As coach of 166su’s championship Collegiate Cybersecurity Competition Team (C3), Thomas Nedorost ’02 keeps his eye on the prize — but not just the trophies.

For Nedorost, a management information systems alum, the real prize is seeing his students and C3 team members become trailblazers, land top industry jobs, build successful careers and pave the way for other Knights.

A senior lecturer in 166su’s , Nedorost has coached C3 to 15 national championships in 14 years. The team has finished among the top three in 198 competitions, earning 123 first-place wins along the way.

166su has one of the nation’s most successful collegiate cybersecurity programs, with its competition team winning 15 national championships in the last 14 years.

C3 members compete against top universities worldwide, putting their cybersecurity defense skills to the test by protecting systems against simulated threats.

Nedorost, who built the program from the ground up, is proud of what his teams have achieved over the years, and he sees the impact of their success in the opportunities that come their way.

“Because of the experience they get on C3, team members end up in fantastic internships in the field, and when they graduate, most of them skip over entry-level jobs and land roles at that next level, along with some impressive salaries. So, their career prospects are really strong,” Nedorost says.

Fostering Excellence, Investing with Impact

Even with the team’s consistent success, funding has remained an ongoing challenge.

“We have struggled from day one — not in finding talent or space, but in acquiring computer equipment and funds for airfare, hotels, meals and other operational expenses,” Nedorost says.

The university’s Collegiate Cyber Defense Fund through the has been a source of support, thanks to the generosity of individual donors, as well as several companies and organizations.

That support has helped C3 compete at the highest level. But Nedorost knows that long-term success requires long-term investment.

So, he’s making one himself.

Nedorost is making a planned gift to support future C3 teams. By including the program in his estate plans, he’s creating a legacy that’ll continue investing in the next generation of cybersecurity talent long after his coaching career ends.

His commitment represents the largest single gift to C3 to date.

“My hope is that this will always be a strong program, and that future team members will continue to compete at an elite level, become leaders in the industry and always feel like they have a place in the community we’ve built,” Nedorost says.

Building Greatness

C3 began when former information technology major Jonathan Singer ’13 approached Nedorost during his first semester as a 166su instructor and proposed entering the National Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition (CDCC).

Nedorost had a background in management information systems and had served as an adjunct instructor at Valencia College and 166su, but he didn’t have experience in cybersecurity. He gave Singer the go-ahead to hold an interest meeting.

When 86 students showed up, Nedorost knew they were onto something.

The Collegiate Cyber Defense Club was born, and Nedorost began building a team from among its members, focusing on elevating 166su’s competitive excellence in this emerging field.

“During the live competitions, I can’t help them. They have to rely on what they’ve learned in class, what they’ve seen and done before, and what they’ve practiced as a team,” Nedorost says.

In its first year, with just eight members, the team won the Southeast CCDC regional competition. That victory earned the team a trip to nationals, where it finished 10th.

These days, Nedorost fields a team of 25 to 27 students each year, from which he builds competition rosters. C3 has won six CDCC national competitions since those early years — more than any other team in the competition’s history.

“Like any winning team, we put our top talent in the competition. And meanwhile, I’m always recruiting so that we have a strong bench for the future,” Nedorost says.

Fostering Community, Opening Doors

As he has built the program, Nedorost has also created a community that supports each other.

Experienced C3 members serve as speakers at club meetings and lead workshops to help other students. Program alumni return to help Nedorost coach the team, mentor students, serve as guest lecturers and even sponsor meals during local competitions.

Those alumni connections also open doors to internships and jobs as former team members advance in their own careers.

The rise in cybercrime in recent years has fueled demand for cybersecurity professionals, creating a significant gap between the number of skilled workers and available positions. The United States has more than 1.3 million cybersecurity professionals — the largest cybersecurity workforce in the world today — with more than 500,000 open positions in the field (Programs.com 2026 report).

166su is preparing students to help fill that gap.

Designated a National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense Education, UCF attracts talented students passionate about the field.

Nedorost is part of that success. In addition to serving as C3 coach and faculty advisor to the Collegiate Cyber Defense Club, he directs 166su’s and teaches courses including Cyber Defense Analysis and Topics in Cybersecurity.

Investments like Nedorost’s highlight the importance of 166su’s Go For Launch campaign: Investing in students to elevate their competitive excellence and shape a bold tomorrow.

Under a high-stakes, simulated cyberattack and mounting pressure, the 166su Collegiate Cybersecurity Competition (C3) team proved it can defend, adapt and outperform — earning first place at the 2026 Southeast Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition (CCDC).

