SIGNING DAY RELEASE - Class Roster & Bios
By Joey Johnston
Seventeen days after he was announced as USF's head football coach — a period he jokingly described as "one long day'' — Alex Golesh introduced his first Bulls signing class on Wednesday, but said he and his coaching staff will continue to add players from the high-school ranks and transfer portal.
"I think the biggest thing for us is to continue to add talent that can help us right now, while still being super mindful of the of the guys from the high school ranks that we can develop and help build the roster,'' Golesh said on the early portion of National Signing Day. "So, trying to attack it from the top down and then from the bottom up to try to get to a point where you've got a consistent program in terms of talent coming back, year in year out.
"None of us had slept a whole lot. We've worked as hard as I think we imaginably can. I think anytime you have transition and change, obviously (within) your own roster, you're recruiting your own guys as well. And I'm sure there's there are going to be questions there as we go. But they're curious and they're excited. And I'm excited to get everybody here.''
Golesh said the process has been "really, really fun.''
"What you're selling is two-fold,'' Golesh said. "One, what South Florida is, what it has been, what it can be. You're selling a community. You're selling a campus. You're selling a football program and a vision that goes with that.
"And the other half of it, you're selling the people. It's still a people business. Young men and their families want to know who's going to be around them. So, you're selling both. I think we have a ton to sell. … Just like I told our current team, they didn't choose me, but I did choose them. When you tell your story about why I (as a coach) chose South Florida, it sells itself in that regard.' Because you made that same choice 17 days ago.''
Golesh said it was challenging to evaluate USF's needs on the fly — evaluating and retaining the current players, while recruiting high-schoolers and studying the transfer portal — but he knew instantly that offensive-line depth was needed.
That was addressed by the signing of four freshmen — Carrollwood Day's James Jenkins (6-foot-5, 270 pounds), Fleming Island's TJ Lawrence (6-5, 285), Clearwater Academy's Nikola Milovac (6-6, 280) and Point Pleasant, New Jersey's Cole Skinner (6-5, 305) — along with Blinn College transfer Deonte Bowie (6-4, 325).
"You had guys who graduated and not a lot of others who had played,'' Golesh said. "Getting Deonte (Bowie) was really big. I don't think we're done there yet. We need some others who have played in real college football games.''
At the skill positions, USF added wide receivers Demitrius Carter (Steinbrenner), Keshaun Singleton (Norcross, Ga.), Naiem Simmons (Wagner transfer), along with running back Jaylen Johnson (Baxley, Ga.) and tight end Weston Wolff (Maryland transfer, Venice native).
The Bulls signed five defensive players — and all of them promise to bring some impact.
Safety Tawfig Byard was retained from Jeff Scott's commitments and Golesh called him a "winner'' from a winning program (DeMatha Catholic in Hyattsville, Md.), but also appreciated Byard's vocal rallying to keep together USF's recruiting class.
USF signed cornerback Jarvis Lee, a Jacksonville native who played at IMG Academy, and fast-rising defensive linemen Stantavious Smith, who was drawing interest from several brand-name schools.
The Bulls also secured a pair of former Lakeland High Dreadnaughts who transferred — cornerback Kendall Dennis (Oklahoma) and defensive end Lloyd Summerall (Florida).
Because of his relatively recent hiring, Golesh equated USF's recruiting process to "speed-dating.'' He added that it needed to be as thorough as possible because the current players are watching the new additions to their locker room. Character, work habits and academic fits were studied as well. In some cases, Golesh said he talked more often to people who surrounded the player — instead of the player himself — to get more of a clear picture.
Golesh also said he won't have a true read on the strengths and weaknesses of USF's roster until the completion of spring football. After watching on-field competition, the specifics will come to light.
He said he hopes to stock USF's roster with "tough, smart players. … kids who care about flipping a program and building a winning culture.''
"I think the coolest part of this class is nobody had time to look at stars (recruiting ratings),'' Golesh said. "Every coach will stand up here and say they didn't know what the stars were. I promise you, I don't because I have no idea.
"I've been recruiting long enough to know there are guys in our profession who try to win this press conference. That may work at times, but at the end, you're evaluated on wins and losses. You're looking at measurables, how the guy fits, how they can help your scheme, the kind of young man they are. Every single guy we signed fits what we're trying to do and they all add value to the program in a big way.
"As we move forward and continue to round out the class, just out of curiosity, I probably will look at the (recruiting ratings) and still not care about it. I don't think It matters. I don't think it has ever mattered. I think if you're trying to win press conferences on signing day, you've got bigger problems than anything else.''
Other subjects addressed by Golesh:
• Golesh said he's planning on calling the plays for now and there may not be anyone with the formal designation of "offensive coordinator.'' But he said that could change. After going through spring practice and fall camp, Golesh said he's prepared to re-evaluate that role. "If there's somebody ready to do it that we feel good about, we'll have somebody else call the plays,'' Golesh said. "But I think the calling of plays is probably insignificant for the next eight months. The teaching, the installation, the repetition are the most important things right now. And then we'll figure it out.''
• USF will finalize all of its coaching positions following the bowl games. Daniel Da Prato, the special teams coordinator and the interim head coach for the final three games of 2022, tweeted his departure on Thursday. "I appreciate what Daniel has done," Golesh said. "He had a really, really hard job there for about a month. He has been a pro through the last couple of weeks and he has worked his tail off as hard as anybody here.''
• Golesh said wide receiver Xavier Weaver, the team leader with 53 catches for 718 yards and six touchdowns is "on the team.'' Weaver's status was uncertain after he didn't play in the final two games of 2022. "I'm super excited about him,'' Golesh said. "I'm looking forward to him catching a bunch of balls and a bunch of touchdowns.''
• Quarterback Gerry Bohanon, the Baylor transfer who started the first seven games before suffering a season-ending shoulder injury, will miss all of spring drills as he continues to rehabilitate. "Gerry has been in here every single day,'' Golesh said. "I've known Gerry since he was in high school. I was in to see him play basketball. I coached against him. I feel like I've known him forever. He's a special human being and he has been at every recruiting function since we've been here. He is what a quarterback should be in terms of how he carries himself, who he is, what he's about and how he handles his business.''
•. Golesh said he's "super excited'' about quarterback Byrum Brown, who started the last two games of his true freshman season. Golesh added that he's "super excited to potentially keep adding to that (quarterback) room.'' He said all of the USF quarterbacks are curious about the offense Golesh is bringing from Tennessee and "they are eager to go to work.''
• Golesh's family — his wife and two children — will remain in Knoxville, Tenn., through the school year so the kids can continue and finish their activities. "We've got a lot of stuff going on, man,'' Golesh said. "We've got baseball, cheerleading, golf and a play (theater). A lot of critically important stuff going on that they'll finish up. They've been here twice. They're rocking all sorts of Bulls gear in Knoxville right now. Their buddies are all rocking Bulls gear up there.'' Golesh's family will come to Tampa full-time in May. Until then, where will Golesh live? "My office and the couch in it,'' he said.
–     Go Bulls –
