College Football Preview: UCF to Debut Against Texas in New Bright House Networks Stadium

University of Central Florida (UCF), a progressive school that has quickly grown to the sixth largest campus in the nation, is now home to a brand new football stadium and basketball arena.

The UCF football stadium, which has been tagged Brighthouse Networks Stadium, is set to open Sept. 15 against the largest school in the nation; Texas. In true UCF style the game will be played on ESPN2, not their older brother ESPN. The new stadium will hold over 45,000 people, with the ability to add on another 20,000.

UCF's old home was at the Citrus Bowl, a 30-40 minute drive from campus that was not in the greatest of neighborhoods. The day UCF ended their 17 game losing streak against Marshall, a local police officer mistakingly shot a undercover UCF cop. The move is long overdue.

George O'Leary has kept momentum moving forward since UCF made it to their first bowl game appearance in 2005. After a 4-8 season a year ago, UCF now has experience across the board. This is the year O'leary's recruits have to step up. It appears to be a great set up for O'Leary to continue at UCF and leave his final imprints on his coaching legacy. It is also about that time when the booster are going to expect wins. If UCF struggles in a new stadium, patience will wear thin, even for O'Leary.

Looking at their schedule, UCF plays @N.C. State, Texas, @USF, and LA.-Lafayette. UCF will be expected to go 1-3 in those games. Upsetting teams like USF and N.C. State would be viewed as big wins and the Texas game is not up for debate.

Can UCF go 6-2 in Conference USA play to assure themselves of a Bowl game? Seems like a tall order to me. One thing is for sure, they finally have a home to play in.

UCF, known by the student body as "U Can't Finish" and "Under Construction Forever" will finally have a national audience to show off all their hard work. The mantra for years has been,"UCF will never be good until they get a football stadium on campus."

Every year has brought false hope to UCF fans who quickly become more loyal to the pre-game tailgate parties than the actual games themselves. They now have a place on campus to walk, to celebrate and whether they live up to their goals this year or not; a year to remember.