ORLANDO– Quincy Mcduffie had 64yards receiving with a touchdown and a kick off returning touchdown as the UCF Knights defeated the East Carolina Pirates 40-20, Thursday night at the Bright House Networks Stadium.

Mcduffie tied the kick off return record in UCF history and gave UCF the momentum back as the Knights (3-2) receive their first Conference-USA victory while ECU (3-3)receives their first loss in the conference.

“I’m glad I was able to add that spark back to us,and my team. We stayed poised and it was hope for us all.” said Mcduffie.

UCF trailed quickly to East Carolina’s two touchdowns in the first quarter, but the Knights slowed ECU’s momentum and took control of the game.

“You go down 14-0, on just really I thought some sloppy tackling and some sloppy play by the secondary,” said UCF head coach George O’ Leary.

“They settled down and I thought we started playing to the speed of the game, but we came away with some field goals. I thought the difference was those became touchdowns.”

Blake Bortles added to the Knights success throwing 15 completions on 21 attempts for 269 yards, and a touchdown without turning the ball over.

Bortles also rushed for 62 yards and a rushing touchdown as he’s becoming more experienced in his position.

“I think I’ve gotten better each week, and with the help of the coaches, and watching film,” said Bortles.

“That’s a goal of ours to put points on the board on every possession, and as a result it was a great all around team effort.”

East Carolina put their number on the scoreboard first but failed to score another touchdown since the first quarter.

The Pirates suffered their first conference loss after moving up 2-0 after their victory over Memphis.

Central Florida safety Kemal Ismael broke the top 10 list for total tackles in UCF football history with tackles and Shawn Moffit had a total of four field goals which marks his career game high.

UCF go in next week in conference play when they host Southern Mississippi on Oct. 13, as ECU takes on Memphis.