�鶹ӳ����ý will immediately begin a national search for a new vice president and director of athletics.

“I will personally miss working closely with Danny,”��says President Alex N. Cartwright. “Danny will leave �鶹ӳ����ý with incredible momentum and a strong foundation for success, including a culture of innovation and winning with integrity and strengthening �鶹ӳ����ý’s national reputation well beyond the sports world. I am committed to working with all of you to build on our momentum to achieve sustained excellence in competition, in the classroom and beyond.

“I am certain that we will attract premier candidates who are eager to work alongside our talented coaches and athletics staff and who share our commitment to our student-athletes’ success in the classroom and preparing them well for careers after they graduate.” — President Alexander N. Cartwright

“I am certain that we will attract premier candidates who are eager to work alongside our talented coaches and athletics staff and who share our commitment to our student-athletes’ success in the classroom and preparing them well for careers after they graduate. And I know they will also be excited about joining our fans in Knight Nation, just as I was when I became president.”

Among �鶹ӳ����ý’s accomplishments during the past five years:

• �鶹ӳ����ý’s student-athletes have earned an overall GPA of at least 3.2 for eight consecutive semesters and at least 3.0 for 26 consecutive semesters. A record 302 student-athletes from �鶹ӳ����ý were selected to the 2019-20 American Athletic Conference All-Academic Team.

• Every �鶹ӳ����ý team competing in head-to-head sports posted a winning record the past three seasons. We are the only program in the country to accomplish that feat. �鶹ӳ����ý’s football team won a national championship and played in two New Year’s Six bowls. The men’s and women’s basketball teams earned NCAA tournament bids in 2019, and every team has been ranked in the top 25 at some point during the past five years.

• �鶹ӳ����ý Athletics raised more than $35.5 million in gift commitments and $17.4 million in cash gifts during the 2019-20 year. Both numbers were records and, more importantly, a testament to the generosity of �鶹ӳ����ý donors.

White said that when he was hired at �鶹ӳ����ý in November 2015, “our goal was to become one of the nation’s premier destinations’ for coaches and student-athletes. I also had a goal to excite our student body, staff and faculty, alumni and the Central Florida community. With the tremendous support of our student-athletes, coaches, staff, donors, students and all of Knight Nation, we certainly accomplished those goals.”

White added that under President Cartwright’s leadership, “the future is very bright at �鶹ӳ����ý. It was extremely difficult to tell Alex that I was leaving as he is a tremendous leader and friend. �鶹ӳ����ý is definitely in great hands, and I look forward to watching the continued success of this phenomenal university. The White family will always be Knight fans!”

�鶹ӳ����ý (6-3) will meet the BYU Cougars at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 22, in 30,000-seat FAU Stadium on the campus of Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton, Florida, in the seventh edition of the postseason event.

The game will air on ESPN and ESPN Radio. Tickets for the game are not currently on sale to the public. A limited public sale is expected at a later date, with pandemic protocols in place. The game has been approved for 20% stadium capacity.

�鶹ӳ����ý donors and season-ticket holders will receive information Wednesday, Dec. 9, from the �鶹ӳ����ý Ticket Office.

“We’re excited to continue our season in the Boca Raton Bowl — a great location for our fans and families to see us play,” says Danny White, �鶹ӳ����ý vice president and director of athletics. “Our football team in 2020 has been one of the most exciting to watch in the country, and the fact we will be playing in the postseason for a fifth consecutive year speaks to the consistency of our program.”

“Our football team in 2020 has been one of the most exciting to watch in the country, and the fact we will be playing in the postseason for a fifth consecutive year speaks to the consistency of our program.” — Danny White, �鶹ӳ����ý vice president and director of athletics

Adds �鶹ӳ����ý head coach Josh Heupel, “Our players and staff are excited to be in this bowl game. It gives our guys one more time to play together and gives us one more chance to go 1-0. We’ve done a lot of good things this year, and we look forward to this next opportunity.”

�鶹ӳ����ý will bring a team that currently ranks second in the nation in both total offense (585.6 yards per game) and passing (373.0 yards) while scoring at a 44.3-point-per-game pace. Both the total offense and passing yard figures are on track to be all-time �鶹ӳ����ý highs. The Knights also are second in the country in forced turnovers (22) and lead the nation with 13 fumbles recovered.

