Josh Derry needed one snap to give UCF the answer it had been chasing all night. Keyone Jenkins found him for a 25-yard touchdown on the Knights’ first play of overtime, immediately matching BYU’s opening score and keeping a remarkable game alive.
The Orlando-area program eventually defeated No. 2 BYU 39-31 in double overtime at the Bounce House on Saturday night, improving to 4-3 overall and 2-2 in the Big 12. UCF did not win by avoiding mistakes. It won by surviving them, earning another possession after each failed finish and finally making the last defensive stop stand.
Regulation had nearly delivered a familiar ending. UCF reached the doorstep late in regulation, with the ball a yard from BYU’s end zone, but Jenkins carried on fourth down and was stopped for no gain. The Knights had done the hard work of reaching the doorstep, then left without a touchdown.
Their defense repaired the situation by forcing BYU into a three-and-out. UCF took possession with 42 seconds remaining and moved 41 yards, but Will Stone’s field-goal attempt was blocked. The Knights recovered, yet the ensuing 10-second runoff eliminated the remaining clock. One failed goal-line conversion and one blocked kick had transformed a potential regulation victory into overtime.
Derry’s touchdown supplied the first clean answer. BYU opened the extra period with Bear Bachmeier’s 28-yard touchdown pass to Legend Glasker. Jenkins responded immediately, putting UCF back on level terms before the offense had time to complicate the situation. It was the sort of play the Knights had needed all evening: direct, productive and free of ceremony.
Jenkins created plenty of those chances before overtime. He completed 25 of 41 passes for 293 yards and three passing touchdowns, added a rushing score and threw no interceptions. The numbers come with an important wrinkle: UCF’s quarterback was also the ballcarrier on the fourth-down stop at the BYU 1.
His night contained both the production that kept the Knights competitive and the failed finish that made the game so precarious.
Tyren Hornes gave Jenkins the field-stretching help that turned possessions into scoring opportunities. Hornes caught six passes for 137 yards. His 30-yard reception late in the second quarter helped move UCF toward a touchdown before halftime.
In the third, he caught a pass at the UCF 25 and carried it to the BYU 15, setting up an 11-play touchdown drive that ended with Jenkins scoring on a 1-yard run. In the fourth quarter, Hornes added a 21-yard catch to reach the BYU 3.
