Knights eye success with Alonza Barnett III, other new quarterbacks
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When UCF welcomed quarterback Alonza Barnett III into its 2026 transfer class, the Knights not only gained a starter capable of leading them to the College Football Playoff but also brought much-needed stability to a position that was in dire need of a shakeup.
It was pretty clear midway through last season that UCF (5-7) was in desperate need of an upgrade at quarterback if the Knights wanted to contend in the Big 12.
The departures of quarterbacks Tayven Jackson, Cam Fancher, Jacurri Brown and Davi Belfort left UCF with a clean slate heading into the upcoming season and opened the door for the Knights to begin the process of evaluating their next starting quarterback.
“A lot of the quarterback evaluation has been going on for a long time,” coach Scott Frost said recently.
Barnett had been on UCF’s radar for some time, as noted by Trent Mossbrucker, the program’s general manager of football player personnel.
“You start to identify and believe that people are going to go unto the portal for one reason or another,” Mossbrucker said. “They were having a great year at JMU. Then you start hearing coaching rumors, and if a coach leaves, you start identifying people on their roster. That’s how Alonza came up.”
After leading the Dukes to a victory in the Sun Belt Conference championship on Dec. 7, JMU coach Bob Chesney accepted the UCLA job, but he remained with the team for their first-round College Football Playoff game against Oregon.
“He [Barnett] becomes a guy that’s on your radar. Now you can go back and watch all the games that he played and feel very comfortable about that,” added Mossbrucker. “You have a big list, about 50 guys. Then you whittle that list down to the 12 guys who will be realistic once this thing really opens up.”
Eventually, the Knights circled in on the 22-year-old Barnett, who had led James Madison to an 11-1 regular season that was capped off with a 31-14 win over Troy in the SBC championship and a spot in the Playoff field.
The redshirt junior was named conference Offensive Player of the Year after combining for 3,395 total yards and 38 total touchdowns.
“What I love more than anything about Alonza is that he’s a winner, he’s a proven winner,” said Frost. “When you’re a really good team, you have exceptional leadership from that position. You have somebody who’s tough at that position, that other people want to get behind and play for and believe in.
“So, not even speaking about the talent that he brings, I’m really impressed with his demeanor and excited about the level of toughness and leadership that we should get from him.”
It was important, in the grand scheme of things, that UCF land a quarterback early when the 15-day transfer window opened on Jan. 2. That’s why the Knights wasted little time signing Barnett two days later on Jan. 4.
“There are a lot of skill players that when you talk to their agents about potentially coming to our school, one of the first questions is: who is the quarterback going to be?” Frost explained. “That made it a priority for us for more reasons than the obvious. It was certainly one of the first dominoes that needed to fall in order for us to fill out the team that we were able to bring in.”
Barnett’s signing was a huge piece of UCF’s offseason blueprint, but he wasn’t the only addition to help solidify the quarterback position. The Knights also signed transfers Keyone Jenkins and Kaleb Annett.
UCF athletics continues to show steady growth in Big 12
Jenkins, a 6-0 dual-threat quarterback from FIU, appeared in 33 games (20 starts) over three seasons with the Panthers. He amassed 6,713 passing yards with 42 touchdowns and 25 interceptions, while also rushing for 312 yards and 13 touchdowns.
Annett signed late in the process, after seeing limited action at Boise State.
Rounding out the room are Rocco Marriott and Dante Carr, a pair of true freshmen who signed as part of the Knights’ 2026 recruiting class.
While UCF enters this upcoming season with a clear-cut starting quarterback, unlike last season, that doesn’t mean there won’t be a competition for Barnett’s backup.
“I’m looking forward to getting him with the rest of the guys and just seeing how all of it comes together,” Frost said of Barnett. “We’re definitely approaching this year with what we have as our No. 1. The battle is really for two, three and beyond.”
Please find me on X, Bluesky or Instagram @osmattmurschel. Email: mmurschel@orlandosentinel.com. Sign up for the Sentinel’s Knights Weekly newsletter for a roundup of all our UCF coverage.
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