NCAA FOOTBALL TEAM PROFILES: From: THE QUAD --- Today's TEAM: # 21 South Florida

Location: Tampa, Fla.

Nickname: Bulls.

Quick facts: It took South Florida only 11 years – with the last seven on the F.B.S. level – to enter the national title picture, an amazingly rapid ascent into the championship conversation for the third-youngest program in the F.B.S. It is not a coincidence that this swift climb onto the national scene occurred in Florida, as Coach Jim Leavitt and the Bulls have combed through the state's fertile recruiting bed to find someone of the most underrated college football players in the nation. The team, much like its players, came in under the college football radar each of the last handful of seasons. However, with 18 wins over the last two seasons and a brief stint last fall as the No. 2 team in the land, South Florida will no longer sneak up on opponents. Will the program continue making strides in 2008?

Tidbit: South Florida increased its average home attendance from 30,222 in 2006 to 53,170 last fall, a 58 percent improvement. The jump of 22,948 fans per game was almost 10,000 more than any other F.B.S. program.

Tidbit (Sunshine State edition): Let's take a look at the three Florida colleges to recently enter the F.B.S.: U.S.F., Florida Atlantic and Florida International. The Bulls, playing football since 1997, are 79-47 over all, 52-27 on the F.B.S. level. F.I.U., which opened play in 2002 and moved to the F.B.S. in 2005, are 16-52 over all and 6-29 over the past three seasons, 1-23 since 2006. Finally, Florida Atlantic is 41-42 since establishing its program in 2001, 15-21 since graduating to the F.B.S. in 2005. Why has South Florida been so much more successful than its Florida brethren?

Former players in the N.F.L.: 8 – OL Frank Davis (Detroit Lions), RB Andre Hall (Denver Broncos), CB Anthony Henry (Dallas Cowboys), CB Mike Jenkins (South Florida), LB Kawika Mitchell (Buffalo Bills), LB Stephen Nicholas, S J.R. Reed (Philadelphia Eagles), CB Trae Williams (Jacksonville Jaguars).

Famous alumni (non-football related): Hulk Hogan; the model and actress Lauren Hutton; the NBC News correspondent Kerry Sanders; the comedian Elayne Boosler.


Team Information

Conference: Big East.

Head coach: Jim Leavitt ('78 Missouri), 79-47 after 11 seasons with the Bulls. Leavitt, who took the U.S.F. job in 1995, is the only coach in program history. He has built the Bulls from the ground up, developing the program for two years before the Bulls played their first game in 1997. Since then, Leavitt has led U.S.F. from Division I-AA to the F.B.S.; on their current level, the Bulls have gone being an independent to a member of Conference USA to their present status as part of the Big East. Not surprisingly, U.S.F.'s move to the Big East in 2005 raised its national profile; what is surprising is the immediate success Leavitt and the Bulls have experienced over the past three years. South Florida is 24-14 since 2005, including three straight bowl appearances and back-to-back nine-win seasons from 2006-7. Prior to taking the South Florida job in 1997, Leavitt spent six years as an assistant under Bill Snyder at Kansas State, the final four as defensive coordinator. The team's success has made Leavitt a popular name for any number of open positions over the last five seasons, but Leavitt has maintained a lack of interest in any position other than his current job. Leavitt, who went to high school in nearby St. Petersburg, seems very comfortable in Tampa, and has asserted his desire to remain at the helm of the South Florida for the foreseeable future.

2007 record: 9-4 (4-3). Following a 64-12 destruction of Central Florida on Oct. 13, the Bulls stood at 6-0 and No. 2 in the nation. Though things turned sour in the midseason – three straight Big East losses – U.S.F. was able to right the ship and post its second straight nine-win season and third over all since joining the F.B.S. in 2002. Beyond merely the strong season, the play of a number of underclassmen at key positions, such as quarterback Matt Grothe, wide receiver Carlton Mitchell and defensive end George Selvie, has South Florida fans excited about the future of the program.

High point: Wins over then-No. 17 Auburn by 26-23 and then-No. 5 West Virginia by 21-13 before the end of September. After the midseason three-game losing streak, U.S.F. finished the regular season with three straight wins, two of which (Syracuse and Pittsburgh) came on the road.

Low point: The three-game losing streak that followed the 6-0 start, each of which came by a touchdown or less: Rutgers by 30-27, Connecticut by 22-15 and Cincinnati by 38-33. The Bulls were manhandled by Oregon in a 56-21 Sun Bowl loss.

Returning starters: 17 (10 offense, 7 defense).

