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TAMPA, Fla. ? The University of South Florida proudly accepted an invitation to play in the 2007 Brut Sun Bowl on Tuesday afternoon. The Bulls will face the third place team from the Pac 10 at Sun Bowl Stadium in El Paso, Texas, on Monday, Dec. 31 at 2:15 p.m. Eastern (12:15 p.m. Mountain). 
The game will be televised nationally by CBS Sports, marking the first time USF has played on the network.
USF is in just its 11th season of football competition and is already competing in its third consecutive bowl game. This is the first time the Bulls have played in the Sun Bowl. USF played in the Meineke Car Care Bowl in 2005 and won the Papajohns.com Bowl in 2006.
The 74th annual Sun Bowl is the second oldest bowl in existence behind the Rose Bowl. The Sun Bowl was first played on January 1, 1935, as a fund-raising event for a local service club, to benefit underprivileged children and to finance improvements to the El Paso High School Stadium. It has grown into El Paso's number one national attraction. Sun Bowl Stadium seats a capacity of 50,246 and has been open since 1963.
USF will arrive in El Paso on Dec. 26 and spend six days at elevations of approximately 4,000 feet. USF will practice at a local high school and participate in daily activities organized by the Bowl.
Complete schedules of events available to media and fans will be released in the near future.
USF is currently ranked No. 21 in the Bowl Championship Series, No. 25 by the Associated Press and No. 25 by the Harris Poll.
The rankings cap arguably the most memorable regular season of the program's and Jim Leavitt's 11 years. USF was ranked as high as No. 2 during the 12-game regular season schedule and tied a program record with nine victories. An eventual bowl game gives the opportunity for the first ever 10-win season.
The USF defense is undoubtedly one of the best in college football. USF has forced 41 turnovers in 12 games this season, an average of more than three per game. The turnover total leads the NCAA statistical rankings, as does the team total of 23 interceptions and 18 fumbles recovered. Four defenders - CB Mike Jenkins, LB Ben Moffitt, DE George Selvie and CB Trae Williams - are all serious contenders for All-America acclaim.
Mike Jenkins is rated as the top senior CB by most NFL draft experts and has lived up to the billing with three interceptions and 12 pass breakups this year. Ben Moffitt has four interceptions, 12 tackles for loss and exactly 100 tackles as the leader of the stout Bulls defense. Selvie has led the country all season in tackles for loss and enters the bowl game with 31.5 TFL, not to mention 14.5 sacks. He needs just half a TFL to tie the NCAA record. Trae Williams has six interceptions this season and 13 over the last two seasons, which is more than any player in NCAA FBS. He has also returned his last three interceptions for touchdowns.
The USF offense has worked in the shadows of the defense but not because of a lack of production. The USF offense has scored a program record 430 points this season, while averaging 35.7 per outing. USF has averaged 43.4 points and 474 yards over the last four games and has been putting up record yardage totals all season. The 2007 offense is the first in 11-years of football to produce 5,000 yards of total offense and they still have another game to add to the total of 5,059. It has produced an average of 421.6 yards per game, which is nearly 13 yards better than the previous record of 408.9 by the 1998 team.
Sophomore QB Matt Grothe and Florida's Tim Tebow are the only players in NCAA FBS to have rushed for 850 yards and pass for 2,400 yards. Grothe has set USF quarterback records for single single rushing yards (832), rushing TD (10), 100 yard rushing games (3) and total offense (3,305). Freshman RB Mike Ford has 12 TD this season, which is just one shy of the USF single season record, while fellow rookie WR Carlton Mitchell has established rookie records with 37 receptions and 537 yards.
Stay tuned to GoUSFBulls.com for the most up-to-date and accurate information on the Bulls and their trip to the 2007 Brut Sun Bowl.
