Rise and Conquer: Scott Frost preaches progress as UCF opens camp
UCF opened preseason football camp this week with a renewed sense of purpose under the direction of Scott Frost, who returned to Orlando this past offseason hoping to spark another program revival.
During his pre-camp press conference, Frost was asked what “success” looks like in his first year back.
“Success is progress,” Frost said. “Sometimes it happens slower than you want, sometimes it happens faster than you want. Last time I was here it happened a lot faster than I think even we expected, but we have a saying around here that is still up on the walls from the first time, ‘Rise and Conquer.’
“To the kids, that means rise up every day, try to be the best you can be that day, and conquer the challenges in front of you, and then go to bed and try to wake up and be even better than that the next day.
“So it’s got to be daily progress for us. We’ve made up a lot of ground, but still have a ways to go, and we need to continue to rise and conquer every day.”
Not Starting from Scratch
Frost led a rapid turnaround in 2016, guiding UCF from winless to a 6-6 regular season and a berth in the Cure Bowl. The next year, the Knights went undefeated at 13-0, capped by a Peach Bowl win over Auburn.
While the circumstances are different now, Frost doesn’t believe it’s a steep hill to climb.
“We’re not starting at zero here. We’re starting with a team that won four games last year and watching tape definitely should have won more than that,” Frost said. “I don’t think we have as big a gap to close as we did back then, but it’s also tougher to close that gap against teams like we’re playing in the Big 12.”
Frost acknowledged that familiarity with the league is still a work in progress.
“All I really know about the Big 12 is watching tape,” Frost said. “This is probably the fifth or sixth time I’ve been on a new team in a new league and it’s hard to know until you’re out on the field with them.
“I’ve said this a lot, I feel really good about the talent level on our team but we’re largely unproven. We don’t have a lot of returning production, so it’s really going to be how fast these guys can operate at a level where they can compete in a game against good teams in the Big 12 and make plays.
“And we have the guys with the ability to do that, but ability is different than being able to do it consistently and we have some growing up to do and some maturing to do fast to make sure that the talent shines through and guys aren’t just out there, they’re out there able to make plays in a consistent manner.”
Identifying Leaders
With so many new faces on the roster, Frost said the leadership dynamic took time to develop, but key voices have begun to emerge heading into camp.
“Even some leaders that I think are going to emerge on this team had a hard time doing it in the winter because they were new,” Frost said. “It’s hard to step into a group of 100 guys where nobody knows you and have a voice.”
Frost said the staff has now identified those individuals and plans to “step back and empower them.”
“We need them to speak up and correct people when they need correcting and motivate when they need to motivate,” he said. “We’ve got some really strong leaders on both sides.”
One thing Frost is encouraged by is the camaraderie that’s been developing since he took over in January. He recalled a recent “punishment run” that turned into a valuable moment of feedback.
“One of the players that’ll be a leader of our team, I asked him what was different and he said everybody’s together now,” Frost said.
That sense of unity could be key as UCF enters a pivotal season under a returning coach who once led the program to its highest heights.
“I think there’s enough talent here to really surprise some people if we come together as a football team,” Frost said.
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