USF alumnus began tenure overseeing department on Oct. 1
TAMPA, OCT. 2, 2025 –
Rob Higgins, who was introduced as the first-ever CEO of South Florida Athletics on Sept. 22, has been selected as the Grand Marshal of the 2025 Running of the Bulls Homecoming Parade to be held on Friday, Oct. 17, on the USF Tampa campus.
Higgins, the first USF alumnus to lead Bulls Athletics, began his tenure on October 1. He was inducted into USF's Zimmerman School of Advertising Hall of Fame in 2015, and, in May 2025, he received the Distinguished Citizen Award at USF Commencement.
Higgins served as executive director of the Tampa Bay Sports Commission for more than two decades, successfully positioning the region as one of the nation's premier destinations in sports and entertainment, including hosting two Super Bowls, a College Football Playoff National Championship, the NCAA Women's Basketball Final Four on four occasions, the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament three times, the NCAA Men's Frozen Four in hockey three times, the NCAA Women's Volleyball Championship twice, the NHL All-Star Weekend, NHL Stadium Series and WrestleMania 37. Higgins also served as the president and CEO of the Tampa Bay Super Bowl LV Host Committee in 2021.
Higgins's connection to USF started at an early age. Shortly after attending his first men's basketball game at the age of 8, he became a ball kid for the team. He went on to serve as a team manager. After graduating from USF, Higgins worked as a staff member for USF Athletics, helping oversee facilities and event management.
The Homecoming Parade begins at 6:30 p.m. and runs east down USF Holly Drive, before turning south on USF Genshaft Drive, running by the Yuengling Center, and then turning west on USF Alumni Drive before ending near the Sam and Martha Gibbons Alumni Center.
About USF Athletics
USF Athletics sponsors 21 varsity teams, with 20 competing at the NCAA Division I level in the American Athletic Conference, including the recent additions of women's lacrosse and women's beach volleyball. The Bulls' athletic program, founded in 1965, celebrates its 60th season in 2025-26.
Nearly 500 student-athletes train and compete in the Tampa General Hospital Athletics District on the east end of USF's Tampa campus. The Bulls have won 154 conference titles across 16 sports, with 82 men's championships and 72 women's championships. Men's tennis and men's soccer lead with 20 titles each, while women's programs have been headlined by women's tennis (14) and volleyball (13). Since joining the American Athletic Conference in 2013, USF has secured 36 conference team titles.
Academically, USF student-athletes have achieved a program record of 21 consecutive semesters with a combined GPA of 3.0 or above as of spring 2025. Since 2015, more than 800 Bulls have earned their degrees.
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