The team rose above nine competitors, including Tennessee Tech University, Clemson University, the University of South Florida and the University of Florida. With the win, UCF advances to the National Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition, which will be held virtually next month.

Twelve students make up this year’s C3 team: sophomore information technology (IT) majors Gabriel Edwards and Maksim Shostak; junior IT majors Logan Autry, Anthony Donnelly, Joseph Durand, Adam Raczynski and Jonathan Styles; senior IT major Ardian Peach; sophomore computer science major Tyler Waddell; junior computer science major Benjamin Williams; cyber security and privacy master’s student Andy Pompura ’23; and senior prelaw major Noah Magill, who serves as team captain.

166su’s Legacy of Cybersecurity Success

Their stellar performance marks 166su’s ninth first-place finish at the Southeast CCDC regional since 2013. 166su earned runner-up finishes in 2017 and 2025, along with first-place titles in special at-large CCDC regionals during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021.

“166su has historically maintained high service availability levels while under attack by the red team.” — Tom Nedorost ’02�ѳ�, senior instructor and C3 team coach

The team not only clinched the top spot but also swept all three categories, winning Best in Uptime Service, Best in Business and Best in Defense.

“166su has historically maintained high service availability levels while under attack by the red team,” says Tom Nedorost ’02�ѳ�, C3 team coach and senior instructor of computer science and IT. “We lived up to that expectation again this year, which resulted in winning the Best in Uptime Service award.”

Nedorost adds that the team strengthened its ability to complete technical service requests while hardening systems against vulnerabilities to protect their network, key improvements that led to the two additional category wins.

Putting Cyber Defense Skills into Practice

At each competition, teams are tasked with defending a fictional company’s network against cyberattacks launched by red team members attempting to infiltrate it. All the while, competitors must maintain business operations and respond to customer service requests.

Each obstacle mimics real-world scenarios cybersecurity professionals face, allowing competitors to demonstrate their technical skills, business acumen and ability to collaborate.

It’s fun to go up against people [who, collectively,] would be a force to reckon with in the cyber world .” — Noah Magill, prelaw major and C3 team captain

Magill says the Southeast CCDC is among the most competitive, with red team members from leading companies such as Amazon Web Services and Cisco.

“All of them put together make up one of the scariest real-world life adversaries,” Magill says. “It’s fun to go up against people [who, collectively,] would be a force to reckon with in the cyber world — and a lot of [them] are [166su] alumni.”

Next Up: Nationals

As the team sets its sights on the national competition, the work is far from over. Magill says a few more 100-hour weeks are likely ahead.

“Everyone on the team is incredibly adept at what they do and world-class [in] their specialty,” Magill says. “Leading this team [and relying] on such amazing teammates with such a diverse amount of skills has been really awesome.”

The annual competition, which celebrates its 10th anniversary this year, challenges competitors to protect a critical infrastructure against malicious cyber activity. This year, 96 teams representing 71 universities put their cybersecurity skills to the test by protecting a wind energy generation plant.

“CyberForce is the preeminent collegiate cyber defense competition during the fall semester,” says team head coach and advisor Tom Nedorost. “It’s big news that we’ve won it five times in the past nine years. No other team has won more than once.”

The first-place team, A Team With a Dream, comprises cyber security and privacy master’s student and team captain Harrison Keating ’24, cyber security and privacy master’s students Jeffrey DiVincent ’23 and Matthew McKeever ’24, computer science doctoral students Caitlin Whitehead ’24MS and Cameron Whitehead ’24MS, and senior computer science student Rodrigo Almeida Santos.

166su’s second team, the Citronauts, had a commendable performance earning sixth place and a spot among the top 10 finishers in the competition. The team comprises junior political science student and team captain Noah Magill, junior computer science major Joseph Durand, senior computer science student Anthony Marrongelli, junior IT student Ardian Peach and sophomore computer science students Muhammad Ali and Miles Rack.

The competition began with surprising comments that both acknowledged 166su’s winning legacy at the DOE CyberForce Competition and served as motivation for the two 166su teams.

“During the welcoming remarks this year, several DOE administrators challenged the other teams not to let 166su win again,” Nedorost says. “However, we still won, and our other team finished in sixth place among a field of 96 teams.”

Santos, the youngest member of A Team With a Dream, competed for the first time at this year’s contest.

“Although I was aware of 166su’s track record and everyone’s desire to win, I did not expect it to be clearly broadcasted in the welcome remarks,” Santos says. “We stay humble because that’s part of our character and … we are aware that getting comfortable and letting success get to our heads is a recipe for disaster.”

