Almost every day, Gene McDowell cornered one or two of his UCF football players during practice. He'd chew on his cigar, focus his stern gaze and ask a simple, yet perplexing question, "So what do you think?"
There was no set up to his inquiry, meaning players were often clueless as to what his question was about. The smart ones just learned how to improvise.
"He always kept me guessing," former UCF linebacker Mike Palmer said with a chuckle. "Finally, I'd have to come up with something."
There weren't many questions McDowell didn't already have the answers to as the man who saved UCF football from extinction.