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By TOM ZEBOLD
USF Senior Writer
TAMPA, NOV. 1, 2014 – Freshman Marlon Mack moved into fifth place on USF's single-season rushing list in the first half, but the Bulls' couldn't spark their offense in a 27-3 loss to Houston before a crowd of 29,782 at Raymond James Stadium on Saturday.
Mack's 47 yards on 13 carries brought the first-year Bull up to 828 yards on the season as the Sarasota native continues to close in on putting together the program's fourth 1,000-yard season with three games remaining.
USF (3-6, 2-3) trailed 7-0 at the half thanks to a strong opening performance by the defense, but the Bulls couldn't find consistency on the offensive side of the ball on Veterans and Military Appreciation Day, which also marked USF's 100th game at Raymond James Stadium. The Bulls now hold a 68-32 (.680) record in those games.
Steven Bench (Bainbridge, Ga.) made his third career start and went 12-for-25 for 147 yards. The junior's 24-yard pass to true freshman running back D'Ernest Johnson helped set up USF's lone scoring drive of the game, which ended with a 33-yard field goal by senior Marvin Kloss with 1:52 remaining in the third quarter.
“Our guys are trying; they're working hard and getting after it,” head coach Willie Taggart said. “We're just not making those plays that it takes to win ballgames. We're making mistakes that we can't make.”
USF's effort level helped keep the game close in a first half that saw the Bulls outpace the Cougars in three key categories.
Houston took a 7-0 lead into the second quarter after Kenneth Farrow posted a 1-yard touchdown run with 2:54 remaining in the opening period. Despite the deficit, USF headed into halftime leading Houston in total offensive yards (104-96), first downs (6-5) and time of possession (15:13-14:47) after bottling up the Cougars' offense in the second quarter.
Houston had the ball for a little over 11 minutes in the first quarter but held onto it for only 3 minutes, 43 seconds in the second quarter thanks to a solid effort by the USF defense. The Cougars went 0-for-3 on third down conversion attempts in the second quarter and 1-for-7 in the opening half.
The Cougars grabbed a 14-0 lead with another 1-yard touchdown run from Ryan Jackson with 7:38 remaining in the third quarter and the Bulls' offense got on the scoreboard less than 6 minutes later.
Kloss' 33-yard field goal capped off a 13-play, 57-yard drive that featured a career-long 24-yard catch by Johnson (Immokalee, Fla.). Kloss, a Groza Award Watch List member, has made a field goal in 11 consecutive games.
Houston (5-3, 3-1) added to its lead with two scores in the fourth quarter and the Cougars did most of their damage on the ground, totaling 217 yards on 47 carries. Kenneth Farrow ran for a game-high 112 yards on 22 carries, while dual-threat quarterback Greg Ward Jr. was kept in check. The sophomore completed 15-of-19 passes for 89 yards and rushed seven times for 26 yards a week after racking up 312 total yards in Houston's 31-10 win over Temple.
Standout performances on the defensive side of the ball came from two upperclassmen. Junior safety Jamie Byrd (Dade City, Fla.) tied a career high with 14 tackles and senior linebacker Reshard Cliett (Thomasville, Ga.) posted four tackles, a sack and 2.0 tackles for loss.
USF gets a week off from competition before heading to Dallas to face SMU on Saturday, Nov. 15. The kickoff time for that game has yet to be announced.
“We have to find a way to win and SMU is the next team on our schedule,” Taggart said. “We have to find a way to win that ballgame and take it from there.”
USF football single game tickets, mini-plans and season tickets are available on-line at GoUSFBulls.com, by calling 1-800-GoBulls, or in person at the Sun Dome Gate A Ticket Office. Season Ticket Members may renew their tickets on-line today.
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