Coming off of an impressive 34-7 victory over No. 25 Boise State, the South Florida Bulls headed to Gainesville, Florida on September 6th to take on the nation’s No. 13 team, the Florida Gators. In front of 89,909 screaming Gators fans wearing their orange and blue, the Bulls marched into “The Swamp” and did not leave until they were victorious — upsetting the Gators, and garnering the national spotlight.
Here’s a breakdown of how the matchup went for the Bulls at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium!
Offense
The South Florida offense showed us what they are capable of doing — finishing big games. Against ranked opponents in past years, the Bulls were barely able to put up a fight. Sometimes, they would not even score, like when they played Wisconsin in 2019. But on Saturday, USF’s offense did not quit. They showed heart, and they showed grit. Ultimately, they proved they were capable of hanging with the “Big Dogs” of the SEC.
Quarterback Byrum Brown did all things necessary to ensure the Bulls came away with a win. Brown completed 23 of his 36 passing attempts for a total of 263 yards and one touchdown through the air. That’s an average of 7.3 yards per completion. On the ground, he was just as effective, carrying the ball 17 times for 66 yards.
Measuring 6’3″ and weighing in at 231 pounds, Brown is a load to take down for opposing defenses. After his performance, he was named the American Conference’s Offensive Player of the Week.
Eight different players on the offense snagged at least one reception on the day. Leading the way was Wide Receiver Keshaun Singleton — in terms of yardage. He totaled 75 receiving yards on just two catches against the Gators. His biggest play of the day came with 2:03 left in the 3rd Quarter.
He hauled in a 66-yard touchdown from Quarterback Byrum Brown, which gave the Bulls a 13-9 lead. Wide Receiver Mudia Reuben, the Stanford transfer, was responsible for 44 receiving yards, and Running Back Alvon Isaac added another 49; 29 of them came on one play on USF’s game-winning drive.
Defense
Defensively, the Bulls held Florida Quarterback, DJ Lagway, and his offense, to just 16 points. The Gators’ 16 points was the fewest they had scored in a single game since 2023.
Leading the defensive charge was Linebacker Mac Harris. The 6th-year Senior racked up 10 Total Tackles (Career-High), one Sack, and one Tackle For Loss. His efforts were an instrumental piece to the defense’s success.
The Bulls tallied seven tackles for loss and Linebacker Jhalyn Shuler recorded a pass deflection as well.
At the 8:43 mark of the 3rd Quarter, Cornerback James Chenault intercepted Quarterback DJ Lagway, marking the Gators’ first turnover of the season.
Special Teams
If I had to describe South Florida’s Special Teams unit in one word, my answer would be special.
Punter Chase Leon punted six times, and four of them were downed inside UF’s 20-yard-line (that’s really good!). His longest on the day was 52 yards (also really good!).
Kicker Nico Gramatica drilled three field goals in the game. His longest was 38 yards.
The celebrations began following a 20-yard field goal made by Gramatica as the clock hit zeroes!
What’s Next?
Now, the South Florida Bulls are ranked 18th in the latest AP Poll.
This is the Bulls’ 1st Top-25 ranking since 2018. Coming up on Sept. 13th, USF will travel to Miami to take on the No. 5 Miami Hurricanes.
Will the Bulls spoil a 3rd ranked team’s season?
Tune in to The CW Network this Saturday at 4:30PM EST to find out!
See you there! Go Bulls!