UCF will make a significant jump in competition Saturday when the Knights travel to Pittsburgh for their first road game of the season.
The Panthers opened their season with an offensive explosion, routing Miami (Ohio) 59-14 behind a record-setting performance from quarterback Mason Heintschel. The sophomore completed 31 of 41 passes for 453 yards and seven touchdowns, tying Pittsburgh’s single-game school record, with all seven scores going to different receivers.
After cruising to a 73-6 win over Bethune-Cookman in its opener, UCF now gets a much better indication of where it stands against a Pitt team Frost called “one of our toughest tests all year.”
Here’s everything Frost had to say at his Monday press conference:
After reviewing the film from last Thursday night against Bethune-Cookman, what were your ultimate takeaways and what do you see as the biggest need for improvement?
“I think overall it was a pretty good performance. It’s kind of what we asked them to do. They played really hard and fast.
“The execution was pretty good. There’s still obviously things we can get better at, but I thought it was a really good first game in regards to what we asked the guys to show up and try to do in Game 1.”
Were there some areas you saw that needed to improve or be refined heading into Pittsburgh?
“Yeah, I mean that’s going to be the case all year. There’s going to be things in each game that we look back at and say, ‘We’ve got to get better at this.’ Every game’s going to be harder than the first one.
“Got a ton of respect for Coach Narduzzi and Pitt, and I think this will be one of our toughest tests all year. So we’re going to have to be ready to play at a really high level and we’re going to need a higher level of execution than we had last week.”
You guys are riding a nine-game road losing streak. How do you break that? How do you shake that off and try to find ways to win on the road?
“I don’t want to make a big deal out of that. Half of that didn’t have anything to do with me. Most of it doesn’t have to do with most of our players.
“As a coaching staff, we’re going to look for the best way to get our guys ready. You guys can make a big deal of it. It doesn’t have anything to do with our players. They weren’t here last year.
“Most of them weren’t here two years ago. So this is a completely different team, and we’ll do the best we can to get them prepared and go try to play our best.”
What are the challenges of going on the road and facing a team like Pitt?
“I just think the quality of the opponent is the biggest factor, and the quality of our team and being able to play well is the second-biggest factor. I do think our team, with the character of players that we have on this team and the level of competitiveness that we have on this team, I expect a higher level of execution away from home.”
You mentioned expecting a higher level of execution for a tough matchup. How much more of the playbook are we going to see opened up? How much of it was opened up against Bethune-Cookman?
“I think we try to be unique every week. I think you’ll see different plays every week. We have the majority of what we want to run throughout the year in the playbook right now.
“It just depends on what we think are the best things to work week by week. I’ve coached against Coach Narduzzi’s teams a few times. They’ve been unbelievable games and good battles.
“I think they do a great job on defense. We’re going to have to try to find some things that can work.”
You’ve talked about this team needing to earn respect out on the field. What do you think you accomplished or earned from Thursday’s victory?
“I don’t think we earned much yet. We did what we were supposed to do last Thursday and really nothing more. Our chances to go out and earn anything are still ahead of us.”
What’s your scheduling philosophy? How do you think you benefit from a game like Bethune-Cookman? Would you rather have a tougher opponent in Week 1?
“I have nothing to do with the scheduling, so I don’t know how my philosophy is relevant. These games were scheduled a long time ago.”
But if you could, what would you want to play?
“I think there’s some beauty in some tough games early on, but I also think it’s probably best for the team to get a game under their belt in Week 1 that you’ve got a good chance to win. Hopefully that did enough to prepare us for a tough game Week 2.”
Every team is different and you’re still learning your team. What did you learn about this team’s identity coming out of Thursday’s game and then looking back at the tape?
“Like I said, we did what we were supposed to do Thursday. I don’t know how much I’ve learned yet. I think there will be tougher tests, and when we go through some adversity we’ll learn more about our team.
“But that was Game 1. We played an opponent that we probably should have beat, and we did. We did play really hard and fast, and I think having that identity and embracing that identity is going to be important for us throughout the whole year.”
Mason Heintschel threw seven touchdowns against Miami (Ohio) to seven different receivers. When you look at the tape, what are your first impressions of what Pitt is able to do in the passing game?
