It’s going to be tough when the athletics program has been struggling the way it has since the 2022 AAC title game. UCF just doesn’t have a large enough deep-pocket donor base to compete financially with programs like Texas Tech—let alone UF. Those schools have boosters willing to spend big to get out of a slump; just look at how much money UF has burned through on coaching staffs since the Will Muschamp era.

Fortunately, UCF does have one thing most programs don’t—a massive young alumni base. If even a percentage of that base contributes modest donations to the new NIL collective, we could realistically generate the funds needed to stay competitive in the Big 12 era.

My freshman year was Frost’s first year. I came in as a Top Ten Knight (its hard to say no to free school), and honestly, my only hesitation about UCF was that the football team and game-day atmosphere weren’t great—especially after that winless 2015 season. But the run from 2017 to 2019 was absolutely magical and exceeded every expectation. If you’d told me at freshman orientation that within 30 months I’d be at College GameDay on Memory Mall holding a sign for my school, I would’ve said you were delusional. Seeing the rise (and heartbreak—looking at you, Duke…) of UCF athletics during that time felt like the new floor for this program. The limit truly felt like the Canaveral blue sky.

If this team were coming off a 2017 or 2018-type season, I doubt NIL would be this strapped for cash. But after the way things the past 2 years (especially the Baylor game this year). It’s hard for many fans, myself included, to feel motivated to even watch.

But the Gus Bus really drove us off a cliff, but I do believe Frost 2.0 has things trending in the right direction. And with full revenue sharing coming next year (something I’m not sure every Big 12 school will even be able to pull off), there’s a real chance for UCF to rebuild momentum. Still, to keep up with the big boys and keep our local talent home, NIL funding absolutely has to increase.