The UCF Knights just made a big move that recently made headlines, shaking up the world of college football, particularly within the Big 12 Conference. The school decided not to use a new financial option that has the backing of RedBird Capital credit. While it looks like a power move on the ground level, it has more complexity to it.

“They’re carrying over $120M in stadium debt tied to the Roth Tower expansion, had a $10M debt service payment in FY25, and the $22.5M fund itself came from university auxiliary reserves, not athletics revenue, ” noted NOCAP Sports’ Nick Lord on X. “Their reported $5.27M surplus for FY25 comes with a caveat from the university that it doesn’t reflect the full financial picture.”

RedBird Partners is a major private investment firm. They have made headlines by making the first league-wide capital agreement in college sports alongside the Big 12 Conference. It offers easy fund access to the Big 12 schools, where they can take loans for infrastructure.

UCF, however, declined the offer. Their athletic director had high praise for it, but they wouldn’t be using it. Instead, they would opt to spend their university money through their own financial strategies.

“UCF supports the Big 12’s new business development partnership with RedBird Capital and the opportunities it creates across the conference,” Terry Mohajir said recently. “This is a forward-thinking, proactive approach that will help drive future revenue growth. UCF Athletics will not exercise the one-time credit option.”

UCF’s board of directors recently approved the Athletic Strategic Investment Fund, which is worth $22.5 million. It’s meant to build a better seating area while expanding multimedia rights, which could help to grow the revenue. It’s a strategic move by Mohajir because UCF is trying to have an income strategy of its own without taking the burden of millions of loans, especially considering its high-interest debt nearing the 10% mark.

While declining the option helps UCF avoid additional debt, they would miss out on the chance of immediate funding that could have unlocked the chance of high-end upgrades with a tech-driven fan engagement.

The university’s budget for this year is about $121 million, $57 million more than in 2021, when Terry took charge. As of now, UCF is going through a transition period for the conference distribution. The full Big 12 revenue is set to kick in this year.

While UCF is gaining ground quickly, the gap in wealth with the legacy Big 12 schools is visible. For instance, in the 2024 season, they had $93 million in total revenue, but Kansas recorded the highest revenue at $215 million, followed by Baylor ($148 million), TCU ($142 million), Oklahoma State ($132 million), and BYU ($130 million).

Heading to the next season, the better financial revenue remains the goal for Mohajir, but on the gridiron, they have some improvements to make, which UCF head coach Scott Frost recently addressed.

Scott Frost is vowed to resolve UCF’s penalty issues next season

The university’s spring camp recently concluded, and it continued for five weeks. After starting on March 31, it recently ended on May 2. During the spring camp, he has made it a priority to address the excessive number of penalties that affected the team’s performance last season.

“It’s just being able to stay locked in and focused,” Scott said recently. “If you start thinking about who you have to block and what’s going to happen and you’re not mature enough or have played enough to remember the snap count, little things like that got us last year.”

The pre-snap was the pain point for the Knights last season. Out of the 65 total penalties committed last season, 40 were before the snap. Moreover, the false start was another key area of concern. The Knights’ offense was penalized 27 times for false starts, which often derailed momentum during the pivotal moments of the games.

The coach also emphasized the importance of mental focus next season, implying that a lot of issues came from adding 70 new players and new staff. Moving forward to the next campaign, the 51-year-old will be hoping these setbacks are fully resolved.