The UCF Knights take on the Boise State Broncos. Check out our college football odds series for our UCF Boise State prediction and pick. Find how to watch UCF Boise State.

The UCF Knights are now part of the Big 12 Conference, joining Houston, BYU, and Cincinnati in the new league. Coach Gus Malzahn endured a demotion of sorts when he went from Auburn to UCF. He left a Power Five school and joined a Group of Five school, but now he is back in the Power Five realm with the Knights.

Interestingly enough, UCF-Boise State is a matchup of two schools which both achieved richly as Group of Five members. Boise State in many ways became the leader of a surge from the lower-tier schools in college football this century. The Fiesta Bowl win over Oklahoma in January of 2007 was a catalyst for other Group of Five schools. Several years after BSU stamped itself as a national brand name, UCF rose to prominence with its win in the January 2014 Fiesta Bowl against Baylor. A few years after that, Scott Frost coached the 2017 Knights to a perfect season capped by a win over (interestingly enough) Malzahn and Auburn in the Peach Bowl. Frost then went to Nebraska, and a man named Josh Heupel — who has Tennessee riding high right now — coached UCF to one more New Year's Six bowl, a Fiesta Bowl loss to LSU. Boise State and UCF are college football trailblazers. Now UCF comes to Boise with a Big 12 target on its back. The atmosphere should be festive and rowdy.

Here are the UCF-Boise State College Football odds, courtesy of FanDuel.

College Football Odds: UCF-Boise State Odds

UCF Knights: -3.5 (-110)

Boise State Broncos: +3.5 (-110)

Over: 60.5 (-110)

Under: 60.5 (-110)

How To Watch UCF vs. Boise State

TV: Fox Sports 1

Stream: Fox Sports app

Time: 7:00 p.m. ET/4:00 p.m. PT

*Watch UCF vs Boise State LIVE on fuboTV (click for free trial)*

Why UCF Could Cover the Spread

UCF quarterback John Rhys Plumlee is one of the fastest signal-callers in college football. His speed can be a headache for opposing defenses. Boise State might have the pass defended down the field, but the Broncos could still get smoked by a quarterback who knows how to find a running lane and can also scramble when a play breaks down. Plumlee can improvise, and he can give UCF potency without need for the downfield pass. This will be a unique and difficult challenge for the BSU defense.

Meanwhile, on offense, Boise State scored just 19 points against a less-than-great Washington defense in Week 1. Boise State had Dirk Koetter (a former NFL and college head coach with extensive experience) last year to stabilize the offense. Koetter joined on a short-term basis, however, and is no longer on the staff. Not having Koetter might mean more than some people think, especially when you realize that Boise State's offense was terrible in the early weeks of the 2022 season before Koetter came in and rescued the group.

Why Boise State Could Cover the Spread

The Boise State defense was hammered by Washington last week, but there's a key distinction to make between Washington quarterback Michael Penix and UCF quarterback John Rhys Plumlee: Penix wants to throw the deep ball and stay in the pocket. Plumlee loves to run and will go at the first opportunity. Boise State was eviscerated by a throwing quarterback. Plumlee, as a running quarterback, won't be nearly as threatening to the BSU defense. This is a matchup the Broncos can handle.

Final UCF-Boise State Prediction & Pick

UCF and Boise State have been talented but inconsistent in recent years. Stay away from this game, but if you do make a play, go away from the point spread and consider the total. 

Final UCF-Boise State Prediction & Pick: Over 60.5