- College of Medicine Students UCF
The UCF Knights pummeled the Akron Zips 38-7 in their football season opener August 29, and medical students and Dean Deborah German helped celebrate the victory – literally on the field.
The College of Medicine and UCF Health, the medical school’s physician practice, sponsored the game. Dr. German and 10 first-year medical students received the game ball on the field and Dr. German was interviewed live at halftime on the UCF IMG Sports Network WYGM 740-AM.
The game at Bright House Network Stadium marked the first time that UCF played as a member of the newly formed American Athletic Conference and the Knights scored a touchdown on their first possession as medical students stood on the sideline high-fived and cheered.
Vice President and Director of Athletics Todd Stansbury presented the game ball to Dr. German on the field. And in what has become a College of Medicine game ball tradition, she faded back and passed the ball to the students. M-1 Alexander Lim, a UCF undergraduate, made the lucky catch, and fell to the ground in dramatic wide receiver fashion. Several of his student colleagues immediately began CPR.
The students are among the 120-member class of 2017, the College of Medicine’s first full class in its young history. “This is a great experience,” said M.D. student Zoran Pavlovic, a Chicago native who graduated from Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska. “First time in Florida, first time at UCF. This is wonderful.”