2023-24 SEASON TICKET DEPOSITS

After Thursday's thunderous introduction — complete with green-and-gold balloons, cheerleaders, up-tempo music, dazzling highlight videos and a full dais of high-level speakers who celebrated the new era in USF men's basketball, then joined everyone for the obligatory photo opportunity — Bulls coach Amir Abdur-Rahim strolled with energy and purpose into the film room at the Pam and Les Muma Basketball Center.

His first team meeting.

The real stuff.

"First off, I'm here to serve you guys,'' said Abdur-Rahim, 42. "I've been in these meetings before. The coach comes in, does the talk for 45 minutes and nobody hears anything, right? I think the best teachers are the best listeners.''

Nine holdover players, already locked in, sat up a little straighter in their seats.

"I'm a guy who is comfortable being uncomfortable,'' Abdur-Rahim said. "Because I know where it's uncomfortable, there's growth. Special things can come out of that. Think about the most beautiful things in the world. Pearls. diamonds, gold … where you find that? They're buried. You gotta dig them up.

"Guys, a lot of people don't want to get into that dirt, man. They don't want to get that on their hands. Are you willing to get your hands dirty? I should say, are you willing to do the work? Trust me, man, special things can happen.''

And this.

"I love the transfer portal for players. Because I think if you guys are in a place where you're not appreciated, not loved and not being developed, you should be able to have options. The part I don't like about it, though, is it gives you guys an excuse when things get hard. It gives you an out.

"Guys, one thing I learned over 42 years of growing, coaching and playing is you've got to be able to stick things out. You've got to have character through adversity. Because when you become successful, that's an even more important way to get that character, even more important than (getting it through) prosperity.''

And this.

"I'm telling you, man, this game is teaching you more than just being a basketball player. That ball is a tool. The ball can take you around the world. It can take you everywhere. I'm a kid from East Point, Georgia. I mean, the places I've been because of that ball. I've got a masters degree in organizational communication. Too many guys use that ball as the be-all, end-all. I'm telling you, it doesn't just teach you about basketball. It teaches you about life.''

It was the real stuff — tone-setting life lessons, expectations, challenges, dreams and goals.

All in five minutes.

Not a bad first impression.

"I don't just like Amir, I love him,'' said former USF standout Chucky Atkins, an 11-season NBA veteran, whose Orlando high school and AAU team players were recruited by Abdur-Rahim at the coach's previous stops. "This is a guy who can bridge that gap. He's gonna recruit players from the state. He's gonna lead the USF Bulls. Players are gonna gravitate to him. I think he's who this program needs.''

Really Genuine, Really Sincere

We like to describe star players as the "real deal.''

Amir Abdur-Rahim is just real — period — really genuine, really sincere and really, really passionate.

He appeared on the national radar a few weeks back, after his Cinderella Kennesaw State University Owls fell just short of an NCAA Tournament upset against Xavier. Afterward, Abdur-Rahim unabashedly wept, describing his emotions as "tears of joy'' because he was overwhelmed by his team's unlikely journey, which began with a one-win season three years earlier. Basketball insiders might remember Abdur-Rahim as the Georgia assistant who recruited big-time prospect Anthony Edwards, the eventual NBA No. 1 overall draft pick. Abdur-Rahim is the same guy who waxed romantically about his time on the Texas A&M staff and a player named Alex Caruso.

"You never had to coach his attitude, you never had to coach his energy and you never had to coach his effort,'' said Abdur-Rahim, beaming like a proud father. "When you don't have to coach those things, you can get better. You can grow.''

When Abdur-Rahim was introduced Thursday to a standing ovation, he joked, "I haven't been this nervous since I met my wife.''

Abdur-Rahim met Arianne Buchanan through mutual friends at a Fourth of July party in Atlanta. She didn't show up until midnight, but they still talked for about three hours. The next night, they hung out again for what Abdur-Rahim called an "unofficial'' first date — at a Waffle House.

"That's when I knew I had a good girl,'' he said.

Four months into the relationship, he began shopping for an engagement ring. In August, the couple will celebrate their 11th anniversary. Their union has produced a son (Ayden) and two daughters (Laila and Lana).

"Sometimes, you just know,'' Abdur-Rahim said.