“Yeah, they threw it all over the place. I thought the quarterback played — Mason played really well. He does a great job extending plays, keeping things alive, running when he has to.
“I thought they did a good job protecting for him. It’s certainly a different style than we’ve probably seen in a while. These guys have a lot of different pass routes, do a good job protecting.
“They have a quarterback that can throw it all over the place. I think we’ve got to earn our right to rush the passer by making sure that we do a good job against the run game, and then try to hold on. They’re certainly going to get their share of passes on you.
“I think that’s what they do. 480 yards and seven touchdowns was like a year for me when I was in college, so it’s impressive.”
How much do you lean on a veteran secondary in a game like this, especially against a pretty young group of receivers that Pitt has?
“I thought the receivers, young coming into the year, looked really good in their game. They did a great job with backs out of the backfield and tight ends on pass plays and delays. The quarterback knows when to take a chance with it and when to check it down, so we’re going to have to do a lot of things well to try to slow them down.”
We know Duane Thomas Jr. didn’t get any action last game. How is it looking for him to be back for Pitt?
“We’ve got a few guys that I think are going to be waiting to see. We haven’t really seen him do anything yet this week, so I don’t really have an update. We’ve got our fingers crossed for DT and RJ Jackson and Bruno (Dall), and it’s too early to tell. We’ve got to see them this week.”
Was there anybody further down the depth chart who changed your perception of what their role could be after Thursday?
“No. I was pleased with several performances. Particularly in this era, when you get so many new guys in the portal and through other ways, you’ve got to wait and watch them play before you really see what you have. There were several guys that I thought played up to our expectations or better.”
With having a general manager in Trent Mossbrucker, how has that helped you better lead this program now a year into his tenure?
“Yeah, I think you have to have someone smart there, and you have to have someone on the same page as the head coach as far as what we’re trying to acquire and what we’re trying to build from a roster standpoint to fit what you’re trying to do schematically.
“Trent, above all else, is a really, really smart guy. I think if the coaching staff or head coach tries to do all of it by himself, I think there’s just too much on your plate to try to get it done at a high level.
“So, I think having him leading into the portal this year certainly gave us an advantage over where we were a year before, and I think it showed up by what we have on our roster.”
What’s the difference when you look back over game film from a game situation versus just having training camp film to look at?
“It’s live football. It’s real. The tackling’s live.
“You get to see how guys play in a little bit of heightened, pressure situations. So it’s a game versus practice, and for the most part I thought our players handled it really well.”
Have you seen anyone in particular really flourish in that in-game situation?
“Yeah, I saw a few, like I said, that I thought met or exceeded our expectations. You can look at it as maybe there’s someone that’s going to perform well in those situations, and you can also look at it as maybe they weren’t giving us everything they had in practice.
“So that’s a double-edged sword, and I certainly hope several of those guys keep playing to the level I saw last Thursday.”
Against Bethune-Cookman, you guys had very few penalties and no pre-snap penalties. Is there something that stood out on film about the discipline with which your team played, and how important is that to keep going?
“Yeah, I thought that was impressive, having so few careless mistakes in that game. I hope that’s a sign of things to come. Obviously the environments and the situations will get harder.
“We’re going to be in more pressure-filled situations, we’re going to be on the road with more noise, so we’ve got to make sure that we lean on that discipline. It’s definitely better than it has been, and I hope it continues.”
Looking at the offensive line, what were you pleased with from the performance and what are some areas you’d like to see improvement from that group?
“Everybody looked pretty good in that game, but we were playing a smaller school and we moved people pretty well. These guys this week are going to be a lot harder to move up front, so we’ve got to do it when the other team hits back a little more. But for the most part, I was impressed.
“I was really impressed with the second and third group when we got other guys in there and how the level of play didn’t fall off very much.”
On the other side, the defensive line is facing a quarterback who threw the ball 41 times last week. Is their ability to get pressure on the quarterback maybe the biggest area where the team has to step up from one opponent to the next?
“Yeah, and pressure isn’t just sacks. Watching their tape, they do a great job of max protect when they’re going to take shots and making it hard to get home. They do a good job of dumping it off when there starts to be pressure.
