It's a Victory Rewind of the sights, sound bites, stats, highlights and learning experiences of USF's 38-24 triumph against the Florida A&M Rattlers, while beginning the lookahead to Saturday afternoon's long-anticipated clash against the No. 10-ranked Alabama Crimson Tide at Raymond James Stadium.
The Big Play
On fourth-and-6, USF quarterback Byrum Brown hit wide-open receiver Naiem Simmons down the left sideline for a 31-yard score with 7:39 remaining, finally putting away the pesky Rattlers.
"It was right outside of where we felt like go-for-it range and it was just a hair out of where you feel comfortable kicking the field goal,'' head coach Alex Golesh said. "And you certainly don't want to punt there. We got the right look and the right matchup. Byrum put the ball where it needed to be.''
Game Balls
• In his fourth college start, quarterback Byrum Brown rushed for two scores (for the second straight game) and tossed three touchdown passes, tying a career high, as he accounted for five touchdowns. Brown missed a fourth-quarter series with a left-hand injury — giving way to Bryce Archie — but returned and finished the game. "Last week, I called Byrum a tough-ass dude,'' Golesh said. "Let's make T-shirts (with that slogan).''
The American Athletic Conference named Brown among their Weekly Honor Roll recipients on Monday.
• Safety Logan Berryhill, a converted wide receiver, had two interceptions and became the first USF defender with multiple picks in a game since Deatrick Nichols against Temple on Sept. 21, 2017.
• Linebacker D.J. Gordon and defensive lineman Jonathan Ross each had 2.5 tackles for a loss. Gordon led USF with seven tackles overall. The Bulls posted 12.0 tackles for loss overall, the team's most since 2019.
Notable Numbers
0 — Number of USF turnovers.
4 — Sacks by USF defensive players (one each by Jonathan Ross, Aamaris Brown, Jacquez Williams and Jason Vaughn). USF last had a five-sack game in 2019.
5 — Number of USF takeaways.
33-1 — USF's record against Football Championship Subdivision opponents since the Bulls entered the Football Bowl Subdivision.
36,495 — The announced attendance at Ray-Jay. "We've got to get to the point where it's a hot ticket,'' Golesh said. "That's our job to continue to build where that place is rocking and rolling.''
Golesh's First Victory
It was the initial victory for Golesh, a first-year head coach.
His first big-picture thought?
"Just thinking about the opportunities we left out there — and I'm not a negative person,'' Golesh said. "The penalties (14 for 114 yards) frustrated me. The inability at times to get off the field (defensively) frustrated me.
"The wins and losses we'll look at in January and evaluate those. In terms of being able to enjoy it, I certainly do enjoy a win. It was really cool to see my family there afterwards because they go through it with us. That part was really cool.''
Legendary Visitor
Yes, that really was musician John Legend roaming the Ray-Jay sidelines. Legend's nephew is Bulls wide receiver Michael Brown-Stephens, a transfer from Minnesota who celebrated his birthday on Saturday.
Legend, born in Ohio, allegedly pulls for the Ohio State Buckeyes, but he's now a top celebrity fan for the USF Bulls and he wore a bright green shirt to prove it. When examining some of Legend's top songs, you can easily find a USF connection.
Green Light — End of the third quarter at Ray-Jay.
Who Do We Think We Are — Inspired by Alex Golesh's "Be Who You Say You Are.''
Stay With Me (By The Sea) — Another way of saying, "Come To The Bay.''
So High — A tribute to the punts of Andrew Stokes.
You Deserve It All — Dedicated to loyal USF fans.
Reminiscing — The soundtrack for highlights of USF's 2007 win against No. 5-ranked West Virginia.
Each Day Gets Better — The prevailing attitude as USF builds toward prosperity in the American Athletic Conference.
Winning Cures Everything
USF snapped a program-record 11-game losing streak by defeating FAMU, but Golesh said his priority continues to be the overall process and the habits that lead to winning.
"It has to be process-driven here,'' Golesh said. "I know the expectation is to win — and it should be. But there has to be a foundation laid here and in anything, whether it's life or business. I felt like we walked into a situation where there was no foundation, there was no identity.
"I can tell you through two weeks, we're going to fly around and play really, really hard. That's awesome. To me, that's a foundation. We're not playing super smart. We're not executing at a high clip in really critical times. We allow ourselves to get emotionally involved in individual plays. But I love the energy. I love the intensity. The next-play mentality has got to be part of our focus.''
The Crimson Tide Rolls In
Alabama at USF. ABC national TV. An expected packed house for next Saturday's game at 3:30 p.m.
Need we say more?
The Crimson Tide (1-1) will be determined for a rebound following the 34-24 defeat against the Texas Longhorns that ended Alabama's 43-game winning streak in home non-conference games.
Golesh was Tennessee's offensive coordinator last season when the Volunteers upended Alabama 52-49 on Chase McGrath's 40-yard walk-off field goal at Knoxville's Neyland Stadium.
"It's another step for the growth of our program,'' Golesh said. "It will be fascinating to see where we are standing (next Saturday) and where we are as a program.
"That's obviously a big-time football program and a big-time coaching staff. It'll be really, really cool to see us go and compete against one of the better teams in the country. If you want to say you want to be a top 20 program, you've got to go play against those guys. I'm excited to get to play them here. Honestly, I hope this place is rocking and rolling and it'll be a blast.''
Other Alabama-USF tidbits:
* Nick Saban has been a head coach at five stops — Toledo, Michigan State, LSU, the NFL's Miami Dolphins and now Alabama. He has won games in 46 different stadiums. But he's 0-2 at Ray-Jay — falling 27-13 with the Dolphins against the Tampa Bay Bucs on Oct. 16, 2005 and dropping a last-second 35-31 decision against Clemson on Jan. 9, 2017 in the College Football Playoff championship game.
* Former Bulls head coach Charlie Strong (2017-19) is an analyst on Nick Saban's staff. Alabama offensive line coach Eric Wolford was a member of USF's inaugural staff and helped coach the Bulls for the program's first three seasons (1997-99). He has been an offensive line coach for seven other schools since then, while also spending two seasons with the NFL's San Francisco 49ers.
* USF is 3-9 all-time against opponents ranked in the Associated Press top 10. The wins: 45-14 against No. 9 Louisville in 2005, 24-19 against No. 7 West Virginia in 2006 and 21-13 against No. 5 West Virginia in 2007.
* USF opened the 2003 season against Alabama at Birmingham's Legion Field. The Tide won 40-17 in the first game for Coach Mike Shula.
* The Bulls are 2-6 against SEC competition, winning at Auburn 26-23 (overtime) in 2007 and beating South Carolina 46-39 (overtime) in the 2016 Birmingham Bowl. Saturday's game is the second time for USF to face an SEC opponent at Ray-Jay (along with Florida in 2021).
* USF has two upcoming trips to face Alabama in Tuscaloosa — 2024 and 2026.
* USF offensive tackle R.J. Perry, a transfer from Tennessee, will be playing against his cousin, All-SEC Alabama cornerback Ga'Quincy "Kool-Aid'' McKinstry, a top NFL prospect. They both grew up in Birmingham. Perry said the nickname originated because "he always had that Kool-Aid smile … didn't matter whether he was feeling down, injured or just normal. He was always smiling like that.'' You guessed it. McKinstry already has a Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) deal with Kool-Aid.
– #GoBulls –
