Yes, after three weeks of the USF college football season (including the cancellation of the FAU game), I feel like now is a perfectly good time to make a broad assessment on where this program stands while at the same time giving a quick glimpse at the future of the Bulls program in the next 2-3 years.
For starters, this college football season is like no other… Games are being cancelled every weekend, players are opting out of the 2020 season (then opting back in), programs can be without 10+ players for a game due to positive COVID tests/contract, etc.
With a brand spanking new coaching staff, remember that this Bulls team did not have a spring camp to really set the tone for what the program would look like heading into the future. Unfortunately, that part happened in fall camp which isn’t ideal for any head coach who is trying to rebuild a program. Just ask Mike Norvell up in Tallahassee…
Jumping hurdles has been a common practice for all of us in 2020 and that couldn’t be more true with what this program (along with other college football programs with new HCs) have had to accomplish over the last 6 1/2 months to even get to this point. Keep that in mind as the kinks continue to be worked out as the season wears on.
When it comes to the quarterback position, Coach Jeff Scott’s ideal situation was to have “the guy” set in stone by the Cincinnati game this week during his weekly press conference. The question remains if the FAU game actually occurred last Saturday, would the QB picture be clearer? Possibly… Scott mentioned this week that UNC transfer Cade Fortin should be available against Cincy and I would assume that this position group remains fluid until someone clamps down on the starting gig.
As for now, I’m fine with the rotation of players at the position until the coaching staff feels certain they’ve identified the next leader of this team for the foreseeable future. Let me also mention that true freshmen Katravis Marsh, Jordan Smith, and 2021 commit Timmy McClain offer this position loads of talent for the future which should reassure Bulls fans that the future is bright regardless of who lines up under center in the next few years.
As I watched the Notre Dame game two weeks ago, I had to remind myself how good ND’s offensive line is. They’re arguably the best OL group in the nation and even though USF will not face an OL like that again for awhile, this game gave me a good glimpse at where this team can grow and improve in the future. Great football programs begin and end in the trenches and I believe that the development of the guys already on the team will do wonders for a team that is looking to compete against anybody in the country. As of now, the 2021 class has seven recruits committed on the offensive and defensive line combined so clearly the focus is to shore up these position groups for the future.
DISCLAIMER: This is not the end all, be all solution for the team to find success in the near future, but is one of the many steps that this coaching staff must/is already taking in order to rebuild this program over time.
On Monday, WR Eddie McDoom entered the transfer portal which continues the trend of players coming in/going into the portal over the last year. We wish these guys nothing but the best moving forward, but with a changing of the guard brings changes across the entire program, including the dizzying amount of roster moves that have occurred over the last nine months. Welcome to The New South Florida!
Bottom line, the future is bright for this USF program regardless of the number of steps that must be taken for this program to compete for a conference title once again. How far are the Bulls from the elusive AAC Championship? I think only time will tell and how this team performs the rest of the season will truly set the precedence on how close/how far “success” may be for the Green and Gold.