“He certainly works the pocket really well and made a couple really good throws for touchdowns after he broke out of the pocket and started to scramble. Did a great job keeping his eyes downfield and made some really good throws. Making him uncomfortable and keeping him contained is just as important as sacks.
“I hope we have the guys that are able, at least, to apply some of that pressure.”
What more do you need to see from Alonza Barnett in the step-up game in Week 2?
“I’ve seen Alonza just continually improve and develop into what we want him to be through the course of camp. It’s great that he got his first game under his belt, and I expect him to be even better this week.”
Playing in an NFL stadium this weekend, what connections do you have to the city of Pittsburgh or the Steelers?
“I’ve been there several times. I don’t have a ton of connections. Mike Tomlin coached me in Tampa.
“He’s one of my favorite guys in this business and has been for a long time. He’s not there anymore. I’ve never actually been to the stadium through all my traveling, so it’ll be fun for me.
“I was real little when the Pirates won the World Series, and I kind of liked the Willie Stargell-Dave Parker Pirates and the uniforms. I’ve always really liked Roberto Clemente as a baseball guy. I’ve got a friend that is a hockey guy, so I follow the Penguins a little bit. Not a lot of ties to Pittsburgh.”
I know Mike Tomlin isn’t there now, but did he have that spark that made you want to pursue coaching? What was it like playing under him in Tampa Bay?
“Coaching is funny. As a player, when you play for guys that really make an impact on you, I think that leads players to want to coach. I didn’t really have a lot of interest in coaching or have a plan to coach until my last year and a half or so in Tampa.
“It was really Mike Tomlin and Raheem Morris, who was the assistant DB coach. They told me, ‘Frosty, you need to coach,’ and Raheem gave me my first job. Both those guys are unbelievable coaches and unbelievable people, and I’m grateful to both of them.”
What about the running game? How pleased were you with that from last game, and how do you continue to sustain that success for the rest of the season?
“I was really happy with the run game. We handed off our first run and went 60. That’s not going to happen against good teams.
“I thought we came off the ball and finished blocks a lot better than I’ve seen in the past, so I’m happy with that. Like I said, this team is going to hit back a lot more than the last one did. It was a pretty easy test last week.
“This test is going to get a lot harder, so we’ve got to make sure that our fundamentals and effort match the challenge that’s in front of us.”
How about linebacker Lewis Carter? Two game-changing plays in the first two drives, stopping them on third down and then forcing the hit that led to a pick-six. What kind of tone do you expect him to set heading into Pitt and how much has he emerged?
“I think Lew, if he stays healthy and does what I’ve seen him do for a long time, he’s going to be one of the most productive players in our league and beyond this year.
“I was really excited to see him and Jay Will both show up because they’ve been showing up all through camp. I think those are going to be two guys that make a ton of game-changing plays for us this year.”
Before Thursday’s game, you met Antoine Griezmann. How much familiarity do you have with his game and what did you know about him? Are you a soccer fan?
“I’m an occasional soccer fan. I love watching the World Cup. I think the pageantry of that is unbelievable.
“Obviously, he had an unbelievable World Cup in 2018. The game in 2022 was one of the best sporting events I’ve ever watched. I just have a ton of respect for anybody that’s at the top of their game in whatever sport it is.
“He’s certainly accomplished that and become that. It was really cool for me to meet somebody that’s that highly thought of in his sport.”
Do you have a favorite soccer club you support?
“No, I don’t really have a soccer club I support. I’ll watch it if it’s on. Mostly World Cup and an occasional game.”
You mentioned you’ve gone up against Coach Narduzzi a few times. Is there a certain identity that his teams have that you can expect this weekend?
“They haven’t changed a lot. I think we played him twice when I was at Oregon and he was the DC at Michigan State in 2014 and 2015. We won one, they won one, both at home.
“They know what they do. They do it well.
“They have a lot of adjustments to keep you guessing. I think the biggest change is they’re bringing a lot of pressure, more than they used to, which is an exciting challenge for us. We have some pretty good answers to that kind of stuff if that’s the type of game it becomes.
“I think they were probably — I don’t know the exact percentage — but way more than half the game last week was pressure. So they’re playing really aggressive right now.”