USF Athletics

Bulls Finish Fall Camp Strong Ahead of Exciting 2020 Season

August 22, 2020

By TOM ZEBOLD
USF Senior Writer

TAMPA, AUG. 22, 2020 – The Bulls finished strong in the "fourth quarter" of fall camp action, closing camp with a spirited scrimmage as they shift to preparations for a recently announced home game on the horizon.

"I've seen some good improvement this week, and this is really always the toughest week of fall camp," head coach Jeff Scott said Thursday. "… I've seen our guys do a good job of pushing through. I want to continue to see that improvement here over the next few days as we finish up."

Revved-up USF responded by motoring through Saturday's scrimmage at the Morsani Complex that featured more promising signs.

Tested with 51 up-tempo plays, the Bulls' first-team defense delivered three takeaways and surrendered just three points. Flying off the edge, linebacker Dwayne Boyles (Miami) had a sack and scooped up a fumble on the final play of the day. Star corner KJ Sails (Tampa) set the tone for the solid performance with a fumble recovery early in the action.

Offensively, several up-and-coming Bulls made the most of valuable scrimmage snaps by showing coaches they can contribute sooner rather than later.

Four years after Marlon Mack capped off his record-breaking USF career, another dynamic back from Sarasota is making head-turning plays in the Bay. True freshman Brian Battie put an exclamation mark on his very loud fall camp statement with three explosive runs of at least 20 yards and two short-yardage touchdowns.

Battie broke off 30- and 23-yard gains on the same drive that ended with his second score. Coach Scott made sure to give the #BayMade Bull a shout-out in in the post practice huddle. 

The Bulls have shown a strong rushing attack in the last two scrimmages with Darrian Felix (Fort Myers), Kelley Joiner Jr. (Clermont) and Johnny Ford (Miami) also effectively moving the ball on Saturday. 

Freshmen also made some highlight plays in the pass game. True freshman receiver Sincere Brown (Charleston, S.C.) came through in the clutch with a fourth-down catch covering about 20 yards that kept a scoring drive alive. Redshirt freshman receiver Logan Berryhill (Kingsland, Ga.) ended that sequence with a celebration in the end zone after hauling in a 16-yard touchdown pass in traffic from freshman Katravis Marsh (Hialeah, Fla.).

USF will conclude fall camp Sunday with a full film review of the scrimmage that was packed with energy. That's been the camp vibe all week, especially after the Bulls heard the news about a recently scheduled home opener against The Citadel on Saturday, Sept. 12.

"We still have three weeks to go and we have to continue to follow the proper protocols and guidelines," Scott said. "Hopefully, if we do that, we'll get an opportunity to kick it off."

Other opportunities - on big stages - could be in store for the Bulls leading up to their the eight-game AAC slate. Also set to play at FAU on Sept. 26, USF continues to actively seek nonconference opponents to replace the loss of Texas and Nevada from the 2020 slate.

"I feel very confident at the end of the day, we're gonna give our players a great start to the season with our nonconference scheduling," Scott said.

Aside from rounding into form on the field and adding to the schedule, another notable accomplishment for the Bulls has been their ability to embrace health protocols and keep things trending in the right direction for a 2020 season. Earlier this week, Scott received "great news" about USF continuing to record zero positive COVID-19 cases since camp started on Aug. 7 among 100-plus players and coaches being tested weekly.

"That's a really positive sign," Scott said. "Like I've told our players and our coaches, it's everybody's responsibility, not only while we're here wearing the masks and following the proper physical distancing and those type of things, but also whenever we leave campus."

Bulls Bits

• FORD'S ROLE DEFINED: Johnny Ford showed his versatility while starting three games at slot receiver during his redshirt season in 2019. Now, the dynamic Miami native is back at the spot where he exploded on the college scene. All fall camp, Coach Scott said "elusive" Ford has gotten reps "exclusively" at running back, where he ranked 12^th nationally with 6.8 yards per carry in 2018. "Johnny has done a good job," said Scott, who watched Ford move the chains with a third-and-long run during Saturday's scrimmage.
• SPECIAL GUEST SPEAKERS: Throughout fall camp, Coach Scott has given his Bulls an opportunity to soak up valuable knowledge dished out by influential figures from the Bay and beyond. USF President Steven Currall spoke to the team on Thursday night and former North Texas QB Damon West, now a a college professor, keynote speaker and best-selling co-author, was on the mic Friday night. Earlier in camp, the Bulls got a big kick out of their visit with Thaddeus Bullard, also known as WWE Superstar Titus O'Neil, who was featured in the second episode of United: The Vlog. Check out the first two installments below.

• MORE INFO ON THE CITADEL: Now the first opponent on USF's 2020 schedule, The Citadel will bring its solid ground game reputation to Tampa next month. Using a triple-option approach, the Bulldogs' rushing offense has ranked in the top 10 nationally in each of the last four seasons. Sept. 12 will mark the third meeting between USF and The Citadel, which was the Bulls' first-ever opponent at Raymond James Stadium in 1998, a 45-6 victory for USF.

 
 
About USF Football
The USF football program first took the field in 1997 and completed its 23^rd season (20^th at the FBS level) in 2019. The Bulls have posted 15 winning seasons, earned 14 All-America selections and 29 first-team all-conference selections and has seen 30 players selected in the NFL Draft. USF has made 10 bowl games appearances (going 6-4 in those games) and posted a program record six straight appearances from 2005-2010. The Bulls most recently made four straight bowl appearances from 2015-18 and posted back-to-back 10-win seasons in 2016 and 2017, logging a program-record 11-2 mark in 2016 while finishing both seasons ranked in the Top 25. USF spent a program record 20 straight weeks ranked in the Top 25 during the 2016 and 2017 seasons and reached as high as No. 2 in the national rankings during the 2007 season.
                                                                                
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