, while he might not see many snaps, if any, this season, he is at least going to have the opportunity to learn from a group of experienced teammates and build rapport with his fellow true freshmen.

Catch up on the rest of the list below:

No. 24 Tackett Curtis and Arthur Lewis IV


No. 25 Rukeem Stroud	No. 26 Duke Watson and Elijah Keys	No. 27 Nicholas Antoine	No. 28 Matt Irwin	No. 29 Tyce Porcher
No. 30 Otis Hardy	No. 31 Noah McGough	No. 32 Matthew Occhipinti	No. 33 Phil Picciotti	No. 34 Jahleel Culbreath
No. 35 Agyeman Addae	No. 36 Dylan Bennett	No. 37 Rocklyn Kelley	No. 38 Jayden Jennings	No. 39 Andrea Parisi
No. 41 Bruno Dall	No. 42 Artavius Jones and Chance Nixon	No. 43 Kyle Hicks	No. 45 Quentin Hatch	No. 47 Arthur Kingdom and Sam Powell
No. 49 Atticus Bertrams and Donnell Johnson III	No. 53 LaParka Langston	No. 54 Cooper Terpstra and Trenton Turner	No. 55 Jacob Maiava and Noah Mercer	No. 56 Patrick Ryan
No. 57 Camp Lott	No. 58 Connor Meadows	No. 61 Owen Spell	No. 66 Brady Wayburn	No. 67 Noah Senka
No. 68 Ethan Higgins	No. 70 RaiShaun McHaney	No. 71 Amahn Williams	No. 72 Dominick Campbell	No. 73 Henry Tabansi
No. 74 Matthew Prigmore	No. 75 Tyler Gibson	No. 76 Justin Royes	No. 77 Kasiyah Charlton	No. 78 Preston Cushman
No. 79 Daniel Marcellinus	No. 80 Elijah Hardy	No. 81 Zack Palmer	No. 82 Jordyn Bridgewater	No. 83 Dylan Burk
No. 84 Thomas Wadsworth	No. 85 Carson Hinshaw	No. 86 Chase Hinshaw	No. 87 Brooks Hall	No. 88 Grayson Brousseau

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