Key losses:

On offense, right tackle Walt Walker, a two-year starter for the Bulls, is the only lost starter. Walker, who took snaps at both guard and tackle during his four-year career, signed a free-agent contract with the Buccaneers shortly after the draft. Despite missing three games, wide receiver Amarri Jackson tied for sixth on the team with 22 receptions for 256 yards; two of his grabs went for scores. Jackson was also effective in limited punt return duty, averaging 14.2 yards on his six returns.

On defense, the losses are more severe, as the Bulls have to replace two N.F.L. draft picks at corner and the unit's unquestioned leader in the middle. One corner, the electric Mike Jenkins, became the first Bull in program history to be taken in the first round of the draft (No. 25 to Dallas), joining the former U.S.F. great Kawika Mitchell as the only players selected on the first day. Jenkins is also battling Mitchell for the title of best player in program history; a first-team all-American in 2007, Jenkins concluded his career with six interceptions, including three as a senior. On the opposite site, Trae Williams, a fifth-round pick of the Jaguars, took full advantage of the attention he received in the passing game to lead the Bulls with six interceptions. Middle linebacker Ben Moffitt earned third-team all-American honors after a monster senior season: 104 tackles, 12 for loss – both totals good for second on the team – and 4 interceptions, one of which he returned for a score. A 43-game starter for the Bulls, Moffitt's presence will be sorely missed in the middle and in the locker room.

Players to watch: The Bulls have a Heisman dark horse in the junior quarterback Grothe, a two-year starter built in the mold of Tim Tebow and Central Michigan's Dan LeFevour. As a sophomore, Grothe threw for 2,670 yards and 14 scores, adding 872 yards and another 10 touchdowns on the ground; the rushing total was a new U.S.F. single-season record for a quarterback. Grothe already holds the South Florida single-game passing (382 yards vs. Cincinnati in 2007) and rushing (146 vs. Connecticut last fall) marks, and is closing in on both team career records as well: With 1,494 yards thus far through his career – a quarterback record – Grothe needs only 1,237 yards for the team rushing record. The only player in program history with 5,000 passing yards and 1,400 rushing yards, Grothe is poised to do great things over his final two seasons – though he needs to cut down on his interceptions, as he has 28 career picks against 29 touchdowns. In the backfield, the duo of the senior Ben Williams (425 yards rushing, 6 scores last season) and the sophomore Mike Ford (645 yards, 12 scores) pace the running game. Ford is another rising star on the U.S.F. offense. There are four returning starters up front, where the strength is undoubtedly in the middle. The senior left guard Ryan Schmidt (Outland trophy) and the senior center Jake Griffin (Rimington) are both members of preseason national award watch lists, while the sophomore right guard Zach Hermann, a 13-game starter as a freshman last fall, looks like a future all-conference performer. On the outside, the senior Taurus Johnson (34 receptions for 407 yards, 4 scores) and the sophomore Carlton Mitchell (team-leading 37 catches for 537 yards) lead a deep receiving core. The story of the defense is at end, where the junior Selvie built on a strong freshman season to earn consensus all-American and Big East defensive player of the year honors in a 14.5-sack 2007 campaign. Though largely overlooked by pundits when discussing the nation's top defensive players, perhaps no defender influences the opponent's game plan more than Selvie, who continued to make plays even as teams enacted double and triple teams to slow down his progress. He enters his junior season as the nation's active career leader in sacks (20) and tackles for loss (46.5) and is a member of six national award watch lists. If there is an award available to a defensive player in the F.B.S., Selvie is a favorite. Though losing Moffitt is a tough blow to the U.S.F. defense, Leavitt and his staff hope to combat that loss by moving the senior Tyrone McKenzie, whose 250 tackles since 2006 leads the nation, inside from his strongside spot. His road to Tampa has been interesting: A Michigan State commitment out of high school, McKenzie transferred to Iowa State after his freshman season, where he sat out of 2005 due to transfer rules before a second-team all-Big 12 season in 2006. Following that season, McKenzie was allowed to transfer to South Florida – and not sit out a season – due to a hardship waiver. He was an immediate hit, earning his second straight second-team all-conference selection (at two separate B.C.S. conferences) due to his team-leading 121 tackles (7.5 for loss). Though cornerback is a concern entering the fall, the Bulls return two experienced safeties in the seniors Carlton Williams and Danny Verpaele and the junior Nate Allen. The trio returns a combined total of 59 career starters, including 34 from Williams. Last fall, Allen had 84 tackles (best among U.S.F. defensive backs) and 4 interceptions, while Williams added 69 stops (5.5 for loss) and a sack.