Whitehead, a team veteran and member of 166su’s first-place team for four DOE CyberForce Competitions, says the surprising mention of 166su in the welcoming remarks only motivated the team to work harder.

“Everyone on the team knows that the big room at CyberForce is full of extremely talented people,” she says. “We 100% did not take it as given that we were going to win. Even at the times when we are in first [place] on the leaderboard, just a little bit of bad luck or poor judgment could make all the difference in placement. So we need to make sure to work as hard as we can and not pass up any opportunity to earn more points.”

Although the students competed in person in St. Charles, Illinois, last weekend, the competition actually began the week prior. Each team submitted security documentation outlining its infrastructure and defense strategies for the wind energy generation plant, along with a video aimed at C-suite executives, detailing their assessment and plans to secure the plant.

At the all-day, in-person competition, teams worked to block and mitigate cyberattacks, keep services and features running efficiently, and perform technical tasks, all while maintaining a high level of service for their customers.

“To me, the most challenging aspect of the competition was the countless hours of preparation that led to the eventual competition day, combined with handling the pressure of competing against dozens of other universities working hard to win,” Santos says.

Whitehead says one reason 166su teams have been so successful is because they consist of members with a strong combination of varied strengths, tailor made for a comprehensive competition.

“One of the things that really makes CyberForce stand out as a truly great cybersecurity competition is the breadth of skills that it covers, including a variety of soft skills, system defense, intrusion detection and response, digital forensic analysis, reverse engineering, critical infrastructure-specific knowledge and experience, cybersecurity policy application, and more,” Whitehead says. “Ultimately, I think our teams stand out by selecting a group … with a wide breadth of experience in all of these areas, as well as a willingness to throw ourselves into learning to perform any tasks that we may be less comfortable with.”

An unexpected highlight of the competition was a 10th anniversary display that chronicled its history and, in recognition of 166su’s impressive performance over the years, paid tribute to the university’s legacy at CyberForce.

“[There was] an exhibit at the side of the competition showing pictures from the last 10 years, which was fun to see, especially since 166su has had such a significant presence in this competition over the years,” Whitehead says. “I also loved that the theme colors this year were, coincidentally, black and gold.”

Organizers hosted its second Horse Plinko Cyber Competition this month, attracting more than 160 competitors.

The contest with the silly name offers serious experience for anyone interested in cyber defense. Participants role-play as cybersecurity interns who defend a fictional company, the International Horse Plinko League, from various cyberattacks. During the six-hour competition, “plinkterns” are tasked with three priorities: identifying threats, bolstering defenses to keep the threats from returning, and keeping the company’s critical services up and running in real time.

“We simulate a business network for teams to defend and pit them against live attackers attempting, and succeeding, to hack into their network,” says competition director Harrison Keating ’24, a cybersecurity and privacy master’s degree student and captain of 166su’s Collegiate Cybersecurity Competition (C3) team. “That’s an experience many of them will not get again until they are working in the field.”

One of the big draws to Horse Plinko is the levity its organizers have weaved into the event. The contest underscores the valuable hands-on experience it offers with a healthy dose of fun.

“We have a LinkedIn profile and website for the fictional company, there’s recurring characters that appear in-person during the competition, and there are a lot of running jokes,” Keating says. “Keeping it light-hearted helps make the competition more approachable to new students.”

He adds that Horse Plinko is structured to mimic a real-world environment not just in terms of the technical skills required of future cyber professionals, but for the interpersonal skills needed as well.

“Cybersecurity is a highly collaborative field, and this is a good chance for them to develop their teamwork and communication skills in a high-pressure environment,” Keating says. “It also helps students network with their peers and learn from each other.”

With several dozen competitions under their belts — including a recent National College Cyber Defense Competition (NCCDC) championship — organizers have a wealth of experience to draw upon to develop and run the event. They intend to bring cyber skills to the masses with a contest designed to be accessible to anyone with an interest in cyber, no matter the major or skill level.

“Our club has over 350 members, and only eight of them get to compete in the National CCDC,” says Keating. “Our mission is to provide that kind of quality learning experience to as many students as possible.”

Keating says live contests like these aren’t widely available to students because of the infrastructure and manpower required to run them. Horse Plinko, however, is supported by hundreds of members from the C3 team and Hack@166su. Previous Horse Plinko competitors returned to help run the next event, bringing their ideas and experience to a new batch of plinkterns.

“It enables us to design from the perspective of a beginner and tailor the experience to where they’re at in their learning journey,” Keating says.