When USF officials went looking for a new men's basketball coach, they just knew about Abdur-Rahim.

"It's no secret,'' USF board of trustees chair Will Weatherford said. "It's not the best players who win. It's the best teams — and (players on) the best teams love each other. They care about each other. They're willing to put in the work for each other. That's what he believes. That's who he is.''

"I spoke with him (Wednesday) and when I hung up the phone, I thought, 'You know, there's a man who's committed and focused on success,' '' USF president Rhea Law said. "That was so exciting for me. I could feel the energy. I thought, 'We've got the right guy.' ''

"We're committed to developing an unparalleled student-athlete experience," USF vice president of athletics Michael Kelly said. "We're developing facilities, adding to budgets and obviously adapting to the modern era of things we can provide for student-athletes. But one thing that never goes out of style is passion and hard work. He has those things. He's the right coach for us at this pivotal time.''

Man With A Plan

Kelly said he was impressed by Abdur-Rahim's thorough plan and uncommon attention to detail.

Abdur-Rahim said the USF program will be built on core values that are spelled out by the acronym "Truth.''

Trust, Responsibility, Unity, Toughness and Humility.

"We must run to the truth,'' Abdur-Rahim said. "The people who tell you the truth, those are the people who care about you the most. It's one of the things (our players) will learn as they grow into men. Every day, we will stand on those core values. Every day, you will be told the truth.''

Abdur-Rahim said USF's style of play will be "free-flowing and unselfish.''

"It will be a direct reflection of our campus and our community,'' Abdur-Rahim said. "Look at the Tampa Bay community. Look at this campus. Look at this facility. It's all free-flowing. It also represents hard work and blue-collar toughness. It's about the right things.

"What you're seeing this year in the NCAA Tournament is it's not always about the team with the best talent, but it's about who's the most connected team. That's the one thing you'll get from an Amir Abdur-Rahim University of South Florida Bulls team. We will be the most connected team on that court every night. It's going to take some work to get there. But that's what we work toward every day.''

Abdur-Rahim spoke about "building a fence around the Tampa Bay area'' and keeping home the top players, whether it's from the surrounding counties or the state of Florida as a whole. Generally, he plans to build USF's program with high-school players.

"You see a lot of really good high school players just kind of being left in the cold right now,'' Abdur-Rahim said. "We're always going to start at the grassroots level because when you're recruiting a high school kid, you have an opportunity to mold them from Day One.

"Not saying that kids in the portal can't be changed. But if they've been somewhere that they've had an experience that wasn't positive, it's hard to change that mindset. The kids that we built relationships with from high school who go to the portal, those are the ideal kids. We'll concentrate on the state of Florida, but I've recruited nationally in my career, so we'll lean on those relationships.''

Abdur-Rahim inherits a program that was 14-18 last season and has just one winning year since the program's last appearance in the NCAA Tournament (2012). He's undaunted by that and believes the Bulls will ultimately be regarded with the state's elite teams. And currently, that includes the Florida Atlantic University Owls, who have earned a Final Four berth. Next season, FAU will join USF in the American Athletic Conference.

"When it comes to (players going to) Florida, Florida State and Miami … we want to be in that conversation,'' Abdur-Rahim said. "I respect all of the programs and coaches in this state. But we're going to keep the best of the best, especially for the state of Florida, right here at home.

"I think a big connection wins championships. If you're the most connected team, you can do that. We're going to build real relationships. … Why not us? Why not South Florida? What is that not attainable? It is. We've got everything we need to be successful.''

Including a great example … right down the hall at the Muma Center. Abdur-Rahim said he's a big fan of USF's powerful women's basketball program, led by Coach Jose Fernandez.

"I'll be sitting in his office and I'll be picking his brain,'' Abdur-Rahim said. "He has done it. He knows the formula. There's no secret sauce. It's in the dirt, right? You've just got to work.''

Once the flash of Thursday's introduction had dissipated, it was back to basics. In fact, when Abdur-Rahim arrived in Tampa about 1 a.m., he headed directly to downtown for a promotional video.

The crux of his message?

"Let's go to work.''

Whether it's before a crowded room of supporters or a smaller room of players, Abdur-Rahim made his message clear. It's what he's all about. From his first impression at USF, you felt that energy and urgency.

– #GoBulls –