USF Athletics

Bulls Make Plays in First Fall Scrimmage, Meet Supporters at Fan Fest

August 10, 2019

By TOM ZEBOLD
USF Senior Writer

TAMPA, AUG. 10, 2019 – Before greeting USF faithful at Fan Fest, head coach Charlie Strong's Bulls made exciting things happen on offense, defense and special teams in the first scrimmage of the fall Saturday morning.

New coordinator Kerwin Bell's offense had fun playing fast and putting up points while scoring 10 touchdowns in the 100-plus snap scrimmage that saw the Bulls work in several different situations. USF really shined in the red zone, where six different Bulls scored seven touchdowns on a wide variety of pass patterns and runs.

"We're picking it up well," said starting quarterback Blake Barnett of Bell's system that helped Valdosta State lead Division II in scoring last season at 52.0 points per game. "Spring was more of learning, going to the line of scrimmage, think and then play. Now, it's becoming more reactionary. It's becoming second nature to a lot of guys and we can see the improvements."

Barnett (Corona, Calif.) has been sharp all camp and showed it Saturday by throwing three touchdown passes. One score was produced in nifty, play-action fashion to Mackey Award candidate Mitchell Wilcox (Tarpon Springs, Fla.) from 11 yards out. Barnett's other TD tosses in the red zone were to junior Jernard Phillips (Miami) and senior Kevin Purlett (Miramar, Fla.), two of eight total Bulls who scored Saturday.

"Kerwin has a good system and it allows our guys to get the ball in playmakers' hands," Strong said.

Third-year USF coordinator Brian Jean-Mary's defense also put highlight-reel plays on tape, especially the deep secondary that hauled in five interceptions to help the Bulls finish with six takeaways on the day.

Junior defensive back KJ Sails (North Carolina transfer) and senior defensive back Devin Studstill (grad student from Notre Dame) started the pick party early with takeaways on consecutive drives. Studstill took his to the house and both newcomers have impressed Strong through their first eight practices with the program.

"They're veterans," Strong said. "They're going to know how to take care of themselves and just put themselves in position."

The big development on special teams Saturday was USF seeing it has two kickers who can handle short and long distances well.

Groza Award candidate Coby Weiss (Gainesville, Fla.) looked smooth on a 37-yard field goal make and brings dependability to the position after connecting on 15 of 18 attempts last season. Former soccer player Spencer Shrader, a freshman from Lithia, Fla., showed off a huge leg while splitting the uprights on a 53-yard field goal that had much more room to spare.

"With Shrader, I just say get the ball to the 40-yard line and I know he'll go out there and bang it," Strong said.

Overall, Strong was "very pleased" with USF's scrimmage showing Saturday and the good feelings continued in the afternoon at the Yuengling Center. During USF Fan Fest, presented by Florida Blue, the place was packed with supporters eager to meet the football team they'll be cheering loudly for at Raymond James Stadium this season.

"Just taking pictures, signing autographs and having fun with the fans, I love Fan Fest," said star sophomore receiver Randall St. Felix (Miami) after his 57-yard touchdown at practice.

St. Felix's teammates also share their love for USF's popular preseason event that Barnett looked forward to attending for a special reason.

"Being able to get face-to-face with fans and really show them our appreciation for their support of this program, I think that's a huge thing for the team and myself," Barnett said. "What we really want to portray to our fans is that we're really appreciative of them coming out to games."

Bulls fans get to start the 2019 season off with a good one at Raymond James Stadium on Friday, Aug. 30. USF will look to make a national statement against Wisconsin (tied for No. 17 in preseason Coaches Poll) in the opener that's set for primetime (7 p.m. kickoff, TV: ESPN).

"It's going to be a great game and a great atmosphere," said senior defensive end Greg Reaves (Bradenton, Fla.).

More Scrimmage Details

• McCLOUD FOR THREE: Redshirt freshman Jordan McCloud (Tampa) showed his ability to produce as USF's No. 2 quarterback by matching Blake Barnett's three TD tosses. McCloud got the ball out quickly on a 57-yard touchdown connection with Randall St. Felix (Miami). After that, McCloud made it happen in the red zone with scoring tosses to always-open Johnny Ford (Miami) and Terrence Horne (Miramar, Fla.).
• THE REST OF THE PICK LIST: After KJ Sails (Tampa) and Devin Studstill (Riviera Beach, Fla.) set the tone, USF's secondary brought its interception count up to five with picks by St. Petersburg, Fla., native Zion Roland (sophomore returner working at DB this fall), freshman Jayden Curry (Virginia Beach, Va.) and sophomore Mekhi LaPointe (Seffner, Fla.).
• SMALL MAKES BIG PLAYS: Sophomore Dave Small made the most of his opportunities Saturday while sharing carries with three backs from Miami - Jordan Cronkrite, Trevon Sands and Johnny Ford - and junior Odunayo Seriki (Apopka, Fla). Small (Lauderhill, Fla.) showed off his speed on a 40-yard touchdown run and scored again on the ground from 14 yards out later in the action.
• MILLER MOVES THE CHAINS: Bryce Miller (St. Petersburg, Fla.) didn't score a touchdown Saturday, but the sophomore slot receiver did pick up numerous first downs thanks in part to his precise route running. Moving the chains is something Miller has done consistently in practice since walking onto the team last fall and he's earned lots of praise from his new offensive coordinator already this fall. "He catches balls, he makes plays and so we've got to find a place to play him," Kerwin Bell said earlier this week.
• MORE PRODUCTION AT QB: USF is looking to see what its quarterbacks can do behind Blake Barnett and Jordan McCloud. Sophomore Kirk Rygol (Fort Mill, S.C.) stepped up Saturday with a 26-yard touchdown pass to freshman Sean Atkins (Viera, Fla.) and another from 8 yards out to Jernard Phillips (Miami).

ABOUT USF FOOTBALL
Having completed just its 22^nd season of football, and 19^th 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 150^th 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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