Big Things Ahead for Bulls With Bell as Offensive Coordinator
By TOM ZEBOLD
USF Senior Writer
TAMPA, JAN. 16, 2019 – USF head football coach
Charlie Strong hit a home run with the hiring of
Kerwin Bell as the Bulls' new offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach.
Bell will bring a wealth of knowledge, points and poise to the USF offense after pretty much doing it all in the sport and winning a ton of games in the process. The 1984 SEC Player of the Year at Florida, Bell became one of the Gators' all-time greats before showing he had what it takes to make it as a 14-year pro quarterback.
"I know what great football looks like," said Bell, who was introduced to the Bay area media on Wednesday morning.
Bell opened more eyes as a collegiate head coach, starting with winning three Pioneer League Championships and posting a 66-35 record at Jacksonville University (2007-15). Most recently, Bell achieved excellence at Valdosta State (2016-18), leading the 14-0 Blazers to a 2018 NCAA Division II national championship with the nation's top-ranked scoring offense that averaged 52 points per game.
Now he's been handed the keys to an evolving USF's offense that returns nine starters and he's already plotting ways to get the Bulls into the end zone often.
"If you look at us, I think one thing you're going to see is we're going to go fast, but we're also going to try to execute at a very, very high level," Bell said. "With our spacing, with our timing, with our rhythm of our system, I think you will see."
Bell has been using his multi-faceted system for nearly two decades and he's determined to take full advantage of the Bulls' speed without play-calling becoming predictable. He also thinks starting quarterback
Blake Barnett has the potential to help USF stay in "great down-and-distance situations," which lead to "a bunch of points."
The 2018 VSU squad did just that, breaking the D-II scoring record with 728 points on the way to Bell earning Gulf South Conference Co-Coach of the Year honors.
Bell broke down his offensive philosophy Wednesday, which should get Bulls fans excited about the playmaking possibilities.
"It's a pro-style passing game that utilizes a professional passing game with a lot of spread concepts," Bell said of his offense.
"We think we've got the best of both worlds," Bell continued. "We can get the ball in the hands of our best players when we need to and when we want to, and try to utilize our strengths in open-field situations, which is what the spread is really about. We'll also then utilize the run game in the spread with our quarterbacks and (have) the ability to sort of keep the numbers in our favor in the run game."
Like Strong, Bell believes in winning the line of scrimmage to make it all happen and his track record shows he likes to keep things balanced. Last season, VSU produced an eye-catching total of 7,334 yards (3,676 rushing/3,658 passing) and Bell's teams went a combined 27-7 in his three seasons with the Blazers.
Bell looks forward to being on the same team with Strong again for the first time since Bell was a player and Strong started his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Florida in 1983-84.
"The head coach is a guy I really admire and trust, and I believe in," Bell said. "… Coach Strong has given me total control to go in and run my own system. There's not an offensive guy sort of looking over your shoulder. It's a guy who believes in what we're doing."
Bell also has a lot of respect for Vice President of USF Athletics
Michael Kelly, who was praised by Alan Verlander, Bell's former boss at Jacksonville University.
"I'm excited about (Kelly) as the AD. I think it's going to put us in a position to do great things here," Bell said. "With (Kelly and Strong) in place above me as the OC, I'm excited about the opportunity to take USF to a different level."
More on Bell's Offensive Philosophy
Longtime coordinator Lindy Infante and Steve Spurrier are two big names in the sport of football that Bell credits as his main influences when it comes to offense.
Bell was a QB for Indianapolis from 1996-97 when Infante was head coach after serving as the Colts' offensive coordinator.
"He was one of the smartest guys I've ever been around in the profession," said Bell of his pro-style passing game teacher.
Bell said Spurrier is responsible for showing him the "near perfection" a spread offense can attain when Bell started his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Florida in 1990.
"From that point on, that's when I really decided I wanted to be a coach was that season," Bell said.
Concepts were taken from both great football minds and Bell's other 10 offensive coordinators during his pro career that helped shape his philosophy today. Now a Bull, Bell wants to use his knowledge to help differentiate USF's offense from others in the D-I college game.
"When we want to drop back and throw the football, we do it on a professional level. I've always said, to me that's where we separate ourselves from everybody else," Bell said. "A lot of spread teams I don't think can professionally drop back and throw the football on an NFL, professional-type level. That's what we will bring to the table."
Another exciting aspect of Bell's approach is his willingness to play to USF's strengths – speed and athleticism. Bell said the Bulls will play fast in an attempt to take away opposing defense's exotic looks. They'll also play smart, making sure the QB is protected and not being outnumbered by defenses in the run game when offenses try to go too fast.
"You want to make sure that you're in control on your side to the point where you can get the matchups and you can get the guys open in space for them to utilize their speed," he said.
Bell plans to take advantage of USF's strengths by utilizing the Bulls' playmakers, no matter their position on the roster. Bell said he'll "adapt to any situation we need to" to make that possible in games.
Basically, expect formations to be fluid and USF's offensive game to be fun under Bell's watch.
"We try to put the most explosive players on the field. We're going to go through spring and we're going to find out who those explosive players are," Bell said. "Then our personnel groups will depend on that as we go through the season, because you always want to get your best guys on the field."
Spring ball needs to get here fast because Bulls Nation is eager see what Bell has in store for 2019 and beyond.
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In just its 22nd season of football, and 19th at the FBS level, the USF football program has earned 10 bowl appearances, including a current run of four straight, and owns a record of 6-3 in bowl games. The Bulls have appeared in the national top 25 rankings in each of the past three seasons, including a program record run of 20 straight weeks in the top 25, and in 2018 reached the program's 150th win faster than any FBS program in state of Florida history. USF has posted a pair of 10-plus win seasons in the last three years, including a program-record 11 wins (11-2) in 2016, and logged 15 winning seasons overall. Since first taking the field in 1997, the USF program has reached as high as No. 2 in the national rankings (2007), seen 30 players selected in the NFL Draft, 14 named All-American and 29 earn first-team all-conference selection.
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