USF Athletics

No. 23 Bulls Back in Conference Action Friday at Tulsa on National TV

October 08, 2018

USF GAME NOTES
 
By TOM ZEBOLD
USF Senior Writer

TAMPA, OCT. 8, 2018 – Head coach Charlie Strong's No. 23 Bulls are back in the top 25 and they're getting ready to showcase the winning USF brand on the national stage this week.

One of only 11 undefeated teams remaining in FBS football, USF seeks its second straight 6-0 start to a season when it takes on Tulsa in Oklahoma on Friday. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. and fans all over the country can catch the game on the ESPN primetime telecast.

"I'm really excited about our team and the work we're going to have to put in this week to get ready to go play a Friday night game with a national audience," said Strong during Monday's weekly press conference.

Following a bye week, USF (5-0, 1-0 in AAC) generated 574 total yards and a season-high five takeaways in a 58-42 win at UMass last Saturday. The Bulls can set the program's new best four-year win total (currently 34 victories) Friday night and they'll have to get ready for Tulsa in a hurry.

"You have to work a day ahead because we play Friday," Strong said. "Usually they're off on Monday, so we had to take this day. I know they don't like it, but we have no choice."

Finding ways to win on the road hasn't been a problem for USF, which has gone 12-2 away from Tampa (41.9 ppg during the span) in the past three seasons. The Bulls own The American's top conference record of 20-5 the past three seasons heading into a stretch of seven league games in seven straight weeks to end the regular season.

"The next seven games are conference games, so they all count. We have really good teams in this conference and everybody is going to play us well," Strong said. "We've got to be at our best and we've got to play well. We've got to play with effort, we've got to execute and we've got to come out and play with passion."

Record-Breaking Cronkrite Explodes on the National Scene
Junior back Jordan Cronkrite gained lots of national attention and earned The American's offensive player of the week award by shattering USF and AAC records with 302 rushing yards in the win at UMass.

"To rush for 300 yards, it's amazing. I wanted him to get 300 yards, so I left him in the game," Strong said. "… Because of the way he played that night, he deserved to get it."

Cronkrite now ranks third nationally and second in The American with 151.5 rushing yards per game after racking up the fourth-most rushing yards ever by a player for a state of Florida FBS program. Against UMass, the Miami native also set USF's new game record for yards per carry (13.1, minimum 20 carries) after breaking off touchdown runs of 77, 76 and 30 yards.

"You watch him play and you really see that burst. When he hits that burst, then he takes off and it's hard for guys to go catch him," Strong said. "He has outstanding speed, runs behind his pads, can run through tacklers, and does a really good job of just protecting the football."

Cronkrite has rushed for at least 100 yards in three straight games and his 567 yards (9.45 ypc) rank as the second-most yards ever over a three-game span by a USF player. Andre Hall still holds the top mark with 591 rushing yards over three games in 2004.

Know the Foe
Tulsa (1-4, 0-2 in AAC) is looking to snap a four-game losing streak after holding a 26-17 lead with 13 minutes to play in a 41-26 loss at Houston last Thursday night.

With extra time to prepare, Tulsa will be looking for more success in the ground game and heads into this week ranking 37^th nationally in rushing offense (206.8 ypg).

"The strength of their offense is their offensive line," Strong said. "You look at the center, the guard and the tackle, all three of those are three-year starters. They're similar to us, they have running backs that can play."

Tulsa's defense is much improved from last year, averaging 195 fewer yards allowed per game, and ranks 15^th nationally in passing defense (173.4 ypg). Junior linebacker Cooper Edmiston is tied for fourth nationally with three interceptions and leads Tulsa with 42 total tackles.

USF has a 2-0 lead in its all-time series with Tulsa and Strong knows the Bulls will have to bring the toughness to stay perfect against the Golden Hurricane.

"We know it's going to be a physical game and we're going to have to win at the line of scrimmage," Strong said.

Bulls Bits

• USF-UCONN GAME TIME ANNOUNCED: USF's next home game against UConn on Saturday, Oct. 20 is set for a 7 p.m. start at Raymond James Stadium. USF's homecoming game will be televised nationally on CBS Sports Network. Learn more HERE.
• AAC IN TOP 25: Checking in at No. 23 in both national polls, USF is one of three unbeaten teams in the East Division of the American Athletic Conference. No. 10/9 UCF is 5-0 and No. 25/25 Cincinnati is 6-0. The American is the only conference in FBS football with three remaining unbeaten teams this season.
• PRODUCTIVE GROUND GAME: Sparked by Jordan Cronkrite's 302 rushing yards, USF rolled to a season-high 365 rushing yards, which marked the ninth-best ground game total in program history. USF has rushed for 300-plus yards six times in less than two seasons under the guidance of offensive coordinator Sterlin Gilbert. The Bulls have rushed for at least 200 yards in 29 on their past 35 games.
• THOMAS A SOLID STUDENT-ATHLETE: Senior safety Jaymon Thomas (Immokalee, Fla.) is a semifinalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy, which recognizes the best football scholar-athlete in the nation. Finalists will be named on Oct. 31 and each finalist will receive an $18,000 postgraduate scholarship as a member of the 60th NFF National Scholar-Athlete Class. Learn more HERE. "It's a credit to how we can go on the field and compete, and in the classroom," Strong said. "He's just an all-around individual, all-around football player. He's an unbelievable young man."
• BLACK LEADING SACK ATTACK: After setting a career high with two sacks at UMass, senior defensive end Josh Black (Tampa) leads the Bulls with 4.0 sacks overall this season. Black has recorded at least one sack in three of five games this season and he's tied for second on the team with 5.0 tackles for loss. "We always felt like he has that ability. He can do a lot of things," Strong said. "… That's what we want to see from him each and every week." With Black's help, USF currently ranks 13 nationally in tackles for loss (8.4 per game) and 14th in sacks (3.20 per game).

 
ABOUT USF FOOTBALL
USF posted its second straight 10-win season in 2017 (10-2) by winning its second straight Birmingham Bowl with a 38-34 victory over Texas Tech. USF is one of just 15 teams nationally to win 20-plus games in the last two seasons (21-4) and posted a program-record 20 straight weeks ranked in the top 25, reaching as high as No. 13 in Week 8 of the 2017 season. The Bulls have won five of their last six bowl appearances and made nine (6-3) total bowl appearances in 21 seasons, including a current run of three straight bowls. USF won a program-record 11 games in 2016 (11-2) and has posted 14 winning seasons. The USF program, which first took the field in 1997, reached No. 2 in the rankings in 2007 and has seen 30 players selected in the NFL Draft, 14 named All-American and had 28 first-team all-conference selections.
 
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