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By TOM ZEBOLD
USF Senior Writer
PISCATAWAY, N.J. – The 2013 USF football season ended with a 31-6 loss at Rutgers on Saturday night.
Marvin Kloss produced USF's points in the second quarter, when he connected from 24 and 29 yards out, and the Groza Award finalist fell one field goal short of tying the USF single-season record of 19.
USF (2-10, 2-6) struggled to find a rhythm on offense while posting 151 total yards and rushing 20 times for 10 yards. Freshman Mike White (Ft. Lauderdale) went 14-for-31 for 141 yards with an interception in his fifth consecutive start. Junior receiver Andre Davis (Tampa) extended his school-record catch streak to 30 games with one reception for 14 yards.
“We knew coming in if we weren't able to run the football it was going to be a hard game,” head coach Willie Taggart said. “We not only couldn't run the football but we couldn't throw it either. We just didn't do anything well enough to win this ballgame.”
USF headed into the game ranked 21st nationally in total defense and 29th against the run but couldn't stop the Scarlet Knights from gaining 176 yards on the ground. Paul James posted 26 carries for 113 yards and two touchdowns as Rutgers (6-6, 3-5) became bowl eligible for the eighth time in the past nine seasons.
Senior linebacker DeDe Lattimore registered a career-high 18 tackles in his final game as a Bull and made a jump in the school record books in the process. The Athens, Ga., native finished second all-time at USF with 337 career tackles and second in career forced fumbles with six after he forced a turnover at the goal line in the first quarter Saturday night at High Point Solutions Stadium.
“DeDe came into the week saying he wanted to get 20 tackles and he got close to it,” Taggart said. “He was playing his heart out. It was his last ballgame and he gave us everything he's got.”
The 10th meeting between the programs started with a ton of twists and turns before Rutgers headed into halftime with a 21-6 lead.
James' 5-yard run spotted Rutgers a 7-0 lead with 5:41 to go in the first quarter and the Scarlet Knights jumped ahead, 14-0, a minute and a half later following a costly penalty by the Bulls.
A mishandled snap by White was recovered by Rutgers at the USF 24 following James' touchdown run, but Brandon Salinas (Orlando) appeared to give the ball back to the Bulls by returning an interception 62 yards. A roughing the passer called negated the big return and Chas Dodd threw a 12-yard touchdown pass to Andre Patton on the next play.
More momentum swung in Rutgers' favor three plays after Patton's touchdown when Gareef Glashen intercepted a White pass and returned it to the USF 22 with 3:09 remaining in the first quarter.
The USF defense was on the field for almost 9 minutes in the opening quarter but prevented Rutgers from grabbing a 21-0 lead by getting tough at the goal line. The Scarlet Knights had a first-and-goal at the USF 1 when Lattimore forced a James fumble that was recovered by freshman Lamar Robbins (Miami) in the end zone for a touchback with 1:12 remaining in the quarter.
White helped the Bulls capitalize off the clutch turnover by orchestrating a 13-play, 73-yard drive that was capped off with Kloss' 24-yard field goal with 8:54 to go before halftime. White went 2-for-3 for 30 yards on the drive and his career-long 16-yard run gave the Bulls a first down at the Rutgers 12.
Rutgers grabbed a 21-3 lead with a 12-yard touchdown pass from Dodd to Michael Burton with 2:29 remaining, but the Bulls got points in a hurry before halftime. Kloss' 29-yard field goal with 22 seconds remaining capped off the 58-yard drive that was highlighted by tight end Mike McFarland. The redshirt junior from Tampa caught a 20-yard pass on third down at midfield and drove the Bulls to the Rutgers 7 with a career-long 27-yard catch on the next play.
McFarland stepped up in a big way on special teams in the third quarter when he blocked his third field goal of the season on a 34-yard attempt by Kyle Federico with 4:11 remaining. McFarland's first two blocks came in USF's first two games of American Athletic Conference play against Cincinnati and UConn.
The Bulls defense kept Rutgers off the scoreboard for the rest of the third quarter, but the Scarlet Knights wouldn't be denied in the fourth. James scored his second touchdown on a 1-yard run with 7:24 to play and Joe Behnke's 20-yard field goal gave the Scarlett Knights a 31-6 lead with 52 seconds remaining.
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