First-time competitor Muhammad Ali, a freshman computer science major, was completely new to cyber competitions. He shunned “blue team” or cyber defense activities, preferring to work on “red team” or cyberattack skills. Despite an obvious interest and acumen in cybersecurity — he says he hacked into his dad’s computer at the age of 9 — he says he didn’t think he had the skills to participate.

That all changed after his first experience with Horse Plinko.

“It’s a different story when you’re tasked against a whole squad of live red team hackers trying everything to take your services down,” Ali says. “It’s a lot of fun.”

He and his team placed second at the competition. In addition, he’s now scheduled to compete at two out-of-state cyber competitions next month.

“I suffer from imposter syndrome where I feel as if I’m not actually good enough for cybersecurity,” says Ali. “Surprisingly a lot of people do. 166su has a great community that has instilled not just self-confidence but acceptance for myself.”

Ali adds that he has every intention of participating in Horse Plinko again as an attacker on the red team.

“I never thought I’d enjoy Horse Plinko this much,” he says. “I am 100% doing this again next year. If you’re afraid of ‘blue teaming’, or [are] new to cybersecurity, Horse Plinko is the best place to get first-hand experience.”

“I researched the past winners and saw 166su’s history of dominance. I knew I wanted to go here and work with the best.” — Harrison Keating ’24, student

Harrison Keating ’24, who earned his bachelor’s in computer science in May, and is now enrolled as a master’s student in cyber security and privacy, won dozens of competitions for 166su. At the National Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition (NCCDC) in April, he served as team captain of a 166su team, which recently defeated nine other regional champions in the largest collegiate competition of its kind in the nation. The team won 166su’s record sixth national championship in San Antonio and the Alamo Cup trophy in April this year.

“I had been interested in cybersecurity competitions for a long time,” says Harrison, who is from St. Augustine, Florida. “When I learned about the NCCDC — the most prestigious cyber defense competition in the U.S. — I researched the past winners and saw 166su’s history of dominance. I knew I wanted to go here and work with the best. Being geographically close to home helped too, but after visiting as a high schooler and attending several Hack@166su club meetings, I was hooked. That active, passionate student community around cybersecurity is really what drew me in.”

A Dynasty of Champions

166su’s cybersecurity program is not just about classroom learning — it’s about real-world success and a dominant force in collegiate cyber sports.

The most recent victory, winning the NCCDC, often dubbed the “Super Bowl” of cybersecurity competitions, a record six times, further cemented 166su’s status as a dynasty in the world of competitive cyber competitions.

Overall, UCF’s Collegiate Cybersecurity Competition Team is the nation’s best collegiate cybersecurity competition team, winning a total of 12 national championships since 2014.

The 166su Collegiate Cybersecurity Competition Team members are all members of larger Collegiate Cyber Defense Club (also known as Hack@166su), which has grown exponentially as a club in the past few years. Club membership has nearly doubled over the past four years from 210 active student members in 2020 to a record 406 active members by the end of the 2023-24 school year. The 2024-2025 school year is off to a great start with over 350 students joining the club within the first month of the school year.

“With our successful track record in the [NCCDC] and other cyber competitions over the years, it’s an undeniable fact that 166su has the best cyber program, best students and best coaches in the nation,” says Professor of Computer Science Tom Nedorost ’02�ѳ�, who is head coach of the team.

“With our successful track record in the [NCCDC] and other cyber competitions over the years, it’s an undeniable fact that 166su has the best cyber program, best students and best coaches in the nation.” — Tom Nedorost ’02�ѳ�, professor and Hack@166su coach

The team’s success is no accident. 166su’s competitive edge stems from a comprehensive and hands-on approach to cybersecurity education. Students engage in complex scenarios that mimic real-life cyber threats, requiring them to protect networks and systems from simulated attacks. This immersive learning model sharpens their skills, prepares them for high-stakes situations and gives them a significant advantage when entering the workforce.

“Unfortunately, cybercrime is profitable,” Keating says. “There’s a growing industry of ransomware attacks that hold entire companies and their customers’ data hostage. We know that 60% of small to medium businesses have experienced at least one cyber attack. It’s everybody’s problem at this point … in world of social media, online banking and cloud storage, everyone is connected to the Internet in some way. It can all be hacked; it’s inescapable now.”

