JPP Stops In On East Fowler As the Bulls Prep For Saturday's Spring Game
By Joey Johnston, Special to USF Athletics
Former USF standout Jason Pierre-Paul, a two-time Super Bowl champion who is still basking in the glow of winning a Lombardi Trophy with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, was a visitor to Tuesday's spring practice and his presence was made a big impact.
Arriving early in the session, he addressed the Bulls at the midway point and made it clear he wants to be a more active part of the program. JPP stayed through the duration of practice, during breaks taking the opportunity for heart-to-heart talks with players, and offered up his cell phone number with encouragement to the Bulls to reach out.
"We love it,'' Bulls offensive tackle Donovan Jennings said. "How can you not love having a guy like JPP around to help? We appreciate him a lot and really respect where he's coming from. I made sure to ask him a few things. Getting feedback from one of the NFL's top pass-rushers is a pretty good resource. He can tell me what those guys (defensive ends) are thinking. It was just great to have him here.''
Scott told his players that "not many schools have a guy who's a two-time Super Bowl champion and a 12-year NFL veteran. That tells you about his consistency. He plays to a high standard and lives his life to a high standard. That's what we want for our players.''
As the players gathered around Pierre-Paul, he made it clear that working as a team would help the Bulls reach their potential.
"Ya'll hear me?'' Pierre-Paul said.
"Yes sir!'' USF players said in unison.
"What are each of you going to do to help this team? What are you going to sacrifice?'' Pierre-Paul said. "Because it takes work. It takes sacrifice. I'm sorry to tell you not everybody here is going to play in the NFL. The ones who make it are the ones who concentrate on the little things, who take these drills seriously, who outwork everybody else.
"When the coaches ask you to do something, you do it. You're not going to get this time back. All football is a fun game with 11 people going all out and acting like little kids. You've got to give it everything all the time because we all only have so much time to be on this field. So, you've got to give it everything and have no regrets. I'm in town now and I'm going to be watching. And you're going to be seeing a lot more of me around here.''
Scott said he was thrilled to welcome Pierre-Paul, who played the 2009 season with USF and became a first-round pick of the New York Giants.
"Obviously, he's very talented and gifted athletically,'' Scott said. "But the thing that impresses me is his consistency and longevity in the NFL. That's a great example for our players and it's a standard that we all want to shoot for.''
Spring game takes shape
Saturday's spring game (noon, Raymond James Stadium) is taking shape. The roster has been divided into a Green team (coached by Ernie Sims, linebackers coach) and a White team (coached by Allen Mogridge, offensive line coach). The first three quarters with have regular timing with a running clock employed in the fourth quarter. All special teams will be normal except for the kickoffs, where there won't be returns (ball placed on 25-yard line after a kickoff and a catch).
"It's game week and I think our guys are excited about it,'' Scott said. "We have 15 mid-years (freshmen and transfers) who have never played in Ray-Jay. Our punter, Andrew Stokes (from Australia), I don't think he has ever played in a stadium before.
"It's a different vibe once you get in that stadium with a good crowd. It's like that final exam. The spring game is going to count for these guys because they're putting a resume together. It's going to count more than a normal practice. They're excited about the opportunity.''
During Tuesday and Thursday's practice in shorts, the USF players will be working in Green team/White team units to build communication and chemistry.
The call for leaders
After this week, USF players will have four months before the Bulls are back on the field for fall camp. Scott termed that time period as "crucial'' and he hopes the team leaders will continue to lead everyone through practices and drills because NCAA rules prohibit coaches from on-field work with players;
"The best teams I've been around are the ones where the players lead,'' Scott said. "You want your players to lead and keep everyone accountable.''
Scott said some of this spring's top leaders have been quarterback Cade Fortin, receivers Bryce Miller and Latrell Williams, running backs Kelley Joiner Jr. and Darrian Felix, most of the offensive linemen, defensive linemen Thad Mangum and Rashawn Yates, linebackers Antonio Grier and Dwayne Boyles and defensive backs Daquan Evans and Mekhi LaPointe.
Odds and ends
Scott said he has been impressed with the spring work of Felix, who has added 21 pounds of muscle since January, after suffering through an injury-plagued 2020 season. … Scott was on an afternoon call to commence planning for the Indoor Performance Facility, which is scheduled to break ground this summer. "There are going to be a lot of things in the next three or four years to build momentum in our program,'' Scott said. "We have needed them and we're excited that it's all happening.'' …
Latrell Williams said he feels the passing game has taken a major step forward during spring drills and he expects it to be a weapon for the Bulls in 2021. "Short balls, long balls, the whole thing … we have gotten a lot better,'' Williams said. … Yates said the defensive line will be better equipped to generate a pass rush after a full 15 spring practices. He said junior
Ryan Thaxton and freshman
Tramel Logan have particularly stepped up as pass-rushers. "I feel like we're a whole new team,'' Yates said. "And we still have new people — the freshmen and more transfers who have committed — who still haven't gotten here. Everything is faster and more fluid. Last year with COVID, we came in every other day for workouts, but we could only do 10 people at a time. I didn't know half of the new freshmen names or even meet them. We had a new staff that wanted to implement things, but they couldn't. We had a plan, but really couldn't do anything. We were just out there. It's going to be so much better.
