UCF starting QB EJ Colson over KJ Jefferson against Cincinnati

UCF is making a quarterback change on Saturday. The Knights are starting true freshman EJ Colson against Cincinnati, a source tells On3. Former Arkansas transfer KJ Jefferson joined UCF last offseason and started the first five games of the season for the Knights.

Jefferson has struggled in UCF’s last two losses to Colorado and Florida. The quarterback has thrown for 1,012 yards on the season with seven touchdowns and four interceptions, posting a 59.3 completion percentage. A source told On3 that Jefferson is banged up.

Colson is 17 years old and becomes the youngest starting quarterback in UCF history. The quarterback committed to the Knights in July 2023 and reclassified from the 2025 to 2024 recruiting class last December.

Auburn, Alabama, Georgia and Tennessee all had Colson on campus at one point throughout his recruitment. Colson threw for 5,969 yards and 68 touchdowns and rushed for 1,354 career yards and 16 touchdowns during his high school career at Cedar Grove (Byron, Georgia).

With five years of experience with the Razorbacks, Jefferson was one of the most established names at his position in the winter transfer portal. He entered this year with 7,923 career passing yards and 67 touchdowns with just 18 interceptions. The former four-star recruit in the class of 2019 has 39 career starts, touting a 20-19 overall record.

“Yeah, I mean, obviously, last week, I said after the game, we need to play better around him [KJ],” UCF head coach Gus Malzahn said this week about the quarterback situation. “He’s gotta play better, too. I mean, we really all of the above, gotta coach better. It was all of it. So we understand that we didn’t have, what, 300 yards of offense. And before that, we were really rolling. So we’ve gotta be better, really, in all areas.”

UCF is 3-2 on the season and 1-1 in the Big 12, ranked seventh in the league standings. Saturday’s matchup with Cincinnati kicks off at 3:30 p.m. ET on ESPN2.