A new poll from Public Policy Polling snuck some sports questions into their usual political questions ahead of Super Tuesday and discovered UCF is firmly entrenched as the third most popular college team in the state behind Florida and Florida State.
UCF finished with 12 percent of respondents saying UCF was their favorite team. Florida finished with 29 percent and Florida State with 19 percent. Miami finished with 10 percent. And South Florida finished with a paltry five percent. Twenty-one percent of respondents said not sure.
The poll was a wide-scale poll of Florida voters to get their leanings on political matters heading into Super Tuesday (the Florida primaries are March 15). It showed Florida voters are leaning toward Democratic viewpoints on several issues.
But when it comes to sports, UCF’s influence is certainly growing.
Florida and Florida State are still the two big dogs in the state. With how popular and successful those teams are on a year-to-year basis, it is no surprise to see them as runaway favorites among Florida residents.
The Knights though have gained ground on the Hurricanes thanks to the Hurricanes’ own struggles in football and the Knights’ growing profile and alumni base. An 0-12 record in football seems not to matter very much.
UCF certainly has the ability to strike and gain more popularity if the school plays its cards right. Some better play in football would certainly help. Scott Frost is going to be around to help with that.
The Knights though have certainly come a long way in a short amount of time. People around the state certainly seem to be noticing them.
