Follow @USFFootball On Twitter
Like USF Football on Facebook
It's December, and it's still college football season for the Bulls! In honor of their seventh bowl game, let's look back at the previous six times the Bulls have been part of the bowl season. I've been fortunate enough to be at each game, and they all provide their own unique memories.
Brut Sun Bowl
Dec. 31, 2007
El Paso, Texas
Oregon 56, USF 21
By JIM LOUK
Voice of the Bulls
TAMPA, DEC. 16, 2016 – I've always considered the 2007 Brut Sun Bowl to be the most fun of all the bowl trips we've taken to this point. At least up until game time.
You learn a lot of American geography traveling with a college athletics program for more than 30 years. (I'm still coming to terms with the revelation that Reno is further west than San Diego, which we found out on the 2012 Nevada football trip). What I learned from this trip is that even though El Paso is in the same state as common USF road destinations Dallas and Houston, it is approximately 9 million miles further west than either of those two cities.
At any rate, we got there, right after the left turn at Neptune. And once we were there, the Sun Bowl staff put on a remarkable show. After all, you certainly never get a mariachi band greeting you at the airport in the regular season.
The Sun Bowl, under various sponsor names, has been in operation since 1935, making it by far the most established bowl game the Bulls had ever been invited to. At the Sun Bowl luncheon we learned the history of the game, including the fact that in 1940, fans enjoyed watching the Arizona State Teachers College and the Catholic University Cardinals play to a scoreless tie in a Sun Bowl game that featured 23 punts.
All right, off the subject, I know.
That 2007 Bulls team had been through a lot by the time we got to El Paso; you know all the stories about that season by now. While it's easy to remember the fall from No.2 in the nation, don't forget the Bulls went into this game with consecutive wins over Syracuse, Louisville and Pittsburgh. Meanwhile, Oregon had so many injuries at quarterback that Justin Roper, who started the season fifth string, would be the Ducks' bowl game signal caller. Oregon entered the game on a three-game losing streak.
The game also featured a great broadcast slot on CBS. Every day leading up to it was filled with activities. It was pretty clear to all of us that this was a high-level event, and a great bowl game to be in.
The most memorable of the activities leading up to the game may have been the players' talent show. It was the first time we heard the remarkable singing voice of then USF offensive lineman Chaz Hine, whose vocal range literally left the crowd stunned.
The last day of 2007 began crisp and clear. With a mid-day start we were in the broadcast booth well before sunrise and watching the morning light come up over the mountains behind the stadium was well beyond wonderful.
All right, on to the game. It was a really hard one to figure. Oregon ran for 353 yards and its young quarterback threw four touchdown passes. The Bulls held it close for a while; it was 18-14 Oregon at half. Both teams converted a two-point conversion early.
It fell apart in the third quarter for the Bulls as Oregon scored 28 unanswered points. USF never got its run game going; in fact backup quarterback Grant Gregory turned out to be the leading Bulls rusher of the day.
It was the final leg of the emotional rollercoaster of that season. We flew home that night, and somewhere between El Paso and Tampa, 2007 became 2008. The Bulls were now 1-2 all-time in bowl games, but a run of postseason victories was just ahead.
The Series
USF Bowl Memories: Part I
USF Bowl Memories: Part II
Season ticket deposits for the 2016 season start at $125 and can be placed at USFBullstix.com. The Bulls will play seven home games in Raymond James Stadium in 2016, hosting Florida State on Sept. 24 as well as conference clashes with UCF, Navy, East Carolina and UConn.
Follow @USFFootball on twitter for all the latest information concerning the USF Football program.
