South Florida (3-1; 0-0 American) vs Charlotte (1-3; 0-1 American)
Friday, October 3 • 7 PM • Raymond James Stadium (65,000) • Tampa, Fla.
SURFACE: Natural, Bermuda Turf Grass
TV: ESPN2: Courtney Lyle (P-by-P), Rene Ingoglia (Analyst) & Marilyn Payne (Sideline)
RADIO: Q105 FM/Bulls Unlimited Digital Radio
SERIES: USF leads 2-0
IN TAMPA: USF leads 1-0
IN CHARLOTTE: USF leads 1-0
LAST TIME: USF 59, CLT 24, in Charlotte, 11/16/2025
VS AMERICAN: 38-58, won 4 of last 6
AMERICAN OPENERS: 6-6, lost last at Tulane (45-10)
WEEKNIGHT GAMES: 23-34, won last vs. Boise State
FRIDAY GAMES: 12-19, W last at FAU (44-21) in 2024.
SOUTH FLORIDA GAME NOTES
HERD HERE FIRST PREGAME SHOW - PODCAST
BULLSEYE USF COACHES SHOW
Remember the giddy start to USF's season, the unforgettable victories against nationally ranked Boise State and Florida, and how some national media members proclaimed that the Bulls were absolutely on a collision course with a spot in the College Football Playoff?
As ESPN's Lee Corso always said, "Not so fast, my friends.'' Of course, USF aspires for championships. But we must all continually remember that age-old lesson.
One week at a time.
One week at a time.
It's time for USF (3-1) to open American Conference play. Beginning with Friday night's ESPN2 home game against the Charlotte 49ers (1-3, 0-1) at Raymond James Stadium, the season will enter a hyper-drive of importance. League games are different. And already, the American competition looks quite formidable.
Fun fact: The American has three unbeaten teams — North Texas (5-0), Memphis (5-0) and Navy (4-0). USF will draw each of them on the road.
But let's not jump ahead too far.
USF-Charlotte should be festive. It's "Flashback Friday'' and USF will wear throwback helmets with the "RoboBull'' logo utilized during the program's first six seasons. Before we party like it's 1997 — the game will feature retro-music and nostalgic stadium graphics — let's again summon our helpful reminder.
One week at a time.
Here are USF's keys to dispatching Charlotte, maintaining its momentum, and beginning American play with a big victory:
1. Don't Give Charlotte Hope
After the 2019 season, it seemed like the Charlotte 49ers had one of the nation's most promising up-and-coming programs after going 7-5 and earning a Bahamas Bowl bid. But since then, the 49ers have stumbled to an 19-39 mark, plus a 9-19 overall record (6-11 in league play) after joining the American.
Golesh and his staff have lifted USF's program out of a similar malaise with two consecutive winning seasons and bowl victories, plus the program's first national ranking since 2018 earlier this season. There's great promise that Coach Tim Albin will eventually do the same for Charlotte.
But Friday night, USF's task is to make things hard on the 49ers and make sure that their program's turnaround happens elsewhere, not at Ray-Jay. The Bulls must take care of business and perform well as the game's solid favorite. It's the mark of a mature team: Step on the opponent early and don't provide any hope of an upset.
"Both teams are coming off bye weeks and both teams can reset,'' defensive coordinator Todd Orlando said. "So, another way to say it — just like any week — is it's all about us, how we play, how we perform. We have guys who can play pretty good when they're locked in. When they're not locked in, we're average.
"That constant battle is going to be us being the best version of ourselves. We have talented players. But they come out uninspired and not emotional, they become very average. The great thing is we have a lot of older guys who have been consistent and serve as the barometer, so I think we'll be ready to go.''
2. Start Fast
Offensively, USF has scored just three points in the first quarter — a 45-yard field goal by Nico Gramatica at Miami — over four games. That's seven drives (and an eighth against South Carolina State that began in the first quarter and ended with a second-quarter touchdown).
Starting fast remains a priority.
Ironically, after halftime, the Bulls have been dominant in the third quarter, outscoring opponents 58-7 (and 181-63 since the beginning of last season).
"To start with the third quarter, I think, just inevitably, we've done a good job at halftime of making adjustments,'' head coach Alex Golesh said. "The iPads help in some ways there. Offensively, that's when you start seeing defenses wear down. The tempo starts to catch up to you. In the third quarter, we've been able to come out and attack defensively in the same breath. If you play complimentary football, which we have, there's a new energy, a new spark that comes out in the second half.''
What about the first quarter?
"They won't let us play a half and then start … or move halftime to the beginning,'' Golesh joked. "We've spent so much time trying to make sure we're starting the way we want to start. … There's an element of being focused, an element of being detailed. It's doing what the quarterback is comfortable doing, what the offensive line is comfortable doing. I take all the ownership there. I want to start fast. I think it's really important."
Golesh said the Bulls have begun some practices, just after stretching, with a fast-paced, hair-on-fire offensive approach.
"It's continuing to get information, putting it together and saying, 'Man, this is what we've had success with early' and just doing what we do really well,'' Golesh said. "Not getting too cute in a lot of ways. As we continue to learn and grow, it's a challenge to our players offensively and certainly a challenge to our offensive staff as well.''
3. Mix It Up
USF's 63-14 victory against South Carolina State was a statistical anomaly. The Bulls had 504 total yards — 252 rushing and 252 passing. You don't see that often. Those corresponding numbers may never happen again. But it can serve as a template for how USF can best thrive for the remainder of this season.
"The most important thing was it was 252 and not 175,'' offensive coordinator Joel Gordon said. "That 252 is a nice number. It's pretty crazy that the numbers were both the same. But it's always going to be us doing whatever is necessary to win the game.
"We were encouraged by our running back. Tay (Cartevious Norton) had a long run called back. We had other long ones. It gave us a boost of confidence, like, 'Hey, we're a good team.' We've played some pretty good teams in the first month and now we're starting to execute like we need to execute. When you have that kind of balance, particularly when you have the running game going, it makes you really hard to defend. And that's always what we're going to be after around here. At our core, we need to be good at running the football.''
And when quarterback Byrum Brown plays like he did against South Carolina State — 236 yards passing and four touchdowns in two-and-a-half quarters — it makes the running game pop even more.
4. Create Turnovers
USF's defense has built a reputation as a prime turnover-forcing unit. The Bulls have ranked in the top 15 nationally the past two seasons, while grabbing seven (four interceptions, three fumble recoveries) this year. USF has turned it over just three times in four games, making for a plus-four turnover differential.
Against South Carolina State, linebacker Mac Harris jump-started the proceedings by plucking a tipped-ball interception and racing for a 93-yard touchdown, the longest pickoff-return in program history. That was after the Bulldogs had driven 70 yards in nine plays after the opening kickoff, reaching the USF 5-yard line.
Momentum was immediately reversed.
That's what turnovers can do.
And that's what USF needs to take command against Charlotte.
"Sometimes, the turnovers come your way,'' Orlando said. "You want it to be where it's, 'Hey, we're physical, we're running to the ball and we're hitting the heck out of people.' And sometimes, it's a product of your culture where you naturally put a lot of pressure on people and have guys who are constantly around the ball.
"Any way you cut it, getting turnovers are a great indicator (of success). You get to plus-two and you're winning 90-percent of the time. You get to plus-three and it's over. That's what we're shooting for.''
–#GoBulls–