On an individual basis, �鶹ӳ����ý sophomore quarterback ��ranks first nationally in total offense (387.9 yards per game), passing yards (3,353), passing yards per game (372.6) and stands second in touchdown passes (30).

“We are thrilled to extend an invitation to �鶹ӳ����ý to play in the��RoofClaim.com��Boca Raton Bowl,” says executive director Doug Mosley. “The Knights are an exciting team, featuring one of the top offenses in the nation. They’ve had a great season, and we’re looking forward to announcing an equally compelling opponent for them soon.”

The program-record fifth consecutive postseason bowl appearance for the Knights is also the eighth in nine seasons and the 12^th��in 16 years. �鶹ӳ����ý also previously played in the NCAA Division II playoffs in 1987 and in the NCAA FCS Playoffs in 1990 and 1993.

2020 marks the third straight season under Josh Heupel the Knights have played in the postseason — following appearances two years ago in the Fiesta Bowl and last year in the Gasparilla Bowl. The Knights have played twice each in the Fiesta Bowl (following 2014 and 2018 seasons), Liberty Bowl (2007 and 2010) and St. Petersburg Bowl (2009 and 2014) and once each in the Hawaii Bowl (2005), Beef O’Brady’s Bowl (2012), Cure Bowl (2016), Peach Bowl (2017) and Gasparilla Bowl (2019).

This will be the sixth time �鶹ӳ����ý has played a bowl game in the state of Florida — after two appearances in the St. Petersburg Bowl and one each in the Beef O’Brady’s Bowl in St. Petersburg, Cure Bowl in Orlando and Gasparilla Bowl in Tampa.

Recent previous �鶹ӳ����ý postseason appearances have produced record numbers in terms of television ratings. In 2018 �鶹ӳ����ý played in the top-rated game (LSU in the Fiesta Bowl) involving at least one AAC institution. In 2017 and 2013 �鶹ӳ����ý also played in the top rated-game (Auburn in the Peach Bowl and Baylor in the Fiesta Bowl, respectively) among league members.

�鶹ӳ����ý student-athletes compiled a 3.30 GPA for Spring 2019, which is the third-highest in program history.

The student-athletes have extended the longest streak of achieving at least a 3.0 GPA as a department in school history. In all, 14 teams had a combined GPA of 3.0 or better this fall, and 10 posted at least a 3.2 GPA.

“Our student-athletes continue to perform at a very high level both in the classroom and in their respective sports,” says Tara Helton, associate athletics director, Academics. “Our continued success in the classroom continues to show the level of commitment put forth here at �鶹ӳ����ý, not only by the student-athletes and ASSA (Academic Services for Student-Athletes), but also by the coaching staffs and administration.”

Since the arrival of Danny White, vice president and director of athletics, the Knights have not turned in a semester below a 3.0, starting at 3.01 in Spring 2016. �鶹ӳ����ý set a program record for a 3.33 GPA in Spring 2018, and the Knights have posted a 3.3 GPA three times in the past four years. The top five marks in school history have come over the past six semesters as the Knights continued to win championships in their field of competition.

This semester, 68 percent (259) of student-athletes achieved at least a 3.0 GPA, which was a four percent increase from last spring. Thirty-five Knights recorded a perfect 4.0 GPA, five more than the spring semester.

The men’s golf team earned the highest GPA of all the men’s programs with a 3.43. The women’s tennis team’s 3.63 GPA was the best among women’s programs at �鶹ӳ����ý.

Once funded, their $13��million estate gift commitment will��establish the Gary and Barbara Bryant Family Athletic Endowed Scholarship Fund. Annual proceeds from the endowment will provide athletic scholarship support for both men’s and women’s student-athletes at �鶹ӳ����ý.

“We appreciate Gary and Barbara’s investment in our educational and athletic mission at �鶹ӳ����ý,” says Danny White, �鶹ӳ����ý vice president and director of athletics. “Their family legacy at �鶹ӳ����ý will forever provide life-changing scholarship opportunities for hundreds of young men and women to pursue their academic, athletic and personal dreams through the student-athlete experience.”