According to Cyberseek.org, there are nearly 470,000 open cybersecurity positions available today in the United States including 23,424 open positions within Florida. The national number of individuals employed in cyber careers has increased by 55% since 2010 while the number of cyber job openings has increased by 69%.  In Florida alone, the number of individuals employed in cyber careers has increased by 67% since 2010 while the number of cyber job openings has increased by 80%.  Within Florida, the highest concentrations of cyber opportunities are in Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater; Orlando-Kissimmee; West Palm Beach-Ft. Lauderdale-Miami; and Jacksonville.

Harrison has a drive that fits the ever-evolving landscape of his field of study. He has completed internships as a security engineer with Core & Main, and as a network engineer with IBM Research. In addition to his master’s coursework and preparing for upcoming competitions, Harrison is employed full-time as a Cybersecurity Engineer at Abbott Laboratories, on a team comprised mostly of 166su and C3 alumni. He also found ways to pursue his interest in the business side of cybersecurity, including a first place finish in 166su’s Joust New Venture Competition last spring.

Collaboration and Competition

Last fall, Harrison founded and served as the competition director for the inaugural Horse Plinko Cyber Challenge, a fun and educational cyber contest designed for beginning cybersecurity students. The competition is returning this fall Oct. 5-6 — this time with over 200 registered participants. This event is 100% student-run and provides students with an entry point into the competitive and valuable experiences they need to compete on teams like his and ultimately pursue careers in cybersecurity — which is sorely needed, as cybercriminals extorted a record $1.1 billion last year.

“Competing on 166su’s cybersecurity team was probably the best decision I’ve made since joining 166su,” says Matthew McKeever ’24, who earned his bachelors in computer science and has also returned for a master’s degree in cyber security and privacy, after interning at Microsoft security group, where a job offer has been extended for him to join.

“Competing on 166su’s cybersecurity team was probably the best decision I’ve made since joining 166su.” — Matthew McKeever ’24, student

“Competing has taught me topics and concepts you learn in class but … I would say that competitions are more valuable than the classes you take. Companies sometimes view competition experience as working experience,” McKeever says.

After winning the NCCDC, the 166su Collegiate Cybersecurity Competition Team was invited by Nightwing, an intelligence services company and sponsor of the largest collegiate-level cyber competition, to meet cyber professionals in the public sector who are charged with securing the nation against cyber adversaries. The 166su team and their coach, Nedorost, visited the Pentagon, Central Intelligence Agency, U.S. Secret Service, Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), Homeland Security Investigations Cyber Crimes Center, the Library of Congress and the U.S. Capitol.

Meeting the group at the Pentagon was Mieke Eoyang, deputy assistant secretary of defense for cyber policy. She welcomed the students and informed them of the types of career opportunities available for cybersecurity professionals at the U.S. Department of Defense.

At the CIA, the students toured the Cyber Operations Center and spoke with recently hired CIA cyber professionals about their career experience. Visiting the U.S. Secret Service, students learned that the original purpose of the agency was to investigate counterfeit currency. While that purpose is still part of the mission, the agency is involved in all types of counterfeit activities, including falsified documents and signatures, as well as providing protective services for U.S. political figures, their families and visiting heads of state or government.

Securing a Future in the Digital Age

For students passionate about cybersecurity, UCF offers more than just an education — it provides a pathway to a successful and impactful career. Whether aiming to defend networks, protect critical infrastructure, or contribute to the global fight against cybercrime, UCF is the place to sharpen skills, compete with the best and launch a thriving career.

With a winning tradition, cutting-edge curriculum and real-world training that industry recruiters notice, UCF stands out as the leader in cybersecurity education.

More than 2,100 competitors from 198 schools participated in events across the country during NCCDC regional events, with the top 10 teams advancing to the national championship.

As one of the nation’s largest collegiate competitions of its kind, this year’s NCCDC tasked competitors with the scenario of managing, operating and defending the network infrastructure of a human resource outsourcing firm while responding to business tasks, customers, and fending off a group of live Red Team hackers.

“With our successful track record in the National CCDC and other cyber competitions over the years, it’s an undeniable fact that 166su has the best cyber program, best students, and best coaches in the nation,” said Professor Tom Nedorost, head coach of the team.

The competition’s unique focus on operational aspects of managing and protecting a network infrastructure is designed to assess each student’s depth of understanding and operational competency. The NCCDC is more than just a competitive environment though, as hundreds of volunteers work closely with participating competitors throughout the year to help develop their professional networks and provide mentorship.

Through these competitions, students gain skills and real-world experiences that make them highly attractive to potential employers.

