USF Athletics

Camp Quick Hits: Defense Continues All-Out Effort on Day 2

August 04, 2018

By TOM ZEBOLD
USF Senior Writer

TAMPA, AUG. 4, 2018 – Head coach Charlie Strong's Bulls responded to a quick turnaround well by flying around the field in a very productive second practice of the fall on Saturday morning.

After kicking off camp Friday night, the Bulls' defense brought an intensity level that second-year USF coordinator Brian Jean-Mary was looking for a short time after the first session at the USF recreational fields.

"You have to be pleased with the first two days because you see guys trying to give all-out effort and trying to do what we ask them to do alignment and assignment-wise," Jean-Mary said.

Pleasing a demanding coordinator like Jean-Mary led to big results last season for USF's defense, which finished in the top 25 of the national rankings in six categories and led The American in scoring and total defense. Six Bulls with starting experience from that much-improved defense return and Jean-Mary is also happy to have lots of new talent up front.

"The point of emphasis for us in the offseason when we went out recruiting was to try to get some more numbers in that defensive line," Jean-Mary said. "We felt like if we could increase that number with good players, those similar body types, we would able to find some young guys that could help us early."

Stay tuned to find out which new Bulls are emerging on the defensive line after USF puts on the pads by early next week.

Camp Quick Hits

• BULLS GAIN MORE NFL ATTENTION: A scout from the Cleveland Browns attended practice Saturday after representatives of the Kansas City Chiefs and Cincinnati Bengals were in the house Friday night.
• KICKER UPDATE: USF kickers started camp off sharp, going a combined 8-for-9 on field goal attempts Friday. Senior Jake Vivonetto (Naples, Fla.) backed that up with a solid Saturday, making four of five attempts, including two from 42 and 47 yards out.
• QBs HIT THEIR TARGETS: All three quarterbacks in the starting position battle made notable throws Saturday. Chris Oladokun (Tampa) hit Darnell Salomon (Miami) in stride on a 35-yard touchdown and later found newcomer Bryce Miller for a 50-plus yard score during seven-on-seven action. Brett Kean (Lakewood, Ohio) took the first snaps of practice and hit Randall St. Felix (Miami) with a 30-yard strike early on. Kean covered the same distance later with a pretty pass to Mackey Award candidate Mitchell Wilcox (Tarpon Springs, Fla.). Transfer Blake Barnett (Corona, Calif.) threaded the needle on a first-down throw to Wilcox before completing a 20-yard pass to Zion Roland (St. Petersburg).
• ROBERTS WITH THE PICK: The top defensive play of Saturday belonged to redshirt freshman defensive back Nick Roberts (Jacksonville, Fla.), who jumped a deep route and came down with a leaping interception in the second half of practice.

Up Next
After two days on the USF recreational fields, the Bulls will head to the Morsani Football Practice Complex for the third session of the fall Sunday at 10 a.m.

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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