“We made this commitment to enable student-athletes to get an education and compete in the sport they love at our hometown university.” — Gary Bryant

Added Gary Bryant, “Barbara and I have always participated in sports and believe in the transformational, door-opening value of a college education. We made this commitment to enable student-athletes to get an education and compete in the sport they love at our hometown university. We feel very fortunate to be able to make this commitment and hope other community and alumni friends will support Orlando’s Hometown Team.”

This commitment to �鶹ӳ����ý was made in collaboration with one of �鶹ӳ����ý’s American Athletic Conference institutions that also announced a similar gift by the Bryant family today.

“It is remarkable that Gary and Barbara have made such transformational commitments to competing intercollegiate athletic programs. In working with them over the past two years, it is clear that they hope their philanthropic leadership will inspire others at both institutions,” says Mark Wright, �鶹ӳ����ý deputy athletics director and university assistant vice president for championship resources.

After many years in public accounting, Gary Bryant became the president and CEO of several life and health insurance companies in the Orlando area.��He and his wife Barbara are avid travelers and golfers.

That’s the premise of “Is This Really a Thing?”— a new podcast from �鶹ӳ����ý College of Business Dean Paul Jarley. The college’s first podcast launched today in the middle of Podcast Week and looks at a variety of current topics to determine if they are just hype or if they represent fundamental change that could alter how we do business.

“As a dean, it’s my job to think about what the college should look like five and 10 years from now and make sure we get there,” says Jarley, who serves as the host for the interview-style podcast. “This is tough. As Bill Gates famously noted, people tend to overestimate the amount of change that will happen in the next two years and underestimate the amount of change that will happen in the next 10 years.”

The first three episodes debate whether eSports, ghosting in the workplace, and Bitcoin are really a thing.

Jarley doesn’t have to go far to find experts with something interesting to say about any of his topics.

“We’re big on engagement at the college, and the podcast gives us a new way to extend that culture of engagement to our alumni and community at large,” Jarley says. “Many episodes will feature �鶹ӳ����ý faculty, alums, board members and students.”

For eSports, he tapped �鶹ӳ����ý Vice President and Director of Athletics Danny White, Richard Lapchick, director of the , and Ben Noel, executive director of the , �鶹ӳ����ý’s nationally renowned graduate video-gaming program. In the ghosting in the workplace episode, he talks to students, a career coach and a staffing-agency executive about job candidates who stop responding to employers that are trying to hire them. In Bitcoin, �鶹ӳ����ý economist Sean Snaith weighs in on the viability of the cryptocurrency and whether to include it in your portfolio.

And while the topics are serious, Jarley promises that the podcast will not be a typical classroom lecture.

“We hope to make you laugh a little along the way and leave you with a new way to think about the topic at hand,” he says.

“Is This Really a Thing?” is available through iTunes, Google Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn, Spotify or by visiting .

Kinesiology faculty member Michael Redd is now working with coaches as the first director of sports science appointed by the athletics program. He also is supervising �鶹ӳ����ý students selected for a new sports science internship program.

“Having a sports scientist on the performance team is not a novel concept,” said Jeff Stout, interim dean of the new College of Health Professions and Sciences, home to the school. “But giving sports science students the ability to work with Division I athletes is an opportunity that few students may experience.”

“We’re not aware of any other universities that offer such an internship opportunity for select graduate and undergraduate students,” said Redd, who completed his doctorate in exercise physiology (an area of kinesiology) in August.

Under Redd’s supervision, the interns will help bridge the gap between science and application.

“Wearable devices provide physiological, performance and biomechanical data points that require special advanced training to interpret,” Stout said. “Sports scientists can then create specific algorithms to analyze the data to inform coaches of their team’s training volume and its relationship to an athlete’s fatigue scores, hydration, heart-rate variability and performance.”

Redd was a doctoral student at �鶹ӳ����ý last year when he worked with the men’s soccer team during a pilot study. He attended the practices and analyzed thousands of data points produced by tracking bands worn by the players.

His analysis of the data gave head coach Scott Calabrese another tool to assess his trainings and ensure the athletes got just what they needed. For example, in some cases Calabrese would adjust the duration and intensity of the training drills to enhance recovery and optimize performance.

The team went on to win eight consecutive games and compete in the American Athletic Conference championship final. The Knights are now this year’s preseason favorite in the conference.

