Bulls Reach Big Time
(October 1, 2007)

Before the USF Bulls first took the field in September 1997, all head coach Jim Leavitt could promote was a dream. Leavitt built the program from the ground up, they did not even have footballs when he arrived. Even Leavitt probably would have had a hard time envisioning September 2007.

On a wonderful fall evening, reaching this point was more important than the game itself. The build up, the eighteenth ranked Bulls hosted fifth ranked West Virginia, was incredible. The bandwagon was getting crowded and for the first time Raymond James Stadium was sold out.

A couple thousand students camped out overnight in tents for student tickets. On a rainy night the kids were cheering and singing the school's fight song until dawn. A 12,501 seat student ticket allotment set a Big East record, surpassing West Virginia's total by one. Tickets were being sold for several times their face value online. The biggest college football game to ever be played in Tampa was creating a frenzy.

Jim Leavitt caused some excitement by stopping by to visit the students. "I went over there a little bit," Leavitt said. "I had shorts and a t-shirt on looking at film last night. Walked through the grass in bare feet a little bit. They were a lot of fun, they were really fun. Kind of neat!" The coach commented on the full stadium, "Am I surprised that we're getting a sellout crowd? No, I thought the day would come some day."

The hype escalated when an ESPN production crew arrived on campus on Tuesday. Leavitt commented, "There are always distractions. There have been in every game that we've played." Leavitt on players getting too excited: "I think those things can happen. We really treat things the same, we always have." QB Matt Grothe showed confidence, "I think being excited is going to help us. Going into the Auburn game everyone was excited and I think we played even better because of that. We had good tempo throughout practice all week."

Tampa Mayor, and USF alum, Pam Iorio hosted a banner on City Hall proclaiming it Green and Gold Day. She and Morgantown Mayor Ron Justice placed a wager on the outcome. The tallest building in Tampa, the 36 story SunTrust building was bathed in green and gold lights. Bulls merchandise was flying off the shelves. Local TV commentators were decked out in green that day. Even though the Buccaneers had crucial early test against divisional rival Carolina, and the Lightning were preparing for the regular season opener, the Bulls dominated the local sports scene.

AP Top 25

September 30, 2007

1. LSU

2. Southern Cal

3. California

4. Ohio State

5. Wisconsin

6. South Florida

7. Boston College

8. Kentucky

9. Florida

10. Oklahoma

11. South Carolina

12. Georgia

13. West Virginia

14. Oregon

15. Virginia Tech

16. Hawaii

17. Missouri

18. Arizona State

19. Texas

20. Cincinnati

21. Rutgers

22. Clemson

23. Purdue

24. Kansas State

25. Nebraska

The gates opened at 3:00, but the first tailgaters showed up at 7:00 am. There was a free, as long as you were wearing Bulls gear, pregame concert. A Friday night national television audience and a record crowd of 67,018 were finally ready for kickoff.

Ben Moffitt got things rocking when he returned the first of his two interceptions 26 yards for a 7-0 USF advantage after one quarter. Matt Grothe (11 of 20 for 135 yards with 2 INTs) heaved a 55 yard TD pass to Carlton Mitchell and the Bulls stretched it to 14-3 at the half. A third quarter run by Jamar Taylor and it was 21-3. The Bulls had four turnovers, but forced six turnovers by West Virginia. Heisman hopeful Pat White (12 of 18 for 100 yards with an INT) left the game late in the second quarter with a thigh bruise and backup QB Jarrett Brown (11 of 20 for 149 yards with 2 INTs) had a fourth quarter TD pass for the Mountaineers. Steve Slaton, another Heisman candidate, was held to 54 yards rushing. For the second straight year USF defeated West Virginia, this time 21-13.

After the victory, thousands of fans stormed the field. Despite taking a hard-nosed position in the past, the Tampa Sports Authority took down the goal posts let the fans have at it. After a while, the public address system told those fans to exit the field through "Gate C, that's Gate C as in conference championship."

Ben Moffitt said, "It's a huge statement win." The always focused head coach stated, "Our goal was not to beat West Virginia. It was to win the Big East." Leavitt continued, "I wont let my guard down because we're only 1 and 0 in the Big East. I know you want me to take off my shirt, and dance, and hug, and kiss, and all that. I feel good like that, but I'm really thinking about the next game."

Everyone expected USF to take a jump in the polls, but few expected the Bulls to leap to sixth in the AP poll and ninth in the coach's poll. Newspaper and online columnists were using USF and national championship in the same sentence. Athletic Director Doug Woolard commented, the football program " has captured the attention of people across the country." Jim Leavitt's predictable response, "Getting ready for FAU. That's all my mind has been on."

Now there is an expectation that the next home game against Central Florida will sell out. Tough Cincinnati is the homecoming opponent and the home finale is against Louisville. Big crowds should be on hand for all those games.

Before the West Virginia game, defensive lineman George Selvie remarked, "They say we are building tradition right now even though we already have some guys who have built tradition in the past when they went 9-2 one season. Now we're building, winning, beating ranked teams, getting ranked and building onto tradition that has already been built. I hope ten years from now they will be number one in the country and I will be sitting in the stands watching South Florida play football."

It might not take that long. Lets see, Cal plays USC, Wisconsin plays Ohio State, maybe Florida could knock off LSU and ... Opps, as the leader of what is being dubbed Leavitt-town would caution, don't look past Florida Atlantic.