USF, BIG EAST, UConn Game Notes

TAMPA -- Junior wide receiver Jessie Hester has snuck up on everyone and is quietly having one of the best receiving seasons in USF history.

The Belle Glade native leads the USF team with 47 receptions for 507 yards.  He is 16 shy of breaking the single-season record for receptions (62 by Hugh Smith in 2002) and 155 shy of breaking the single season record for receiving yards (661 by Hugh Smith in 2002). 

Hester needs just one catch against UConn to tie the school record (20) for consecutive games with a reception (check Mr. Dependable note below).  |

He has reeled in 21 catches over the last three games, including a career-high 10 for 110 yards against Rutgers.  The 10 receptions is one off tying the single-game USF record.  The 100-yard outing marks the 25th time a player has reached the century mark in program history. 

He has 962 career yards and will soon join teammate Taurus Johnson, and six others, as the only players in school history with 1,000 career yards. 

And last but not least, his eight receptions against Louisville and 10 against Rutgers are the two best single-game totals on the team this season.  He also has two games with seven catches.

Mr. Dependable
Where he is even more valuable is his consistency.  Hester has caught a ball in 19 consecutive games, dating back to the North Carolina game on Sept. 22, 2007.  The streak is the second-longest in USF history, and ties the 19-game streak that senior TE Cedric Hill had snapped at Cincinnati.  Below is the top of the record list.