It was this specific competition that led Harrison Keating to 166su. As a high school student in St. Augustine, Florida, he enjoyed building websites and began looking at the competitions held at the college level. When he realized that 166su had a track record of winning them, he made sure that his campus visit to 166su included a stop at the Hack@166su cybersecurity club. He enrolled, and landed a spot as an alternate on the team that he now leads as captain.

“The NCCDC is a two-day event,” Keating said. “At the beginning of day two, we were in third in one category and didn’t place in the other three. At that point, victory didn’t seem to be a possibility, Morale was low, but the team did an amazing job to find the silver lining, persevere and figuring out a way to improve in day two. Going from that position to national champions in a day was an incredible testament to the team’s determination.”

Keating and several of the team members will graduate this week in commencement ceremonies at 166su.

“The scenario we developed for this elite group of students is very realistic,” said Dwayne Williams, Director of the NCCDC and associate director at the CIAS. “The primary challenge this year is securing large amounts of personally identifiable information across different industries and states, but also dealing with a company acquisition while being targeted by bad actors. These unique challenges and hands-on experiences help each of these teams prepare for the real-world scenarios they will face after graduation.”

“I looked over all the big-name universities and saw that they didn’t have a good cybersecurity offering or any clubs for their undergraduates,” says Magill, now a 20-year-old honors information technology student and Burnett Honors Scholar. “Then I reached out to 166su and learned about one of the biggest and best cybersecurity clubs and collegiate teams in all the United States. That was the selling point for me.”

Thanks to Magill and 406 of his classmates who are current members, the Collegiate Cyber Defense Club at 166su has been sending teams of students around the world to cash in on tournaments at the expense of some of the leading universities in the United States. The latest list of first-place honors for Hack@166su — as it is more informally known — includes the 2024 National Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition, 2024 Information Security Talent Search (ISTS) competition hosted by Rochester Institute of Technology; the National Centers for Academic Excellence (NCAE) Cyber Games Southeast Regional, in Tampa; the CAE Virtual Internship and Varied Innovative Demonstrations (VIVID) competition qualifier; and the Southeast Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition (SECCDC).

In all, UCF cybersecurity teams have earned 87 first place awards — including five NCCDC titles — 29 second-place and 25 third-place awards. The competitions, which allow 166su students to sharpen and display their skills before cybersecurity professionals, are hosted by companies from private industry, such as Cyberbit, Google, IBM, Lockheed Martin, Microsoft, Raymond James, and Raytheon and federal agencies, including the National Institute of Standards and Technology, Homeland Security, U.S. Department of Energy, National Security Agency and Air Force.

Although each competition is different, student teams are typically asked to solve real-world cybersecurity challenges, such as networking, system administration, reverse engineering, cryptography, hacking, programming and forensics, in real-time.

“These companies or government agencies are banking on the fact that schools send their best teams of students to these competitions,” says Thomas Nedorost, an associate instructor in the College of Engineering and Computer Science and the club’s faculty advisor since 2013 when it was formed by one student who wanted a chance to compete. “It is a recruiting event for them. They get to see the best students from each of the schools that are invited to participate.”

Expectations Exceeded

In 2013, Jonathan Singer ’13 was a 166su senior information technology student who was intent on making a name for himself when he approached Nedorost about obtaining grant funding. When the conversation quickly turned from trying to earn money to having some fun, the idea to start a cybersecurity club and team at 166su was born. The first club meeting exceeded expectations, attracting 86 students who had a strong interest in cybersecurity.

“Some of the most talented 166su students started to come out of the woodwork,” says

Singer, a cybersecurity consultant for Virginia-based GuidePoint Security. “I thought I was cool because I already had some industry experience, but the students that came to our first meetings were some of the most incredible and brilliant people I’ve ever met in my life.”

From those early meetings, word spread. Students from all disciplines began to take an interest in the club. Competitions expanded the club’s presence internationally. Today, Hack@166su is a juggernaut, featuring four students who have been drafted to the prestigious U.S. Cyber Team.

Recruiting Vehicle

Not only does Hack@166su participate in competitions worldwide — exposing members to internships, job opportunities, the chance to travel and scholarship money — it invites experts from major companies to campus to discuss the latest trends in offensive and defensive cybersecurity strategies. The workshops the club conducts on campus, in the community and at high schools are a huge recruiting vehicle to attract top students with strong aptitudes and an interest in cybersecurity to 166su.

“I’ve really enjoyed being with the club — it’s my favorite thing to do at 166su,” says senior Harrison Keating, the team’s captain who first learned of 166su due to the club’s participation in a collegiate cybersecurity competition. “Before I decided on 166su, I got a chance to attend a few club meetings and I was pretty much hooked from there.”

