ORLANDO, Fla. -- UCF officially joins the Big 12 Conference on July 1, 2023 in all sports.
Looking back, the UCF football program has experienced incredible growth since its first game and first win vs Saint Leo University way back in 1979. The Knights are one of only two programs that have played in all four divisions of football (DIII, DII, DI-AA and D1).
UCF became a Division 1 football program in 1996 as an independent and joined the MAC in 2002. Since that point, the Knights have played in Conference USA and the American Athletic Conference and they are now gearing up to join the Power 5 and the Big 12.
During their MAC days starting in 2002, UCF’s head coach was Mike Kruczek and their star quarterback was Ryan Schneider. He is now the head coach at Cocoa High School. WFTV Channel 9 sat down with both pioneers to get their thoughts on joining the Big 12.
🚨🏈We have video of @UCF_Football's FIRST WIN in 1979 vs Saint Leo as a Division III program.
— Alex Walker (@AlexWalkerTV) June 27, 2023
44 years later, @UCFKnights is getting set to join the @Big12Conference. What a journey.
We sat down with @Cocoa_Schneider + Mike Kruczek from the MAC days to get their perspective. pic.twitter.com/6Ea04kETXZ
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