Bulls Getting Ready to Grind It Out Against Navy
NEXT GAME: USF (3-3, 1-1 in AAC) at Navy (4-1, 2-1 in AAC)
DAY/TIME: Saturday/3:30 p.m.
LOCATION: Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium, Annapolis, Md.
TV: CBS Sports Network
RADIO: Over the Air: WDAE 95.3 FM/620 AM ;
Digital: Bulls Unlimited
SERIES: Tied, 1-1. Bulls won last meeting, 52-45, in 2016.
GAME NOTES: USF |
Navy
By TOM ZEBOLD
USF Senior Writer
TAMPA, OCT. 16, 2019 – Saturday is shaping up to be one of those old school, grind-it-out type of games for the Bulls on both sides of the ball.
On defense, each player in coordinator
Brian Jean-Mary's aggressive bunch has to be disciplined against Navy's effective triple-option attack that takes lots of time off the clock (34:26 per game). With that in mind, coordinator
Kerwin Bell's offense has to make things happen as much as possible against the Midshipmen, who rank 16th nationally in total defense (286.2 ypg).
"You're probably gonna get maybe three or four less drives in a game than you usually get because they hold the ball," Bell said Wednesday. "We've gotta have quality drives and we gotta score points when we get an opportunity to go out there on the field."
USF has averaged 37.5 points in its past two wins with a rushing attack that's put up an average of 278 yards during the stretch. The Bulls want to continue that type of success but know they must be balanced against Navy's defense that limits opponents to an average of 86.0 rushing yards per game.
"There's gonna be times, and this could be a week, where we gotta just continue to work on our throw game," Bell said.
'Big Game' for McCloud
USF's second conference road game of the season will be a prime time for redshirt freshman
Jordan McCloud to use his high football IQ against a Navy defense that tries to confuse quarterbacks with lots of different looks at the line.
"He's gonna have to make some tough decisions out there, some quick decisions and some quick changes to make sure he gets us in the right plays," coordinator
Kerwin Bell said. "He's that kinda guy, he can figure it out. He's very sharp at the line of scrimmage. I think if we do that, then we got a chance to go score some points and get up early. If we do that, then we'll be in control of the game."
Despite not allowing a sack against big BYU, USF's passing game couldn't break out, partially because of what McCloud was battling.
The Tampa native has been dealing with wrist/hand ailments since the SMU game on Sept. 28 and used a glove on his throwing hand to get a better grip last Saturday. McCloud's toughness was tested even more in the first quarter, when he suffered a shoulder stinger that hampered his accuracy on deep throws.
"He didn't practice yesterday, but he did today," said Bell of McCloud, who threw well Wednesday. "We think he's gonna be close to 100 percent by game time. We gotta get him to 100 percent and playing at a high level for us."
More on the Ground Game Success
USF ran all over its past two opponents with a total of 556 yards on the ground, which continued a notable trend. Under head coach
Charlie Strong, the Bulls are 17-1 when rushing for 200 yards in a game.
Bell said recent success can be attributed to the commitment of "playing hard every play" made by USF's starting offensive line – LT
Donovan Jennings (Tampa), LG
Demetris Harris (Jacksonville, Fla.), center
Brad Cecil (Jacksonville, Fla.), RG
William Atterbury (Clearwater, Fla.) and RT
Marcus Norman (Sebastian, Fla.).
"That's when our ground game really started to come alive. We're moving the line of scrimmage. We're controlling the line of scrimmage," Bell said. "When you do that and you got the kind of backs we got, now you can be successful in the run game."
Seniors
Jordan Cronkrite and
Trevon Sands were a dynamic duo during the two-game stretch, combining for 433 yards and three touchdowns. Cronkrite (Miami) registered consecutive 100-yard rushing games while Sands (Miami) averaged 7.5 yards per carry with an attitude.
"I think they feed off each other," Bell said. "I've seen Jordan start seeing Sands run hard. He runs harder and vice versa. They are complementing each other really well."
Agressive Bulls Will Be Tested Mentally, Physically
USF has the distinction of being the nation's top-ranked defense in delivering tackles for loss with 10.3 per game.
"It's a great stat to have because kids are getting in the backfield and making plays," coordinator
Brian Jean-Mary said.
After racking up a combined total of 23 TFLs and 11 sacks in the past two games, USF looks to keep producing eye-catching numbers against an opponent that's waiting for defenders to blink. Navy's triple-option offense leads the nation in rushing (327.2 ypg) and ranks 22
nd in scoring (37.8 ppg).
"On probably 50 percent of their plays, they have three different options, whether it's the fullback up the middle, the quarterback off tackle, or a pitch player," Jean-Mary said. "You gotta have three levels of your defense that have to be on the same page and have to be assignment sound on every play that they run. It's gonna test us mentally, but also physically."
Navy has thrown the ball only 43 times this season, but the Bulls still have to be prepared for a capable passer in senior
Malcolm Perry.
"The one thing that stood out for them, watching them on tape, they are very comfortable with him throwing the ball," Jean-Mary said. "I think they are very confident in his ability to read the defense and deliver the football."
Bulls Bits
- DEFENSE MAKES A STATEMENT: USF's defense showed it can come up big in clutch situations last week by making fourth-down stands on BYU's final two possessions that ended at the Bulls' 5 and 20. Senior safety Devin Studstill (Riviera Beach, Fla.) batted a pass down in the end zone on the final play, which put the exclamation mark on USF's massive statement. "They were able to rise in the most crucial moment. You give the kids all the credit in the world," coordinator Brian Jean-Mary said. "That's a player's dream to be on the field to win a big game. I was really happy for those kids."
- CECIL'S PAIN DOESN'T STOP USF'S GAINS: Sophomore center Brad Cecil took his toughness to another level against BYU after turning his ankle in the days prior to the game. "Man, he had a big assignment last week and also banged his shoulder a little bit during the game, but he battled all game and really neutralized that big nose tackle," coordinator Kerwin Bell said. "That's why we were able to run the football so successfully."
- MITCH MAKES IT HAPPEN: The ball wasn't for him, but that didn't stop senior Mitchell Wilcox from making a diving, 39-yard touchdown catch in the second quarter that sparked USF's comeback from a 13-0 deficit against BYU. "Mitch was supposed to run a middle read. He saw the ball and he adjusted to it perfectly, unbelievable catch," Bell said. "We needed that play there at that time. Our defense had held on and kept us in the game." Extra effort on the crucial play has the complete tight end from Tarpon Springs, Fla., tied for 10th on USF's career TD catch list with 10. With 1,206 career receiving yards, Wilcox is only one more explosive play away from 12th on the program's all-time chart (Jessie Hester, 1,226 yards).
ABOUT USF FOOTBALL
Having completed 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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– #GoBulls –
