A Look at UCF Defensive Football Recruiting, Including Battling the Florida Gators

For defensive recruiting, can the Knights land the best of the best? Here's a look at the trends with UCF defensive recruiting for 2021 to date, which specific positions are needed to finish the recruiting class, and a program the Knights need to beat on the recruiting trail.

Brian Smith | Aug 19, 2021

A Look at UCF Defensive Football Recruiting, Including Battling the Florida Gators /

In 2021, UCF will field one of its most athletic and talented defenses since the 2017 season. To continue to place that type of talent on the gridiron, the Knights will need to close out the 2022 recruiting class with really good recruits that rival programs like Florida would like to sign.

Going directly against programs like Florida will not be easy, but that’s how UCF must build its football program. The Knights must continuously recruit Florida prep talent hard and sign the same players teams like the Gators want.

After reviewing several different national programs and where they currently stand with recruiting, there’s good reason to believe that UCF is on a consistent ascension towards better and better defensive recruiting (beyond 2022 especially). Here are a few notes about UCF recruiting to date, as well as where a particular rival might be falling off just a little bit and it could help the Knights.

A New Trend Already Began

When the Knights landed the commitment of Keahnist Thompson, it was a coup in relation to recruiting history. Very rarely does UCF land a defensive lineman that Alabama, Texas and Miami truly want. The 6’4”, 260-pound talent had other prominent offers like Florida and Auburn as well.

Keahnist Thompson, Defensive End, Lakeland (Fla.) High School — Keahnist Thompson, Defensive Line, Lakeland (Fla.) High School - committed to UCF / Brian Smith, Inside The Knights

There’s a newfound confidence with the current UCF coaching staff and that’s a reason that the Lakeland (Fla.) High School talent selected UCF. It’s also why other defensive players with SEC and ACC offers like Apopka (Fla.) High School cornerback Nikai Martinez picked UCF as well.

At some point, UCF simply needed to win battles head-to-head with tradition-rich programs. The Knights 2022 class already accomplished that goal, and there is reason to believe it’s going to continue.

The Defensive Staff and Committed Recruits Will Lead the Way

Under the direction of a defensive coaching staff that’s fun to be around and likeable unlike many defensive staffs (sad, but true), this group of coaches likes to recruit. That’s priority No. 1 with recruiting.

A program must have coaches that actually want to grind on the recruiting trail. It’s an extreme amount of hours beyond coaching, and there’s no way around going that route. UCF’s defensive staff did a good job of recruiting thus far and it’s going to be paying off even more with 2023 and 2024 recruiting, too.

For the class of 2022, when recruits see how the Knights play downhill and attack opposing teams, it will be a natural promotion for recruits to come to Orlando and play their college football. The Knights have to make up for lost time building relationships with 2022 recruits because of when the staff came to Orlando, but again, the staff did a really good job to date.

Talented players want to play with other talented players. As the Knights build their defensive depth chart, there’s also ample reason to believe more top-notch recruits will come onboard, especially with recruits like Thompson and Martinez as prime examples of what UCF can do. You can bet that a personality like Martinez will help recruit other prospects to UCF as well. Now the Knights need to land a few key recruits at vital positions down the stretch of the 2022 recruiting class.

Need a Second Impact Cornerback

This is not an area to do a deep dive. The Knights simply need another cornerback that complements Martinez. Speed player preferably, and one that could match skills with a slot receiver, i.e. a player that’s really quick and can run past a secondary.

Nikai Martinez, Cornerback, Apopka (Fla.) High School - Committed to UCF / Brian Smith, Inside The Knights

If UCF lands that player in conjunction with Martinez, a cornerback that can be moved around the secondary and play where needed, the Knights will have a big-time cornerback class. Finding that cornerback is a priority for UCF’s defensive staff. A cornerback to watch would be Jarrell Stinson from Opelika, Ala., a true burner with several SEC and ACC offers.

Finding the Elite Defensive Tackle

After the conclusion of the 2021 season, Kalia Davis will leave UCF. He’s a probable NFL Combine invite and a good bet to be drafted into the NFL if he produces the type of season many around the UCF program expect. Losing him is part of the natural progression of college football, but it does not make it any easier for future UCF defenses.

