The 2021 college football season has been chaotic to say the least, but it feels like things are starting to find a rhythm. Two programs looking to do just that are UCF (2-1) and Navy (0-3). Both have experienced their fair share of headaches this season and are coming off bye weeks, but that's where the similarities end.

The Knights had a rough Week 3, falling on the road to Louisville and losing starting quarterback Dillon Gabriel to injury. As for the Mids, every week has been rough since losing to Marshall, 49-7, to kickoff 2021.

These two teams have only met twice before on the gridiron, clashing in 2017 and 2018 as members of The American. The Knights hold a 2-0 advantage, winning in Annapolis in 2017 and then winning again the next season in Orlando. This will be the first time UCF head coach Gus Malzahn has ever faced the Navy Midshipmen football program.

One of the biggest stories surrounding UCF off the field has been the program's meteoric rise. The Knights athletics program has now moved from Division III, Division II, the FCS level, the FBS level that included time in the MAC, Conference USA, the AAC, and now to the Big 12 Conference (in 2023 or 2024). But while that's impressive, it doesn't really have much to do with Saturday's game.

Let's take a look at the teams.

UCF Knights | Head Coach: Gus Malzahn 1st Season | Record: 2-1

Scouting UCF Football in Week 5
UCF enters Saturday’s game with impressive wins over Boise State and Bethune-Cookman. Its only loss was a 42-35 heart-breaker at Louisville. UCF is sixth in the country in points per game (44.3) and third in total offense (559.3 yds/gm). The Knights’ roster features 23 transfers from FBS schools, including 16 from the Autonomy Five. UCF has 13 more transfers from the FCS / junior college / prep school ranks. UCF has one of the top quarterbacks in the country in Dillon Gabriel, but it appears that Gabriel will not play on Saturday after breaking his clavicle on the final play of the Louisville game. Freshman signal caller Mikey Keene is expected to get the start. Northwestern transfer Isaiah Bowser is the team’s leading rusher, carrying the ball 51 times for 268 yards and 5 touch-downs. His 5 rushing touchdowns are the 20th most in the country. Sophomore speedster Johnny Richardson has run for 134 yards on just 15 carries (8.9 yds/carry). Richardson is also a threat in the return game where he is ranked 19th nationally in kickoff returns (26.0 yds/return). UCF ranks 12th nation-ally in rushing offense (252.3 yds/gm).

Sophomore defensive back Quadric Bullard leads the team with 25 tackles, while Kennesaw State transfer linebacker Bryson Armstrong has 18 tackles and a tackle for loss. Junior Dyllon Lester is averaging 1.3 pass deflections per game, which ranks 25th nationally. The UCF defense ranks 16th nationally against the run, giv-ing up just 78.3 yards per game

Navy Midshipmen | Head Coach: Ken Niumatalolo 14th season | Record: 0-3

Scouting Navy Football in Week 5
Navy is in its 14th season under head coach Ken Niumatalolo, who holds an overall record of 101-70 with the Mids. Last season, Navy went just 3-7 in the shortened season after going 11-2 the year prior. The Midshipmen failed to appear in a bowl game for just the third time in Niumatlolo’s tenure. Navy has opened up the 2021 campaign 0-3 with home losses to Marshall and Air Force, as well as a road loss at Houston this past weekend. Xavier Arline leads the offense with 171 rushing yards and two touchdowns, while Diego Fagot has totaled 28 tackles and 4.5 TFLs in two games for the defense.

Fagot is on the “Watch Lists” for the 2021 Chuck Bednarik Award (Maxwell Football Club) and the Bronko Nagurski Trophy (Football Writers Association of America) which are presented to the top defensive player in college football. The senior linebacker was named a Third-Team Preseason All-American by Phil Steele’s College Football Magazine and First Team on Steele’s All-AAC team. Fagot is a two-time All-AAC performer, garnering second-team honors by the league’s coaches as a junior and first-team recognition as a sophomore. And he's about the only positive the Mids have had to talk about this season.

UCF at Navy will kickoff live from Annapolis, Maryland on CBS Sports Network at 3:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, Oct. 2.