The last time the UCF Knights took the field they were literally hurting at the wide receiver position. Not playing against Memphis on Oct. 3 were veterans Rocky Ross and Kamar Aiken.

Then down went senior tight end Corey Rabazinski.

Junior Ricky Kay (#43) and teammate A.J. Guyton celebrate the go-ahead touchdown against Memphis. (Photo by Scott McCall)

So senior quarterback Brett Hodges was left to turn to junior receiver Jamar Newsome, sophomore receiver A.J. Guyton and unheralded junior halfback Ricky Kay – when sophomore Brynn Harvey wasn’t taking one of his 42 carries for 219 yards – to help get the job down in a 32-14 Conference USA win.

Newsome hauled in five balls for 58 yards and a score, Guyton caught four passes for 50 yards, and Kay caught four passes himself for 52 yards, including a crucial touchdown to end the third quarter which put the Knights up for good, 15-14.

“I got a chance, got an opportunity, and just ran with it,” said Kay of being involved in the passing game.

While Memphis refused to cover the flats Hodges continued to find Kay, which resulted in the go-ahead touchdown from seven yards out as three seconds remained in the period.

The 6-3, 239-pounder out of Deltona was just glad to be given the chance to step in and earn some quality playing time after walking-on in 2007 and primarily playing special teams and fullback over the past two seasons.

Ricky Kay makes his way past defenders after hauling in a pass. (Photo by Scott McCall)

Through 25 games over that stretch he had caught 13 passes for 97 yards while focusing mostly on his blocking assignments. He pulled in four passes for 35 yards in a win against Memphis his freshman year then caught the only touchdown of his career last year against the Tigers. His four catches earlier this month were his first of the season.

“Life’s just a game of chances and whatever opportunities present itself you got to just go with it and play as hard as you can, and that’s basically what I did,” he said.

Ross leads UCF (3-2 overall, 1-2 C-USA) this season in receiving with 17 catches for 220 yards and one score followed by Guyton (15 for 193 yards), Newsome (15 for 131 yards and two touchdowns) and Aiken (11 for 198 yards and two touchdowns).