TAMPA, NOV. 16, 2017 – Seniors led No. 23 USF to a 27-20 win over Tulsa Thursday, as the Bulls' veterans stood out in all three phases of the game in the regular season home finale at Raymond James Stadium.

Senior linebacker Auggie Sanchez (St. Petersburg) became the program's all-time leading tackler with 378 career stops after matching his career high with 14 tackles. Sanchez also tied his career high with three of USF's season-high 13 tackles for loss.

Senior defensive tackle Deadrin Senat (Immokalee, Fla.) set a new career high with 13 tackles while USF (9-1, 6-1) improved to 5-1 at home this season. Senat has averaged eight tackles in the past six games to help put USF in a position to compete for a conference championship game trip next week in Orlando.

Senior quarterback Quinton Flowers (Miami) posted his 14^th-career 100-yard rushing game, finishing with 119 yards on 17 carries (7.0 ypc). Flowers also threw touchdown passes to Tyre McCants (Niceville, Fla.) and Darnell Salomon (Miami) during USF's 21-point first quarter.

Senior Emilio Nadelman (Miami) set a new USF season record with 20 made field goals after going 2-for-2 with kicks from 41 and 48 yards out. Nadelman moved up to third on USF's season scoring list with 103 points.

Explosive USF racked up 339 yards of offense (222 rushing) in the first half with five 20-plus yard plays on the way to a 24-17 halftime lead.

Tulsa (2-9, 1-6) took a 7-0 lead on its first series of the game before USF took control with three straight touchdown drives, including two scoring passes from Flowers.

McCants started the scoring spree with a tip-toe act down the sideline near the end of a 25-yard touchdown catch on USF's second drive of the game. Tice put the Bulls ahead with a career-long 54-yard touchdown run before Salomon hauled in a 35-yard scoring catch with 2:04 remaining in the first quarter.

Clutch special teams plays helped USF extend its lead to 27-17 almost midway through the third quarter. Seven plays after senior Devon Jones-Stewart's blocked punt, Nadelman set the new USF season record with his 20^th made field goal from 48 yards out.

Tulsa cut the USF lead to 27-20 with 4:19 remaining before the Bulls' defense stepped up late to seal the victory. Tulsa got down to the USF 30 on its final drive, but pressure forced an incompletion on fourth-and-9 with 27 seconds left.

Quotable
Head coach Charlie Strong on the Bulls continuing success under a new coaching staff this season:
"Usually when you take over a program where they won 11 games, a lot of times there's going to be a lot of resentment. There's going to be some guys who think they're better than what they are and they don't want to listen to you. But this group never did. The reason why they didn't was because of the two leaders. With Auggie and with Q, they bought into it... This group never made it about themselves. The only thing this group did is they went to work each and every game."

Strong on the importance of next week's game at UCF:
"Our guys understand what's at stake. We've just got to continue to play well and we just need to put together a complete game, which we haven't done."

Key Stats
279 – The total rushing yards for USF, which averaged 6.2 yards per carry.
229 – The amount of yards of offense USF totaled in the first quarter on the way to a 21-7 lead.
13 – USF finished with a season-high 13 tackles for loss, including three by senior Auggie Sanchez.
3 – USF's defense allowed only three points in the second half to help the Bulls hold on for the victory.

Notables

• LB Auggie Sanchez set the new USF career tackles record with 378. Sanchez needed four tackles coming in to break Kawika Mitchell's previous record (367 tackles, 1999-2002) and tied his career high with 14 stops.
• K Emilio Nadelman set a new USF season record with 20 made field goals after connecting from 41 and 48 yards out.

• USF improved to 5-1 at home this season. Over the past two seasons, USF is 11-2 at Raymond James Stadium.
• Charlie Strong was a winner in his 100^th career game as a head coach.
• Prior to kickoff, the program recognized 23 seniors: RB D'Ernest Johnson, CB Deatrick Nichols, RB Darius Tice, QB Quinton Flowers, DT Deadrin Senat, WR Marquez Valdes-Scanting, WR Temi Alaka, S Tajee Fullwood, S Devin Abraham, LB Devon Jones-Stewart, K Emilio Nadelman, LB Auggie Sanchez, P Jonathan Hernandez, TE Spencer Adkinson, TE KJ Miles, DT Bruce Hector, OL Glen Bethel, LG Jeremi Hall, C Cameron Ruff, TE Ryan Hintze, WR Trevor Steinke, WR Ryeshene Bronson and DE Mike Love.

 
Up Next
USF finishes up the regular season with an important War on I-4 clash at UCF on Friday, Nov. 24 that will decide which team wins The American's East Division.

Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. and the game will be broadcast nationally on ABC from Spectrum Stadium in Orlando.
 
ABOUT USF FOOTBALL
USF finished the 2016 season ranked No. 19 in the Associated Press poll with a school-record 11 wins following the program's fifth-ever bowl victory in the Birmingham Bowl. The Bulls' 11-2 record marked the fifth-best winning percentage in FBS football in 2016 and one of just 11 teams to reach 11 wins. USF set nearly 40 team and individual records in 2016, including team records for total yards (6,650), rushing yards (3,714), touchdowns (77) and scoring (569). Junior quarterback Quinton Flowers was named the American Conference Offensive Player of the Year and led a school-record 10 players named to the all-conference team, six of which, including Flowers, will return in 2017. 

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