Barnett & Horne Receive National and Conference Honors
TAMPA, SEPT. 10, 2018 – After big games in USF's 49-38 victory over Georgia Tech Saturday in Raymond James Stadium, junior quarterback
Blake Barnett (Corona, Calif.) and freshman wide receiver/kick returner
Terrence Horne Jr. (Miramar, Fla.) received several national and conference honors.
Horne was named the American Athletic Conference Special Teams Player of the Week after he tied and NCAA record and set new USF and conference marks with two kickoff returns for touchdowns vs. the Yellow Jackets. Horne's 264 kickoff return yards on the day also set new USF and conference records as he averaged 52.8 yards per return on five kickoff returns on the day, including 98 and 97-yard returns for touchdowns on back-to-back efforts. Horne produced three total touchdowns on the day as his 3-yard touchdown catch with 12:11 to play was the first of 21 unanswered points for the Bulls in the fourth quarter.
Horne was also honored on the Paul Hornung Award national honor roll for Week 2. The Hornung Award is presented annually to the nation's most versatile and outstanding performer. Horne added two catches for 11 yards and two runs for 8 yards for 283 all-purpose yards vs. Georgia Tech. Horne was also named the College Football Performance Awards Honorable Mention Performer of the Week. He was one of six players nationally recognized for Week 2.
Barnett was named to the Davey O'Brien Great 8 and the Manning Award Stars of the Week while also earning his second conference weekly honor roll recognition in Week 2 after he led a 10-point fourth quarter comeback for the Bulls, finishing it off with a pair of rushing touchdowns. The O'Brien Award honors the nation's top quarterback annually. Barnett was named to the Great 8 alongside Kellen Mond (Texas A&M), D'Erig King (Houston), Kyler Murray (Oklahoma), Manny Wilkins (Arizona State), Steven Montez (Colorado), Jake Fromm (Georgia) and Terry Wilson (Kentucky).
Barnett accounted for four touchdowns vs. Georgia Tech as he led the Bulls rushing for 86 yards and two touchdowns, including scores from 19 and 5 yards out to give the Bulls the lead. Barnett also threw for 207 yards and two touchdowns on the day. He has five touchdown passes on the year to five different receivers.
Barnett enters Week 3 ranked eighth in the nation in points responsible for, posting 24.0 ppg. He also stands 21
st in total offense with 314.5 yards per game while completing 69.2 percent of his passes.
Meanwhile, senior linebacker
Khalid McGee (Miami, Fla.) was named the conference defensive player of the week by College Sports Madness following his nine tackles vs. Georgia Tech.
Barnett will look to lead USF to its fifth straight win over a Power Five conference opponent, and seventh in the last eight meetings, when the Bulls travel to Chicago Saturday to face Illinois at Soldier Field in a 3:30 p.m. (ET) kick. The game will be televised by the Big Ten Network and can be heard live on the USF Radio Network (820 AM locally, iHeart Radio Bulls Unlimited Channel).
Season and single-game tickets can be purchased by calling 1-800-Go-Bulls, visiting
www.USFBullsTix.com or in-person at the USF Ticket Office (Lee Roy Selmon Athletic Center) Monday through Friday between the hours of 9 a.m. and 5 p.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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