USF Athletics

War on I-4 Has Never Meant More Than This Year

November 20, 2017

AMERICAN TELECONFERENCE
 
By TOM ZEBOLD
USF Senior Writer

TAMPA, NOV. 20, 2017 – Eight USF-UCF meetings of the past have all meant something, but the magnitude of the rivalry game has reached epic proportions this year.

Friday will mark the first-ever War on I-4 game between two ranked teams when No. 22/19 USF (9-1) clashes with No. 13/12 UCF (10-0) at Spectrum Stadium. Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. in Orlando.

This year, the winner will be earning much more than bragging rights.

Aside from playing for the 160-pound War on I-4 trophy, Friday's game will decide The American's East Division champion that will face Memphis in the league title game on Saturday, Dec. 2. 

"The better the teams are, the bigger the rivalry is and the better the game is," head coach Charlie Strong said. "With them being undefeated and us having one loss, it's what makes the game so much bigger this year."

Fittingly, Friday's game will be televised nationally on ABC, which is a grand platform for two of the nine remaining FBS programs with one or fewer losses. The American is the only conference in the nation with three teams that fit into that category (No. 17/16 Memphis is 9-1).

"I think (The American) deserves more attention and credit than it's getting probably right now. You need some marquee games and this is certainly going to be one of them," UCF head coach Scott Frost said. "Whoever is in the championship game, that will be another one. If you look at what's happened with teams in this league, not just this year but every year, good teams in this league can play with and beat just about anybody."

Beating UCF would be extra special for USF, considering the Knights are one of only four remaining undefeated teams in the FBS (Alabama, Miami Wisconsin). Frost's squad currently leads the nation in scoring offense (48.2 ppg) and Strong said knocking off the Knights will require USF reaching its full potential.

"We have not put together a complete game yet. It's maybe one half on offense and then the next half the defense steps up, and then the kicking game," Strong said. "In all three phases, we have yet to see a complete game and we need a complete game this game. That's what it's going to take – a total team effort."

Flowers Eyes Two More Huge Milestones
Dual-threat quarterback Quinton Flowers has done a lot of damage in the USF history books by setting 22 different records in his career and two more huge feats are on the horizon.

Heading into Friday, the super senior from Miami needs just 96 more yards to break Matt Grothe's USF total offense record of 10,875 yards. With 29 career victories, Flowers could match Marquel Blackwell's USF quarterback wins record of 30 by getting past UCF one more time.

"It's them versus us," said Flowers, who led USF to wins in the past two War on I-4 games. "We just have to go out there and execute our plays."

The last time Flowers faced UCF in Orlando, he broke the program's season touchdown pass record with three scoring tosses in a 44-3 victory on Nov. 27, 2015. Flowers also ran for two scores in the blowout win and now he needs just one more rushing touchdown to become just the sixth player in FBS history to post at least 60 passing and 40 rushing scores in a career.

UCF head coach Scott Frost's take on Flowers:
"He's a special player, he has been since he came onto the scene a couple years ago.  He's the type of guy that makes big plays all over the place. You can feel like you're controlling him and stopping him, and he can make a big play at any time. He's dynamic and we really have to attack him. We have to make sure that we're closing the distance on him and not giving him a chance to break any long runs. We have to be sound in coverage, so he doesn't hit any big passes. It's going to be a big challenge for us, our kids are excited about it."

Bulls Bits

• SERIES HISTORY AND NO. 250: USF owns a 6-2 advantage in its rivalry series with UCF. Friday's meeting will mark the 250th game in Bulls football history. Learn more about the War on I-4 HERE.
• USF FOOTBALL RADIO SHOW: Catch the USF Football Radio Show on Tuesday from 6-7 p.m. at World of Beer on East Fowler Ave. (near the USF campus). Fans have a chance to chat with Coach Strong during segment breaks and take advantage of great food and drink specials throughout the show. Learn more HERE.
• BULLS GETTING TO BACKFIELD: Coming off a season-high 13 tackles behind the line of scrimmage against Tulsa, USF leads the nation 9.1 tackles for loss per game. Individually, senior Bruce Hector (Tampa) is tied for 27^th nationally with 1.3 tackles for loss per outing.
• USF RUNNING WILD: USF currently ranks eighth national in rushing offense (276.9 ypg) and will look to continue a notable trend against UCF. In the past two War on I-4 meetings, USF is averaging 316 rushing yards after busting out for 351 yards in Tampa last season.

 
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). 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, returned in 2017. 


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