Following the success of the pilot study, Redd and Stout worked with �鶹ӳ����ý Athletics to establish a new sports science internship to enable more students from the school to learn and assist.

Redd has started selecting graduate and undergraduate students as interns. They will learn how to collect and interpret data produced by devices worn by student-athletes. Redd will review the data and use it to inform the coaches of the findings.

Eventually, the health and performance of some 400 student-athletes could be monitored, he said.

Undergraduate Maxine Furtado is among the first students selected for the internship. She is working with the university’s soccer programs.

“I’ve always been interested in the analytics portion of sports science and this internship is going to provide me with an opportunity to learn, to understand and to enjoy all the hard work it takes to form a good athlete,” said Furtado, a former high school athlete. “This opportunity has already made a huge positive impact in my life and my future career choices.”

�鶹ӳ����ý Athletics is excited for the partnership, said Eric Wood, deputy athletics director for competitive excellence.

“In Danny White, we have the most innovative athletics director in the country,” Wood said. “He views this cutting-edge opportunity as a win-win situation because it benefits our coaches and student-athletes as a competitive advantage on their respective playing fields, while providing practical experience and research opportunities for �鶹ӳ����ý students.”

��

“First and foremost, our thoughts are with everyone who may be affected by this storm,” �鶹ӳ����ý Vice President and Director of Athletics Danny White said. “The priority must be safety for everyone in the path of the hurricane. Having been through similar situations the past two years, we certainly understand this decision. We wish UNC the best of luck through this storm and for the rest of the year.”

“Our concern is with the safety of everyone being affected by the storm.”

North Carolina and �鶹ӳ����ý officials stated any tickets purchased through the respective school will be refunded automatically and as quickly as possible. There is no need to contact either school’s ticket office regarding refunds.

�鶹ӳ����ý Alumni’s ChargeOn Tailgate is also canceled. The office announced refunds for the event will be issued, and �鶹ӳ����ý Alumni is working on communicating with those who had registered for the tailgate. Should fans have additional questions about the tailgate, they are instructed to contact��Knights@ucfalumni.com.

Meanwhile, UNC and �鶹ӳ����ý will continue to discuss the feasibility of playing the game at a later date this season.

Also, it is unlikely the Knights will be able to replace the North Carolina contest with another game as the Knights don’t have a true open date. �鶹ӳ����ý’s only open weekend during the 2018 regular season falls on the weekend of Oct. 27. However, the Knights are scheduled to play on Thurs. Nov. 1 vs. Temple.

“I’m confident our student-athletes will adjust to this change,” �鶹ӳ����ý head coach Josh Heupel said. “Many of them have, unfortunately, been through similar scenarios here the last two seasons. Our concern is with the safety of everyone being affected by the storm. Our team will turn its focus toward the game with FAU and we look forward to seeing all of Knight Nation back out at Spectrum Stadium next Friday.”

Abrahamson-Henderson, also known as Coach Abe, has inked a one-year deal keeping��her at the helm through the 2022-23 season. Dawkins will lead the��Knights through the 2023-24 season.

“We are very fortunate to have Katie��Abrahamson-Henderson leading our women’s basketball program [and] I am thrilled to have Johnny Dawkins��leading our men’s basketball program,” says Danny White, vice president and director of .

Under Abrahamson-Henderson’s guidance, the Knights finished the 2017-18 campaign with a 22-11 record, tying the most wins in a season as a Division I program. �鶹ӳ����ý turned in a 12-4 mark in The American – its best record in league play since 2010-11 – and posted its highest finish in the conference for the second consecutive season, earning the third seed.��One year after earning the program’s first postseason victory in either the NCAA or WNIT tournaments, Abrahamson-Henderson’s squad followed with a second-straight WNIT second round appearance.

“I am blessed and excited for the confidence of Danny White,��Brandi Stuart, former President Hitt and new President Whittaker,” Abrahamson-Henderson says. “Our team’s success over the last two seasons, both on the court and in the classroom, would not be possible without their support. Our entire staff is looking forward to building on the success of back-to-back postseason appearances as we head into this season and the future.”

