USF Athletics

Buzz Around Bulls Grows on Big News Day

August 28, 2020

By TOM ZEBOLD
USF Senior Writer

TAMPA, AUG. 28, 2020 – We're still about two weeks away from kicking off the 2020 season, but Thursday already had all the feels of a thrilling, dramatic fourth quarter for USF football.

The buzz surrounding an exciting and emotional news day for the Bulls began with a team tweet at 11 a.m. announcing a huge three-game series with perennial power Notre Dame. Right after the home opener against The Citadel on Sept. 12, the Bulls will begin the series with the Fighting Irish on Sept. 19 at Notre Dame Stadium, the historic site of USF's 23-20 upset win in the schools' first-ever meeting in 2011.

"This is gonna be a great opportunity for our university, for our program and for our student-athletes to get great exposure and play on one of the biggest stages in all of college football," head coach Jeff Scott said. "From a personal perspective, playing Notre Dame in South Bend has been on my bucket list since I was about 12 years old."

Dates of the other two series games have yet to be determined, but Notre Dame will be visiting Raymond James Stadium and the Bulls will enjoy another trip to South Bend in the future. Booking the series and having it start so quickly was a massive success for USF in its mission of adding a marquee opponent to its 2020 nonconference schedule.

Vice President of Athletics Michael Kelly's tireless efforts throughout the Notre Dame signing process also paved the way for USF to secure yet another big-time home game for the Bulls down the road. Ray Jay will serve as a grand stage for Notre Dame's eventual visit and the Bulls' other can't-miss nonconference tests against Florida (2021), Alabama (2023), Louisville (2024), NC State (2024), Boise State (2025), Miami (2027).

"I think this is just another example – 1,001 – why we're so fortunate to have Michael as our leader of our athletics program," Scott said of Kelly, who provided an Athletics update Thursday.

Previously scheduling The Citadel for Saturday, Sept. 12 also accomplished a significant goal for the Bulls, who really wanted to start the 2020 season at home. In the process of going against the The Citadel, USF gets to prep early for another option offense operated by Navy, which rolls into Ray Jay on Nov. 21 for an important conference clash.

"For us to have a chance to win our conference in the future, we're gonna have to find a way to stop the option," Scott said.  "I think this is a really good opener for us."

Continuous Focus on 'Real Life Situations,' Positive Change
Rife with emotion, Scott explained to reporters attending his afternoon presser why the Bulls chose to postpone Thursday's practice.

The first reason was "in response to the continued racial injustice that we unfortunately continue to see in our country with the latest shooting of Jacob Blake." Instead of a padded practice, Thursday's agenda focused on team/position meetings and discussions with the Bull Council, USF football's leadership group.

"(It's to) really just kind of let everybody have an opportunity to express themselves and how they feel, and for a lot of us to listen and to learn," Scott said. "And then also, to turn that into kind of finding out how we can use our platform to try to make some positive change to such a sad situation."

In the midst of further explaining why the Bulls joined Boston College and numerous NFL teams in canceling on-field action for the day, Scott had to fight back tears.
 

We love ya coach ??? Thank you for being with us ?? @coach_jeffscott https://t.co/8fKPXV19Xt

— Jordan McCloud3?? (@Jordan_McCloud3) August 27, 2020

"These are real life situations that are going on," Scott said before having to take a moment to compose himself. "I think as a coach… you always take pride in being able to fix things for your players. Just like a coach or a dad, you want to fix whatever the problem is. This is one of those situations that as a coach, you can't fix it for your players."

What Scott and his staff can do is truly be there for their Bulls, just like they were during the KJ Sails-led unity walk through downtown Tampa that highlighted the mission of social justice and positive change on June 6. Thursday was another example of USF players knowing they can always count on their caring coaches during crucial times.

"And so part of it is just for your guys to know that you love them, that you're there to support them and that you stand with them," Scott added. "That's really what these conversations are about, and then what can we do going forward as a team to try to have a positive impact with such a disappointing and sad situation."

Responsible Bulls Staying Safe
The second reason why the Bulls decided to not practice Thursday morning was because they were awaiting results of COVID-19 tests conducted Wednesday.

"We got great news that for the third week in a row we had zero positives again. I'm just really, really happy about that," Scott said. "I really want to compliment our players and coaches, and especially our training staff because it is an extra level of responsibility and discipline to follow in such a difficult time."

Ever since a phased return to campus for offseason training commenced in June, USF has taken several precautionary measures to keep the team safe. Players are continuously commending the program on having the proper protocols in place throughout fall season preparations that  began on Aug. 7. The latest round of testing was done two days after fall classes started on campus.

"To me, this was the biggest test, knowing that our young men have been here now for several weeks," Scott said. "And with students coming back and all these type of things, this was gonna be a good kind of litmus test, in my opinion, for us and our opportunity and chances moving forward."
 
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.
                                                                                
Follow @USFFootball on twitter for all the latest information concerning the USF Football program.