If you don’t know about UCF running back RJ Harvey, then you probably weren’t paying attention to Big 12 football last season.
Because everyone in the Big 12 knows after last season.
RJ Harvey’s 2023 Campaign
As the Knights made their Big 12 debut, they leaned hard on Harvey, who earned All-Big 12 Honorable Mention selection from the league’s coaches. He led UCF with 1,416 yards rushing and 16 touchdowns. His rushing yards was fourth-best in a UCF single-season his touchdowns tied for second as a single season best.
Big 12 defensive coordinators have likely spent plenty of time trying to figure out how to slow him down. Not to worry. Knights coach Gus Malzahn is scheming ways to use him, too.
“Yeah, teams will key on him. There’s no doubt,” Malzahn said. “But he can do a lot of different things, catch the ball out of the backfield.”
He caught 19 passes last season and he has 41 receptions for his UCF career.
Most telling was how Harvey finished the season. He rushed for 1,038 yards in his last eight games. That included his incredible game against Oklahoma State, which ended up making the Big 12 Conference title game against Texas. Harvey poured on 206 yards rushing and three touchdowns, including a 92-yard touchdown run.
UCF’s Depth of Offensive Weapons
Harvey was a quarterback in high school and Malzahn said that helps him in terms of field vision. His ability to block and read protections in the pass game has improved. The addition of quarterback KJ Jefferson in the transfer portal should help keep heat off Harvey, too.
Those playmakers, in tandem with Harvey, could make UCF dangerous in their second season in the conference.
“We’ve got some other playmakers around, too,” Malzahn said. “So I think that helps him, also. But I’m very excited. I’ve been real blessed to have some really, really good running backs in the past. He’s at least in that same conversation. I think the sky’s the limit for him if he stays healthy this year.”
UCF went 6-7 in 2023 with a 3-6 record in the Big 12. Malzahn continues to build the Knights into a team that could, one day, be a primary contender in the Big 12, helped in part by his experience as a head coach in the SEC.
The Knights have six returning starters on offense, including three returning starters on the offensive line that will open up holes for Harvey and offer protection for Jefferson.
The defense has less continuity from a year ago and the starting lineup could be made up of a majority of transfers. Of the holdovers, defensive end Malachi Lawrence isn’t technically a returning starter but could take a big jump after an All-Big 12 Honorable Mention season a year ago.
The Knights open the season hosting New Hampshire on Aug. 29 and Sam Houston on Sept. 7. UCF opens Big 12 action at TCU on Sept. 14 and after an off-week host Colorado on Sept. 28.
UCF travels to Florida for its final non-conference game on Oct. 5. Then Big 12 play continues at home against Cincinnati on Oct. 12, at Iowa State on Oct. 19 and hosting BYU on Oct. 26.
The Knights start November at home against Arizona on Nov. 2. The next two games are on the road — at Arizona State on Nov. 9 and at West Virginia on Nov. 23. The regular season wraps at home against Utah on Nov. 29.
You can find Matthew Postins on Twitter @PostinsPostcard.
