Caden Piening caught a six-yard touchdown pass from Alonza Barnett III with one second remaining to lift UCF to a wild 33-32 Big 12 Conference victory over Kansas on Saturday in Lawrence, Kan.
Will Stone converted the ensuing extra point as the Knights snapped a 12-game road losing streak.
Barnett passed for 251 yards and two touchdowns with an interception.
Josh Derry caught eight passes for 143 yards and a touchdown. Duane Thomas Jr. and Taevion Swint each contributed a rushing touchdown for the Knights (5-4, 3-3 Big 12).
Isaiah Marshall threw for 210 yards and rushed for 125 yards and two touchdowns. Khijohnn Cummings-Coleman and Dylan Edwards added a rushing touchdown apiece for Kansas (3-6, 1-5).
UCF overcame a turnover on its first offensive play and a Kansas touchdown four plays later by scoring 26 unanswered points.
Trey Lathan intercepted Barnett’s first pass but fumbled on the return. Marcus Calvin recovered the loose ball, giving Kansas possession at the three-yard line.
Isaiah Marshall’s one-yard touchdown run gave Kansas an early 7-0 lead.
Thomas scored on a 10-yard run on fourth down with 12:03 left in the second quarter, giving UCF a 9-7 lead after the missed extra point.
Swint opened the second half with a 43-yard kickoff return and capped the ensuing six-play drive with a one-yard touchdown run to give UCF a 19-7 lead.
After Braeden Marshall recovered a Kansas fumble, Barnett connected with Derry on a 44-yard touchdown pass to extend the Knights’ lead to 26-7.
Isaiah Marshall’s 30-yard touchdown run trimmed Kansas’ deficit to 26-14 with 4:24 left in the third quarter.
Cummings-Coleman’s one-yard touchdown run pulled Kansas within 26-21 with 11:26 left in the fourth quarter. Martin Connington’s 34-yard field goal cut the deficit to 26-24 with 5:29 remaining.
Edwards capped a 95-yard drive with a two-yard touchdown run with 1:06 remaining. Kansas then converted a two-point attempt on a pass from Isaiah Marshall to Nik McMillan to make it 32-26.
UCF drove 73 yards in 10 plays, with Barnett connecting with Piening with one second remaining. Stone kicked the extra point for the victory.
–Field Level Media
