ORLANDO, Fla. -- Dillon Gabriel passed for 298 yards and three touchdowns, including two to Tre Nixon, and ran for a score as UCF dominated the second half and beat Houston 44-29 on Saturday.
Houston jumped out to a 10-0 lead on Mulbah Car's 37-yard TD run and a 45-yard field goal by Dalton Witherspoon. Gabriel hit Marlon Williams for a 6-yard score and, after Car scored on a 2-yard run, added a 32-yard scoring strike to Nixon to pull UCF (7-2, 4-1 American Athletic Conference) with 17-14 after one quarter.
Gabriel scored on a 22-yard run midway through the second quarter to put the Knights up 21-17, but Witherspoon kicked two field goals in the final 4 minutes and Houston (3-6, 1-4) took a 23-21 lead into halftime.