UCF · Big 12UCF’s linebacker depth chart faces a major reset after Kozlowski eligibility stay
The 10th Circuit’s ruling puts Cole Kozlowski’s fifth season back in doubt after UCF had enrolled him, listed him on the roster and built around his return. The Knights still have experienced options, but the defense loses certainty at a position that carried real production last year.
AUG 21, 2026
Tackles Cole Kozlowski recorded for UCF last season, second on the team.
Tackles for loss Kozlowski recorded last season.
Tackles Jahleel Culbreath recorded for Old Dominion during his career year.
01 · The NewsWhat Happened
The 10th Circuit Court of Appeals granted the NCAA a stay Friday morning, putting Cole Kozlowski’s UCF return on hold after a federal ruling had granted another year of eligibility to athletes who exhausted their fourth season this spring. Kozlowski had been officially listed on the Knights’ roster, enrolled in classes and returned to practice on Aug. 8. “Good to be back,” he said while walking to the practice field. Coach Scott Frost said Aug. 10 that Kozlowski had been cleared to return but that the program was waiting on a final decision. The stay now rules Kozlowski ineligible for the moment. The case remains fluid, and the ruling could change. UCF had also posted a picture of Kozlowski with Lewis Carter on Aug. 5, days before the court action altered the situation.
02 · The StakesWhy This One Matters
This matters because Kozlowski wasn’t a fringe piece in UCF’s defense. He earned All-Big 12 Third Team honors last season after transferring from Colgate, finished second on the team with 82 tackles and added 7.5 tackles for loss. His pairing with Lewis Carter gave defensive coordinator Alex Grinch a productive linebacker duo. The legal path to this season has already taken several turns. Kozlowski’s request for a preliminary injunction in the Patterson et al v. NCAA Tennessee case was denied by Judge William L. Campbell Jr. on Jan. 15. Judge Charlotte Sweeney later granted the additional eligibility on July 31. Now the appellate stay has reopened the question.
03 · The Detail Beneath the HeadlineWhat Most People Are Missing
The headline says UCF may lose a linebacker. The bigger problem is the depth chart was already being built around a player the program thought it had. Carter and Kozlowski had formed the Knights’ top pairing, and UCF publicly treated Kozlowski’s return as real. That creates a timing issue even if the roster has answers. Jahleel Culbreath and Tackett Curtis arrived through the January transfer portal cycle, but neither had been named as Kozlowski’s replacement. Culbreath is coming off 71 tackles at Old Dominion and made the Butkus Award Watchlist. Curtis already knows Grinch’s scheme from their time together at USC and Wisconsin. Those are useful pieces. They don’t erase the lost certainty.
04 · The PersonnelNext Man Up
If the stay holds, UCF has two experienced additions to put beside Lewis Carter. Jahleel Culbreath arrives from Old Dominion after a 71-tackle season and was named to the Butkus Award Watchlist. Tackett Curtis arrives from Wisconsin and has previous experience with Alex Grinch from their time together at USC and Wisconsin. Curtis said Grinch’s scheme hasn’t changed much, and that familiarity should help him diagnose concepts quicker. That gives UCF a better fallback than a room built entirely on untested players. It still changes the job. Kozlowski finished second on the team in tackles and added 7.5 tackles for loss. His absence would force the Knights to replace both production and a known pairing with Carter. Any projected replacement remains just that until UCF settles the eligibility case and identifies the new linebacker combination in practice.
05 · The ChessboardWhat the Coaches Can Actually Change
The likeliest adjustment starts with the pairing beside Lewis Carter. UCF could use Culbreath as the downhill run defender and ask Carter to handle more of the coverage and call responsibilities. Curtis gives Grinch another option in the same scheme, which may shorten the learning curve against shifting formations and RPO looks. The defense could also rotate Culbreath and Curtis early rather than hand one player every Kozlowski snap. That would protect a new pairing while keeping fresh legs in the box. The tradeoff is simple. More rotation can preserve speed, but it can also slow communication before the snap. The first useful tell will be who stays on the field in third-and-medium situations, when Grinch has to trust one linebacker to fit the run and carry a route.
06 · The ThesisThe Pate State Read
UCF’s immediate issue isn’t a lack of linebacker bodies. It’s that the best version of the room was built with Kozlowski in it, and the court just removed that assumption. Carter still gives the Knights a proven anchor. Culbreath brings 71 tackles from Old Dominion. Curtis brings prior experience in Grinch’s defense. That’s a credible fallback, not a clean replacement. The question is whether either transfer can give UCF Kozlowski’s combination of tackle volume and production behind the line of scrimmage. If the stay holds, the answer has to show up in the pairing beside Carter, then in third down communication. Until that settles, UCF is practicing with a linebacker room that has talent but no final shape.
07 · The Watch ListWhat We're Watching
Does the stay become final?
The eligibility ruling is still fluid, and UCF coach Scott Frost said the program was waiting on a final decision. A final ruling determines whether this is a temporary depth-chart shuffle or a season-long replacement problem.
Who starts beside Lewis Carter?
Culbreath and Curtis are the named transfer options, while Carter already has a proven role. The first stable pairing will show whether UCF can replace Kozlowski with one player or has to split the job.
Can UCF replace the tackles for loss?
Kozlowski produced 7.5 tackles for loss last season. If the replacement group supplies tackles but not disruption, the Knights may preserve the tackle count while losing pressure on the run game.
Does UCF keep the Kozlowski-Carter plan?
UCF posted the two linebackers together Aug. 5, showing how recently the staff treated that pairing as active. If Kozlowski stays out, the defense’s first personnel decisions will reveal how much of the plan has to change.