UCF does not have a pure big-bodied three technique (defensive tackle) committed at the moment. Even above cornerback, finding this player will be a priority. To be more specific, a player that walks in the door at 280-pounds or greater and physically and mentally ready to compete for playing time in year one. That’s a difference-maker at defensive tackle. It also needs to be a player that can consistently rush the passer and not just be a run stopper.

There are several high school defensive tackles UCF continues to recruit, but no one recruit that should be considered a heavy UCF lean from the defensive tackle front. Well, at least not one that Inside The Knights knows about (recruiting holds many surprises). Will the Knights go the junior college route? Possibly a college transfer? This is an area to watch, but there’s also a very long way to go until national signing day.

For UCF to consistently join the fray at the top of the college football world, defensive tackle recruiting needs an uptick for the class of 2022. That's the starting point. This also needs to be a yearly occurrence. Depth along the defensive line and especially signing pure defensive tackles provides a prime reason for how many SEC programs continuously win big. It’s a tried and true proven recipe for success. Speaking of the SEC, the Knights could take advantage of a program not recruiting quite as well defensively as usual.

Beating the Gators for Recruits

To be clear, do note that Florida’s recruiting at specific positions like quarterback and wide receiver has been good, quarterback in particular. At other positions, and specifically with other top-notch recruits on defense, there have been some issues and it’s confusing as to why because UF did in fact gain the commitments of a few top-notch defensive players.

On one hand the Gators landed big-time linebacker Shemar James, a player from the Mobile, Ala. area before recently moving into the greater Pensacola, Fla. area. He was a huge get for the Gators as he picked Florida over Alabama. Great talent, great young man.

The Gators also gained the commitment from Julian Humphrey, a talented all-around athlete projected to play cornerback for the Gators. He’s from the Houston area, however, and Florida did not come close to landing what was likely their top cornerback target from the state of Florida. In following Florida recruiting for the better part of 30 years, this is extremely odd. It’s still the truth. In short, there might be some chinks in the Gators’ recruiting armor.

The player in question would be elite cornerback Jaheim Singletary. He is a prospect that grew up watching the Gators and he’s from Jacksonville (Fla.) Lee, an area and school that UF should do quite well.

It’s just a simple point, but losing Singletary is a major blow to the Gators and their program. Again, Singletary grew up watching the Gators. There are reasons some recruits around Florida like Singletary do not want to be a part of the Florida program, with some of the UF defensive coaches being in the middle of that concern, in case anyone was wondering.

These concerns are costing the Gators and it will inevitably help the Knights. Only a matter of time before it happens. Singletary is but one example from multiple behind the scenes stories. It’s something to think about down the line.

When a rival struggles for whatever the reason, UCF needs to take advantage. That’s a prime way UCF can bolster its defensive roster for the class of 2022 and the subsequent recruiting classes. UCF still must prove it can consistently defeat Florida for recruits, and there's no better time than right now to start the process. That’s a scenario that takes shape over several years so it will be a while for any comparison to be evaluated.

Like 2021, Transfers Will Help to Improve the Roster

While the Knights may not finish out the 2022 recruiting class with just high school recruits, landing another bumper crop of transfers could be a distinct option. It’s way too early to figure out which transfers will actually come to Orlando, but just safely assume the number will be whatever the UCF coaching staff need it to be.

For now, Inside The Knights will stick with an earlier thought that 15 to 18 high school prospects will join the UCF program for the class of 2022. After that, which players turn pro early, injuries, etc. will determine how many transfers the Knights will be able to add to their 85-man scholarship roster.

Final Thoughts

UCF needs to hit on a few prime defensive recruiting targets, as well as prove they can beat Florida and other traditional powers for recruits more than once or twice per recruiting cycle. The trend shows an upward climb, and there’s plenty of time to add more high school prospects as well as transfers to help improve the Knights’ defensive roster through recruiting.

For UCF insights, college football news, and recruiting information go to my YouTube Channel, Podcast, and Instagram. Like and Subscribe!