Dawkins took over a 12-18 team that hadn’t finished above .500 since the 2012-13 season and has led �鶹ӳ����ý to 43 wins in his two years under his leadership.��In the last two seasons, Dawkins’ Knights have made a run to the National Invitation Tournament Semifinals, led the NCAA in field goal percentage defense, won at Memphis for the first time ever and earned their first true road win over a ranked opponent.

“I’m very thankful to Danny White, Eric Wood, former President John Hitt, and new President Dale Whittaker for their continued support of me and my staff,” Dawkins says. “It’s great to have our administration behind us, knowing they believe in what we’re doing as a program and our standard of representing �鶹ӳ����ý and the community at the highest level.”

With the average team GPA of 3.0 for the last two semesters, both coaches have seen academic growth among their players.

Purchase tickets for the upcoming 2018-19 men’s and women’s basketball seasons online or call��407-823-1000.��

“Not many campuses across the country have the kind of weather to make tailgating a possibility during basketball season,” White said. “This is going to give our fans a unique experience that can be found very few places, if any, throughout the collegiate basketball landscape.”

Tailgating for men’s basketball games will take place on Memory Mall and open four hours before tip-off.��There are four weekend American Athletic Conference games on the schedule, beginning with the Knights’ Jan. 14 game against Houston.

Registration for each tailgate will be open to �鶹ӳ����ý students and anyone with a ticket to that day’s game (season or single game). Registration will open at 6 p.m. on the Sunday prior to the games. Fans can register at Knightsonthemall.com.

A live DJ will be featured on the mall, and �鶹ӳ����ý fans are encouraged to bring tents, chairs, food and coolers to enjoy the experience.

The first 500 students in attendance at the tailgate on Jan. 14 will receive a Knightmare T-shirt for the game against the Cougars.

For tickets call 407-�鶹ӳ����ý-1000 or click��here.

Family. Academics. Basketball.

In that order.

The backbone of her coaching philosophy was mentioned often during her introductory press conference on Friday at the Wayne Densch Center for Student-Athlete Leadership. And it’s part of what brought her here to �鶹ӳ����ý.

“We’re going to lead with that philosophy all the time, and going through this [hiring] process, it is exactly the same thing that Danny (White) was saying the whole time,” she said. “It kind of rang a bell, and I was like, ‘This is a good fit.’”

Abrahamson-Henderson’s philosophy stems from the lessons she learned while playing at Iowa under Basketball Hall of Fame head coach C. Vivian Stringer.

It’s a system that works for her. During her coaching career over the last two decades, she has helped three different teams reach the NCAA Tournament and five programs reach postseason play.

At her most recent stop at Albany, she led the Great Danes to a combined nine America East Conference tournament and regular season titles. Her Albany teams recorded five 20-win seasons en route to five-straight NCAA Tournament appearances, including the program’s first bid in 2011 and its first NCAA Tournament victory in 2016.

“I think we have one of the most talented coaches in all of women’s basketball in the country, someone that built a dynasty at Albany and is leaving a dynasty that was built to continue to win,” �鶹ӳ����ý vice president and director of athletics Danny White said. “What she’s done in her career is unbelievable, and everything I learned about her from people that know women’s basketball really well, she’s as high level of a coach as there is, and we’re really fortunate to have her here.”

Abrahamson-Henderson believes success comes from empowering her student-athletes as women, not just players. Self-confidence will lead to results.

“We’re going to keep empowering them as women, and educate them and… make them feel really good about who they are, and being a part of this program, and be proud to walk around,” she said. “When they leave this university, they look back and say, ‘I loved my basketball career; I loved Coach Abe.’”

Then, without missing a beat, her wit lightened up the standing-room only assembly hall.

“And maybe in the future somebody is rich and they have a house with a pool that I can come swimming at.”

Although it has been a whirlwind week for Abrahamson-Henderson, she has already started to watch film on the Knights. She is excited by what she saw and believes she can run her style of play: pressing and wearing out opponents.

She knows she must earn the team’s trust and get them to buy into the process, but once they do, she believes there’s no limit to what the Knights can achieve.

“I think we have the talent. I think we have the athleticism. I think we have a lot of key ingredients here. We’re just going to take one day at a time,” she said. “We’re going to enjoy the journey. We’re going to work really hard. We’re going to bond really well, and that’s just kind of how I do things.”