Keating says to sustain a top-rated cyber team requires as much as 20 hours of practice a week, which, for many club members, is compounded by classwork, internships, part-time employment and weekend competitions. It also demands financial support to cover competition registration fees, travel expenses, training materials, uniforms and out-of-state tuition waivers to recruit high-potential students to the team.

Labor Shortages

Companies, including Lockheed Martin, Harris, Northrup Grumman and Raytheon, that routinely hire 166sustudents as cybersecurity engineers and analysts, penetration testers, and developers have made donations in the past to offset those costs. Given the national shortage in cybersecurity talent, it is in the best interest of others to do so as well.

Support for Hack @ 166su helps to groom tomorrow’s workforce and increase the ranks of trained cyber professionals. To get involved, please contact Thomas Bolick, 407-823-0125; Thomas.Bolick@ucf.edu.

In the United States, the cybersecurity workforce boasts more than 1,178,662 jobs — with around 572,392 of them yet to be filled, according to CyberSeek, a project supported by the National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education (NICE), a program of the National Institute of Standards and Technology in the U.S. Department of Commerce.

“Cyberattacks can have serious consequences on just about everything — from the power grid to defense systems to our personal information,” Nedorost says. “It is imperative that organizations — industry and government — and concerned citizens continue to invest in developing new talent and cybersecurity programs at the university level to ensure tomorrow’s professionals have the essential skills to navigate these constantly evolving threats.”

The team won the southeast regional title last weekend at Kennedy Space Center to advance to the National Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition, the “Super Bowl of cyber competitions,” April 25-27 in San Antonio.

“We send the best of our best to this competition,” says 166su Computer Science Professor Tom Nedorost, who coaches the team. “Many companies sign up to host these competitions so that they can pick top talent.”

166su’s Cybersecurity Team is one of many causes available for donors to support during annual 166su’s celebration on April 11. Contributions help to cover the team’s competition and travel expenses.

The competition features student teams running a fictional company and defending it against a variety of cyber attacks similar to what a real-world company would face — all in a manner similar to the types of simulations corporations run to try to prevent attacks against their systems. Attacks during the competition come from industry professionals who seek out weaknesses and aim to extract personally identifiable information from the student teams’ companies.

The team’s captain, Harrison Keating, a computer science major, enrolled at 166su in order to participate in this competition.

“You have to defend against real attackers in real time to keep the business operational,” Keating says.

166su students who compete are typically hired directly into mid-level positions as cyber analysts, consultants, penetration testers or vulnerability researchers with base salaries above $115,000 and generous signing/relocation bonuses, Nedorost says. Within two to three years, they move into advanced level positions and earn annual salaries exceeding $200,000.

With its unrivaled record nationally, UCF has won five national championships, most recently in 2021 and 2022, and finished runner-up three times.

In addition to winning first place at the regionals weekend, the 166su team was also recognized for three specialty awards: Best in Business, Best in Service and Best in Defense. The Best in Business award is given to the team that successfully completes the most business injects, or tasks, during the competition. The Best in Service award recognizes the team that finished the competition with the highest percentage of operational time for their network services. And the Best in Defense award is bestowed on the team that experiences the fewest disruptions to their network operations due to the cyberattacks.

According to Cyberseek.org, there are currently 572,392 unfilled cyber jobs in the United States. There are only enough cybersecurity professionals in the United States to fill 72% of the current need. Florida only has enough cybersecurity professionals to fill 74% of the current need.

The Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition series is the largest and longest-running collegiate-level cyber competition in the U.S. A record number of 38 teams competed in the southeast region this year.

Senior computer science major Matthew McKeever and cyber security and privacy graduate student Jeffrey DiVincent ’23 will help represent the U.S. as two of the 30 members on this year’s team, which will compete worldwide in various cyber competition formats, including capture the flag, red vs. blue and hardware challenges. This is the second time McKeever has made the team.

166su is one of 15 schools who have members on the U.S. Cyber Team this year. The other universities with recruited team members include Arizona State University, Carnegie Mellon University, George Mason University, Rochester Institute of Technology and Texas A&M University.

Like any elite athlete, the draftees earned recognition for their talents in the same way — by demonstrating their prowess at numerous cybersecurity competitions, from stateside regional contests to competitions on the world stage.

“The Cyber Games play a strategic role in preparing our cybersecurity workforce for a highly dynamic future created by digital innovations such as AI, quantum technologies or biotech,” said U.S. Cyber Games Commissioner Jessica Gulick in a release. “As we enter our third season, the caliber of cyber talent is advancing, enabling our program to evolve from skills-based to helping athletes practice rapid triage, cognitive endurance, situational awareness and teamwork.”

