USF Ready for Big East?
(August 15, 2005)

The University of South Florida debuts in the Big East Conference this fall and most are predicting a rough road for the 2005 Bulls. The official conference preseason media poll picks USF to finish seventh in the eight team league. Sports Illustrated expects the Bulls to be a little better and finish sixth. Another source predicts USF will tie for seventh, going 3-8 overall and 1-6 in league play, and names the Bulls as the "team that will disappoint."

The Big East preseason poll and most media sources agree that Louisville is the team to beat with Pittsburgh second. West Virginia, Syracuse and Connecticut are next. Rutgers, USF and Cincinnati are predicted to be battling for bottom spots.

The 2005 schedule offers much more than just the first Big East slate. An opener at Penn State and three games against state teams are also featured. The Bulls will face Miami, Central Florida and FAMU for the first time. While USF has never played Rutgers, Syracuse and West Virginia, it does have a 5-3 lifetime record against the four other Big East schools. USF has seen Cincinnati (1-1), Connecticut (2-0), Louisville (1-1) and Pittsburgh (1-1) before.

USF is coming off a school worst 4-7 season, including 3-5 in Conference USA. Head coach Jim Leavitt offered some explanation for the drop off. "We probably had a whole boat load of freshmen that played. We redshirted some seniors that were pretty good, knowing that we had to pause and regroup just a little bit, and we didn't have a great season, we had some great games, in spite of all the adversity." The question is are we headed for more of the same in 2005? A quick look at this year's team may provide a few clues.

If you read the previews you might think that Andre Hall will be the entire offense. He has been named by many as the Big East's best running back. While seven starters return on offense, this is a unit that finished 105th in the nation in passing last season. Junior quarterback Pat Julmiste completed just 48% of his passes, and had more picks than TDs, so QB remains a problem. Auburn transfer Courtney Denson and sophomore Anthony Severino may get a shot at QB, but freshman Carlton Hill appears to be the future. Another freshman, Matt Grothe, will red-shirt. The receiving corps is deep, sophomores Johnny Peyton and Jackie Chambers have shown plenty of potential. Junior S.J. Green, senior Travis Lipp and redshirt freshman Marcus Edwards should catch their share of balls. The offensive line is a good mix of experienced and younger players.

Eight starters return from a defensive that struggled last season. The Bulls are strong at linebacker with junior Stephen Nicholas expected to be one of the best in the Big East. Senior Johnnie Jones and sophomore Danny Verpaele will head the secondary, but the defensive line will have to show improvement. Seniors Terrace Royal and Tim Jones, who redshirted last year, will have to step up.

Senior Brandon Baker will return as the punter, but a Gramatica will not be handling the place kicking. Redshirt freshman Kyle Bronson and true freshman Mike Benzer will compete for those duties.

Marquel Blackwell. It seems like you cannot write a South Florida preview without mentioning that the Bulls are still looking for a replacement for him at QB. Pat Julmiste may not be the answer, but greatness is expected out of true freshman Carlton Hill. How long will Jim Leavitt wait before turning to Hill and the future?

Jim Leavitt commented on this season and the future of the USF program, "South Florida is going to be a very strong program. Will it happen this year, I don't know. If you look at our schedule a lot of people don't think we have a shot. I don't know if we do or not, all I do know is that our guys are going to play extremely hard. I do know that we have a lot of talent. We do have some experience at some places, but we have a lot of young guys as well, but they are as talented as there is. I will say that over the next two or three years, I think that you'll see the University of South Florida become a very, very powerful program."

As for the 2005 season, the opener at Penn State and the game at Miami are likely losses. Division I-AA FAMU, a team in turmoil, should be an easy victory and a home a game against UCF should go in the win column. It is possible that the Bulls will be underdogs in all seven Big East games. Is USF ready for the Big East? We will soon find out.