USF (1-3; 0-0 American) vs. ECU (2-2; 0-1 American)
Saturday, Oct. 1 • 2:30 P.M. • FAU Stadium (29,571) • Boca Raton, Fla.
SURFACE: Natural Grass - Bermuda
TV: ESPN+: Ted Emrich (PXP) & Taylor McHargue (Analyst)
RADIO: 102.5 FM/102.5 HD2
AUDIO STREAM: TuneIn - Bulls Unlimited 1
SERIES: USF leads, 9-3
IN TAMPA: USF leads, 3-2, last, L, 44-42 in 2020
IN GREENVILLE: USF leads, 5-1
LAST: ECU won, 29-14, in Greenville in 2021
VS. AAC: 30-42, 10th season
AAC OPENERS: 5-4, lost three straight
USF GAME NOTES
TICKET/ATTENDANCE/PARKING INFORMATION
BOCA RATON — It has been a week of disruption and potential distractions for the Bulls. Their normal home-game practice routine was shifted to Fort Lauderdale as Hurricane Ian approached the Tampa Bay area. There was naturally concern for what was occurring back home, along with other regions of the state that dealt with catastrophic damage.
Saturday afternoon won't be a normal game-day atmosphere, either. USF's logo will be at midfield, while green-and-gold decorations will adorn FAU Stadium, but it will be decidedly different than Raymond James Stadium.
One thing hasn't changed, though.
It's the American Athletic Conference opener for the Bulls (1-3), who face the dangerous East Carolina Pirates (2-2) on the campus of Florida Atlantic University. On-field success — regardless of where that field is located — could send USF's season on an upward trajectory.
The Bulls have played the nation's 25th most difficult non-conference schedule, according to College Football Playoff data, with games against BYU, Florida and Louisville. The high point was an encouraging 31-28 defeat at Florida, then ranked No. 18, but that was followed by a decisive loss at Louisville.
Bulls coach Jeff Scott said Friday that USF's challenging non-conference slate was good preparation for the run of eight consecutive AAC games, including now the first two away from home as the Bulls travel to Cincinnati next weekend.
"The big message to our guys all week is, hey, we knew we were going to have a challenging non-conference schedule,'' said Scott, who added he got favorable reports on the hurricane aftermath from family members in Port Charlotte, Punta Gorda and Arcadia, his birthplace. "I felt like we played well in two of the games, Howard and Florida. We played poorly in two of the games, BYU and Louisville.
"Those games were built out to prepare us for our conference season. If we can take the lessons from the good and bad of those first games and apply them moving forward, starting with East Carolina, then we have a chance to really improve as a team. We have everything in front of us. Our season is going to be judged on how we do in the eight conference games, not the four non-conference games. So now we have to go out and do it.''
Scott said he was appreciative of the assistance from FAU, which offered up its home field, and the University of Miami, which allowed USF to practice at its indoor facility, along with Fort Lauderdale's Cardinal Gibbons High School, where the Bulls also practiced.
Because there were no academic requirements during the week with USF shutting down due to the hurricane, Scott said his players have bonded with more time together than normal. He hopes that togetherness will be a galvanizing factor as the Bulls move into AAC play.
ECU is no easy mark. USF leads the overall series 9-3, but the Pirates have captured the last two games, including a rainy Thursday night affair last season, when they rallied for a 29-14 victory in Greenville, N.C.
Were it not for some kicking-game breakdowns, the Pirates could be coming in to today's game with a 4-0 record. The Pirates fell, 21-20, against NC State in the season opener, when Owen Daffer missed a late extra-point attempt and a 41-yard field-goal try in the final seconds. In last week's 23-20 double overtime loss to Navy in its AAC opener, Daffer missed a 37-yard field-goal attempt that could have forced a third overtime.
ECU, which has the nation's 22nd-ranked offense (495.3 yards per game) and the nation's 53rd-ranked defense (345.76), is paced by senior quarterback Holton Ahlers, who is scheduled to start for a fourth time against the Bulls. Ahlers has completed 66.4 percent of his passes for 1,067 yards, nine touchdowns and three interceptions.
The Pirates also feature wide receiver Isaiah Winstead (28 catches for 402 yards and a 14.4-yard average) and running back Keaton Mitchell (386 yards, 8.4-yard per carry average).
"This is going to be one of the top teams we play in our conference,'' Scott said. "It starts with their quarterback, Ahlers. They give him a lot of freedom in the offense. We've seen it the last two years. They have one of the bigger offensive lines in the conference and a really good group of wide receivers. They have a talented group of running backs as well and their defense is very aggressive, somewhat similar to Louisville. It's going to be a big challenge for us right out of the gate.''
Scott said he hopes to welcome back some injured players — the Bulls were without their top four wide receivers at Louisville — but didn't offer specifics. One unavailable player is veteran left tackle Donovan Jennings, who suffered a broken leg at Louisville. Jennings underwent season-ending surgery this week.
"He's a key member of our offensive line, which has played a lot of ball together,'' Scott said. "Our heart breaks for him. Any time you have a guy who has played that much ball go down with a tough injury like that, it really hurts.''
Scott said the O-line will rally with transfers Mike Lofton, a guard who came from UCF and also plays tackle, and Derrell Bailey, a transfer from Virginia Tech who has played sparingly in the early season due to a shoulder injury. Another possibility is moving right tackle Demontrey Jacobs to the left side, a shift that was briefly utilized at Louisville.
Despite all of the disruptions and changes, Scott said his team's approach hasn't changed.
"We're still a work in progress in this area, but it should not matter who we play, where we play, what time we play or how many fans are in the stands,'' Scott said. "We have to play at a consistent level, week in and week out, and it cannot be dictated on external factors.
"I will say this is a scenario that likely will be similar to the COVID season in 2020, when we were playing without fans. I'm hopeful we'll have some fans there. I don't know exactly what it will look like until we get there. But the big lesson is you have to create your own energy. We have to have intensity from how we play and how we communicate.''
Kelly praises his staff's teamwork
USF vice president of athletics Michael Kelly said the quick shift to Fort Lauderdale and playing at Florida Atlantic University was made possible by several days of planning by his staff. A call had to be made quickly Monday, when Hurricane Ian was still predicted to make landfall in the Tampa Bay area, and South Florida proved to be a reliable choice.
Even though fall-like weather was present in Tampa on Friday, Kelly said it was never a realistic consideration to keep USF-ECU at Raymond James Stadium, which was used as a camp compound for public safety officials and first responders and their vehicles and equipment.
The Tampa Bay Bucs will face the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday night at Ray-Jay, but two games in the same weekend would have been a tall order, especially considering the hurricane's uncertain path and the area's power outages.
"We had to make decisions and we're confident that it was the right thing to do,'' Kelly said. "The top consideration is everyone's safety. And we really needed to explore every option to get the game in this weekend because we (USF and ECU) do not share the same bye week
"I know some people are disappointed the game wasn't able to be played in Tampa. I can understand and respect that. But all of our season-ticket holders will be fully refunded. If they choose to make the trip to FAU, they'll still get free tickets to it. Same for our students. For the general public, there will be a moderate $10 fee. Considering everything our state has dealt with this week, and keeping in consideration the welfare of our student-athletes, we're confident that we arrived at the best possible decision.''
Kelly said that outside of a windscreen here or a fence there, all of USF's athletic facilities escaped the tumultuous week without appreciable damage. That includes the $22-million Indoor Performance Facility, which is scheduled to open later this fall.
– Go Bulls –
