USF GAME NOTES
As USF (1-5, 0-2) prepares for Saturday afternoon's game against the conference-leading Tulane Green Wave (5-1, 2-0) at Raymond James Stadium, they are energized by the belief that the best is ahead for quarterback Gerry Bohanon.
After making some uncharacteristic mistakes at Louisville, Bohanon said he buckled down and dedicated himself to becoming a smarter player and a better leader. That has been evident in the past two weeks as Bohanon has produced 587 total yards while accounting for six touchdowns (five passing) and zero interceptions. The Bulls offense has also responded producing 18 explosive plays in the past two games, the most for the Bulls in back-to-back games since 2017.
In last Saturday's 28-24 defeat at No. 24-ranked Cincinnati, Bohanon tossed a pair of touchdown passes to wide receiver Xavier Weaver and rushed for 117 yards, including a 59-yard run down the left sideline.
Bohanon, a transfer from Baylor, nearly led one of the season's most notable upsets. When the Bulls had a fourth-and-1 from Cincinnati's 25-yard line on their final possession, a run-pass option was called for Bohanon. He threw a quick bubble screen to running back Brian Battie, who was corralled for a 5-yard loss.
After watching the film, Bulls coach Jeff Scott and Bohanon agreed that there was a hole for a quarterback run that likely would've produced a first down. Scott said he and his coaches could've done a better job of explaining the play's intent, which was to pull the linebacker out and run the quarterback. Bohanon had a tricky read on the linebacker, who initially didn't commit to chasing Battie, and the pass was probably delivered more quickly than it should have been.
"We wish he would've run it, and he wishes he would've run it,'' Scott said. "Then Gerry did something I haven't seen in the two-and-a-half years I've been here. He stood up in the team meeting and took responsibility for that play, which I thought was pretty special and unique.
"Hopefully, that will be a point we can look back on later in the year, seeing a guy step up in front of his teammates and take ownership.''
Bohanon said the decision to pass was "100 percent on me'' and it was something "that I don't want to happen again.''
Otherwise, Bohanon said his mostly errorless play has been a product of an intentional plan.
"I was really reflecting on the previous games and my play and I just understood that I have to be smarter with my decision-making,'' Bohanon said. "I'm focusing on one play at a time and not worrying about what can happen. I'm focusing on being in the moment.''
Scott said the healthy return of wide receivers Xavier Weaver (32 catches, 419 yards, 2 TD) and Jimmy Horn (13 catches, 244 yards, 2 TD) has been an obvious help to Bohanon. But a factor that can't obviously be seen is Bohanon's desire to improve and his toughness.
"The reality is he had a bone bruise, a shoulder (injury), after the Florida game,'' Scott said. "There wasn't any way he was not going to play. The trainer probably gave him an out (to not play) at halftime of the Florida game based on some things they saw. And he got up and left.
"And he went in the locker room and the offensive huddle and said, 'Let's go!' We're not going to let guys play if they are truly injured. But he was in that mode where it could've gone either way. There wasn't one moment since Gerry has been here or in fall camp or the first few games where it was his best or our best. I knew eventually things would sort themselves out. I feel like that's happening now, not just with him, but overall in a lot of areas.''
Injuries: 21 Down
At the season's midpoint, no fewer than 21 USF players (all starters or prominent members of the two-deep) have been affected by injuries.
Five of them — offensive tackle Joshua Blanchard, defensive tackle Rashad Cheney (ankle), left tackle Donovan Jennings (leg), linebacker Brian Norris (knee) and safety Ray Thornton (shoulder) — are out for the season.
Running back Kelley Joiner (foot) has been out since early in fall training camp and is just now returning to full practice. Wide receiver Latrell Williams (a starter in 10 games) has not played.
Eight more players have missed multiple games — cornerback Daquan Evans (groin, five); linebacker Antonio Grier (hand, four); wide receiver Ajou Ajou (ankle, four); defensive tackle Rashawn Yates (three); safety Matthew Hill (leg, two); running back Jaren Mangham (ankle, two); safety TJ Robinson (two); and cornerback Christian Williams (hand, two).
Three of USF's top receivers — Khafre Brown, Horn (ankle) and Weaver (leg) — were out against Louisville. Running back Michel Dukes and safety Mekhi LaPointe did not play against Cincinnati. Meanwhile, veteran center Brad Cecil (oblique) missed the second half against Cincinnati and his immediate status is uncertain.
"Is there any explanation? Yeah, we look into it and think about it,'' Scott said. "I think if they were all the same thing (maybe there would be an exclamation) … and you'd ask, 'What are we doing?' Right now, the most common one we're having is a broken wrist. Is that drinking more milk? Seriously, those are the questions I'm asking.
"The guys who are out, they want to be back. I told our guys, 'Hey, the way we fought last week … all of a sudden, we get some more guys back, then watch out, right?' You can talk yourself down a dark hole real quick thinking about all the injuries. We have to respond the right way and they only thing we can control is our attitude.''
The flood of injuries has had an obvious impact on USF's season, but Scott said he doesn't want to make excuses.
"You can't hide from that reality,'' Scott said. "But the thing I appreciate is the guys really haven't blinked an eye and they keep moving. No player has made excuses. The guys have been showing up and it's next man up. The net positive if we're getting a lot of other guys good work. So, when we do get the other guys back, we have truly developed some depth.''
Hansford: Whatever It Takes
Defensive end Jatorian Hansford, an edge-rusher transfer from Missouri, has been working at the three-technique defensive-tackle position due to all the defensive line injuries. He registered a sack against Cincinnati and now leads USF with 2.5.
"He signed with us to play defensive end and had multiple offers to go other places play defense,'' Scott said. "And then we go to him and say, 'We need you to play inside.' He says, 'Yes sir, whatever it takes to help the team.'
"That's the stuff that gets me excited, honestly. You see a lot of the other stuff … I'm going to take my ball and go home, I've played my four games, this didn't work out. Obviously, we haven't played as well as we wanted and we're all frustrated. But every time I show up in that team meeting, they're all back there with a good attitude and ready to go back to work. That encourages me and shows me that we are improving.''
Hansford, who has some interior line experience, said he never debated whether to make the shift.
"I'm a team player,'' Hansford said. "I want to better my craft. I'm trying to play the best that I can, so it wasn't a big deal. I've played it in the past. I wanted to step up and be a leader and do what we needed for the team. Any position I play, I'm going to dream about making plays and doing what I need to do.''
- Go Bulls -
