'Resilient' Bulls Focused on Saturday's Big Opportunity
NEXT GAME: USF (4-5, 2-3) vs. No. 17 Cincinnati (8-1, 5-0)
DAY/TIME: Saturday/7 p.m.
LOCATION: Raymond James Stadium, Tampa
TV/RADIO: CBS Sports Network/USF Radio Network:
Over the Air: WDAE 95.3 FM/620 AM &
Digital: Bulls Unlimited
SERIES: Cincinnati leads, 9-7; Bulls lead, 5-3, in Tampa
PURCHASE TICKETS: USFBullsTix.com
GAME NOTES: USF (PDF)
By TOM ZEBOLD
USF Senior Writer
TAMPA, NOV. 13, 2019 – If an important trend continues, expect to see the focused and hopeful Bulls giving the No. 17 Bearcats their best shot Saturday night at Raymond James Stadium.
Earlier this week, sophomore
Rashawn Yates (Port St. Lucie, Fla.) said the team is "pretty high-spirited," and sticking together during a crucial stretch of the season.
USF's coordinators echoed the defensive tackle's sentiments Wednesday, as the program prepares for an upset bid against a talented Cincinnati team (8-1, 5-0) that leads The American's East Division.
"Our kids' attitudes have been great and the practices have gone really well, some of the best practices we've had all year, really," offensive coordinator
Kerwin Bell said. "Guys are flying around and playing with great pace. It's been good."
"The way we lost last game, obviously the team can go in two different directions. Practice has been lively, for the most part," defensive coordinator
Brian Jean-Mary added. "We've gone a lot more good-on-good, so that always gets the competitive juices flowing. I'd have to say I've been pleased with the tempo of practice and the kids' attitude."
USF (4-5, 2-3) knows the time is now to start making progress in the win column in order to book the Bulls' fifth straight postseason appearance.
"You gotta win two out of three, and our guys are resilient right now," Bell said.
At this important point in the season, the Bulls are seeing more than seniors stepping up in the leadership department. Yates said young players, like redshirt freshman quarterback
Jordan McCloud (Tampa) and sophomore linebacker
Dwayne Boyles (Miami), have been very vocal at practice, with a "just keep going" approach.
USF's still-all-in mentality starts at the top, according to Bell.
"Coach Strong has done a really good job of just keeping these guys focused and keeping them into it," he said.
Improvement on Defense a Group Effort
With a squad filled with young, but experienced returners and high-impact transfers, USF has made notable progress on defense this season.
Posting at least one takeaway in every game this year, USF is tied for third nationally with 21 turnovers gained, already equaling last year's total with three more games left this regular season.
This season's Bulls also are tied for third in tackles for loss (9.0 per game), tied for fourth in fumble recoveries (11) and tied for 20
th in interceptions (10).
"Defensively, we don't really talk about individual stats. We always talk about defensive unit stats that end up helping the team in general. I think that's just part of the culture of this team," coordinator
Brian Jean-Mary said. "It's always us against the world and what can we do as a defense to help us win… I still think it's the culture that Coach Strong has put forth and kind of expects from the team."
Mazzi Gets Big Promotion
Bulls Nation went wild on Tuesday after getting word from The Athletic's Greg Auman that former USF standout cornerback
Mazzi Wilkins has been promoted from the practice squad to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' 53-man roster.
Always motivated, Wilkins had a productive USF career from 2015-18, posting 110 tackles, 22 passes defended in 47 games (22 starts). The Tampa native played in the 2018 East-West Shrine Game and made a major impression on the Bucs as an undrafted free agent in training camp.
Defensive coordinator
Brian Jean-Mary made sure to bring up the big news to his group before practice.
"You never wish anything, but you had a first-round draft pick that obviously got released and an undrafted free agent gets moved up and he has an opportunity of a lifetime. I said that's all you can ask for," Jean-Mary said. "That's all football is. It's not you've made it, or you haven't made it, it's what you do with your opportunity. I'm gonna make sure I text Mazzi and congratulate him. But like I said, this is just the beginning. All that did is give him an opportunity and I hope he makes the most of it."
Offensive Line Shuffling
Offensively, the Bulls are still banged up and the list includes starting left tackle
Donovan Jennings (Tampa), who injured his ankle in the first quarter against Temple last Thursday.
"It seems like week-to-week we've got somebody out, or something happens," coordinator
Kerwin Bell said. "Donovan is probably gonna be out, it looks like, so we gotta make some changes and do some things."
Bell said senior starting right tackle
Marcus Norman (Sebastian, Fla.) "might go over and play some of the left side a little bit." Other options are junior
Jarrett Hopple (Suffolk, Va.) and senior
William Atterbury (Clearwater, Fla.), who started the first two games of the season at left tackle.
"We're just trying to find the best combinations that will give us the best chance to go out and be successful," Bell said.
Bulls Bits
SELVIE TO BE HONORED ON SATURDAY: Fans attending Saturday's game will get a blast from the past, with USF Athletic Hall of Fame Class of 2019 member George Selvie being recognized during the first half. USF's only two-time, first-team All-American was a dominant defensive end for the Bulls, setting school records for tackles for loss (31.5) and sacks (14.5) in 2007, as USF defeated No. 13 Auburn and No. 5 West Virginia to rise to the program's highest-ever national ranking of No. 2. Selvie still stands as the program's career leader in tackles for loss (69.5), sacks (29), forced fumbles (9) and starts (50). The USF Athletic Hall of Fame dinner and induction ceremony is set for 6 p.m. Friday at the Marshall Student Center ballroom on campus. Purchase tickets for the event HERE.- SANDERS SHINING: Redshirt sophomore Bentlee Sanders is contributing in a number of ways for the Bulls this season. The Tampa native has made five starts at nickel on defense, ranking sixth on the squad in tackles for loss (4.5) and tackles (36). Sanders also is tied for the team lead with two forced fumbles and hauled in his first-career interception last week against Temple. "Talent-wise, he's off the charts," defensive coordinator Brian Jean-Mary said. "He's probably one of the best athletes on the team and he's playing one of the tougher positions because we ask him to do so much. He's one of those guys that always rises to the challenge." That includes stepping up on special teams. Sanders ranks fourth in The American with 23.9 yards per kick return and has two plays of 60 yards or more to his credit this season.
HORNS UP RALLY IN YBOR CITY: Get pumped up for game day by attending the sixth Horns Up Rally of the season that will be held on Friday from 5-8 p.m. at Zydeco Brew Werks on 7th Avenue in Ybor City. Horns Up Rallies are a series of free USF fan gatherings taking place at locations around the Bay area prior to football home football games in 2019.
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 –