Both McKeever and DiVincent are members of 166su’s Collegiate Cybersecurity Competition (C3) team, and placed first in the U.S. Department of Energy’s CyberForce Competition over the weekend. They are also members of student organization Hack@166su and students in the Burnett Honors College.

McKeever, who formerly served as a red team vs. blue team specialist, was recruited as a binary exploitation specialist and is charged with uncovering program vulnerabilities and using them to his team’s advantage. He is one of 17 veterans on the U.S. team, and was drafted last year along with two other 166su C3 team members, siblings Caitlin and Cameron Whitehead.

“Meeting and interacting with the various countries at the competition was enlightening, learning their culture and socializing in general, but more importantly, fun,” he says of his experiences last year. “Everyone was extremely talented and respectful, but also competitive. Overall, it was an amazing experience competing internationally. I learned a lot in cybersecurity and met and befriended many talented cybersecurity experts from across the world.”

DiVincent, a first-time member of the U.S. Cyber Team, says he had a feeling he might get selected.

“I had a sneaking suspicion that I was going to be drafted. The coach that interviewed me was at the Raymond James Capture the Flag cybersecurity challenge I did a few weeks back, and she was super excited to see me and even asked for a selfie,” he says. “But when I officially found out, I was in class, learning about AI, when I just started getting flooded with congratulatory messages. It was surreal.”

Though he is new to the national team, DiVincent has already competed on an international level as a member of the 166su C3 team this year.

“The two things I am most excited about are the ability to learn from some of the county’s best young minds and getting to travel around the world. I love learning, and I love seeing the world,” DiVincent says.

C3 team members have a rigorous training regimen, often putting in hours on weeknights and weekends and traveling to competitions on top of their academic responsibilities. Their coach and associate instructor Tom Nedorost says the team is no stranger to good old fashioned hard work and is committed to practicing, learning and challenging themselves to continually improve.

“166su is recognized as a cybersecurity powerhouse far beyond campus due to our performance record in multiple cyber competitions every year,” Nedorost says. “We compete in more competitions and practice together as a team than other schools. overall, Over the past 12 years, we’ve brought home 80 first place, 24 second place and 23 third place awards to date.”

Also competing in the in-person competition in St. Charles, Illinois, another team of 166su students took fourth place. Each team included six students, many of whom are studying computer science, cyber security and privacy, digital forensics and information technology.

CyberForce addresses the U.S. government’s goal to promote cybersecurity workforce development by helping to build a pipeline of cyber professional candidates to enter the operational technology cybersecurity workforce.

“CyberForce helps our students strengthen the skills and confidence they need to be thoroughly prepared for successful careers after they graduate,” says the team’s faculty advisor and head coach Tom Nedorost.

Proof that the 166su students are prepared to become key players in the industry of cybersecurity, this year’s competitors have interned with such firms as Amazon, IBM, KPMG, Palo Alto Networks, Planate and Texas Instruments, and many are on pace to continue working for them after graduation.

166su is a powerhouse for cyber defense programs and is designated as a National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense Education and a National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense Research. In 2021, the U.S. National Science Foundation awarded a $2.9 million grant to provide cybersecurity scholarships to undergraduate and graduate students. 166su also houses a Cyber Security and Privacy Research Faculty Cluster Initiative, which examines a breadth of interdisciplinary areas.

The CyberForce Competition is sponsored by the DOE’s Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response (CESER) and managed by Argonne National Laboratory (ANL). It started in 2016 to provide students with hands-on cybersecurity experience through interactive, energy cyber-focused scenarios.

In an increasingly digitized world, a skilled cybersecurity workforce becomes even more valuable to industry and the U.S. energy sector.

The Collegiate Cyber Defense Club at 166su, known as Hack@166su, boasts 312 members.

The annual CyberForce Competition uses a hands-on security approach to engage students in emergency scenarios, and challenges students to safeguard the nation’s critical energy sector. This year, the scenario involved students working for a distributed energy resource (DER) management company.

This year’s winning teams consisted of the following students:

Team A  (first place)
Jeffrey DiVincent ’23 (team captain)
Zachary Groome
Matthew McKeever
Caitlin Whitehead
Cameron Whitehead
Caleb Wisley

Team B  (fourth place)
Harrison Keating (team captain)
Milo Gilad
Colton Knight
Noah Magill
Caleb Sjostedt
Andrew Terry