Position battle to watch: With one of the nation's best defensive units over the past three seasons, South Florida's strong corner play allowed for a more aggressive defensive scheme – especially in the pass rush. However, with the departure of Jenkins and Williams, the effectiveness of the entire defense will be called into question: Will Leavitt be more hesitant to put pressure on the quarterback if he has less faith in the ability of his corner tandem to play on an island? The good news for Leavitt and the defensive coordinator Wally Burnham is that the likely starters, the senior Tyller Roberts and the junior Jerome Murphy, both gained experience as the primary backups over the last two seasons. If the older duo is to slip up, the redshirt freshmen Quenton Washington and Tyson Butler will be happy to step in and steal some playing time. In addition, the arrival of the true freshman Jon Lejiste and the JUCO transfer Theo Wilson will add more depth to the position. There is no doubt that Leavitt and his staff have planned the transition from Jenkins and Williams well; having two older, experienced corners ready to step in illustrates good foresight. However, I'm curious as to how strong the defense as a whole can be without two standouts manning the outside. Of course, Roberts and Murphy may turn out to be equally effective in 2008.

2008 schedule:

Aug. 30 Tennessee-Martin
Sept. 6 @ Central Florida
Sept. 12 Kansas
Sept. 20 @ Florida International
Sept. 27 @ N.C. State
Oct. 2 Pittsburgh
Oct. 18 Syracuse
Oct. 25 @ Louisville
Oct. 30 @ Cincinnati
Nov. 15 Rutgers
Nov. 23 Connecticut
Dec. 6 @ West Virginia

Game(s) to watch: The Big East opener with Pittsburgh and the season finale at West Virginia. Both games will determine how the top tier of the conference falls. I'm also looking forward to the home matchup with Kansas; U.S.F. will show whether the Jayhawks' 12-1 finish a year ago was a fluke.

Season breakdown & prediction: I like South Florida to again reach nine wins this fall, but to finish behind West Virginia in the Big East. That isn't a slight against the Bulls. South Florida is still one of the youngest teams in the conference, especially at the offensive skill positions, and the team should be even better this fall than it was in its nine-win 2007 season. However, I feel West Virginia, with its electric offense and tough defense, combined with a chip on its shoulder following Rich Rodriguez's departure, will be the best team in the Big East in 2008. So where does that leave the Bulls? In non-conference play, I like South Florida to finish no worse than 4-1, with losses coming either at home to Kansas – though I like the Bulls to win that game – or on the road against N.C. State. Not counting the Mountaineers, U.S.F.'s toughest conference game will be Oct. 30 date at Cincinnati. Still, I see the Bulls getting through the first six games of their Big East schedule with only one loss, making the season finale essentially a conference title game. Over all, I see South Florida finishing 9-3 and hovering around the 20 mark in the polls. After finishing last fall outside of the top 25, this is a logical step for the program to make.

Dream season: The Bulls go 11-1 and beat West Virginia to end the season, giving the program its first conference title.

Nightmare season: Though U.S.F. finishes a respectable 8-4, the Bulls finish behind Pittsburgh, Cincinnati and West Virginia in the Big East.

Where South Florida fans congregate: Check out The Bulls Pen and U.S.F. Bullseye. For newspaper coverage of the Bulls, try the Tampa Tribune and the St. Petersburg Times.

Who is No. 20?: This team's 2007 season featured a program record for wins and the university's first January bowl game since 1969.

Please leave any feedback you may have...

good preview

can we get an FSU profile?

OU 13 FSU 2 in the 2000 title game. Just giving you a hard time..........

ROFL, ur killing me here, LOL...

don't have one on them TC sorry man.

let me look in archieve and see if we did them yet, give a bit ok

thanks

np TC, hope you like some of the others

sorry tc we stopped at 26 teams, fsu we felt were going to be a sub 500 team this season or just at 500 give or take a game.

there schedule doesn't seem as hard as other ranked schools. they do have some tough teams like W. Virgina and possibly Kansas, but if you look at USC or Georgia its nothing.

do you think KU will win 9 or 10 games as some experts are saying? "cause I can't see it

Mcfatty? you like Tebow or Whiye better this year?

without a doubt mcfatty, your right on the money there.

any comments on the sections guys? do you see some we might need to put in here so you guys are better informed?

i am a UGA fan and i hate tebow

add me to that tebow list

see # 20 Kansas at this link below

http://www.yardbarker.com/college_football/articles/NCAA_FOOTBALL_TEAM_PROFILES_From_THE_QUAD_Todays_TEAM_20_Kansas/303572