TAMPA, FLA., JAN. 6, 2026 – South Florida Football Head Coach Brian Hartline continues to quickly build out his first Bulls staff, announcing eight support staff members.

Zach Cole, who joined the program in January of 2024 as director of operations, has been promoted to chief of staff.

Dustin Chason will assume the role of director of football operations, returning to the state of Florida where he served five years on the Florida State staff. He comes to USF after six seasons at Texas A&M, where he served as the assistant director of football operations.

Carter Wilson will serve as executive director of player personnel. A University of Florida graduate, Wilson comes to USF after three years at Cincinnati, where he served the first two as the director of scouting before being promoted to assistant general manager in 2025. He has more than 10 years of experience working in recruiting at UC, Louisville and with the Gators.

Kyle Steinhoff has been named director of scouting and evaluation. A University of Florida graduate, he comes USF after serving as director of scouting at Coastal Carolina for three years. He previously worked on the football staffs at Northwestern, Colorado and Florida.

Kyle Fahey, a University of South Florida graduate who has served on the USF football staff since 2023, will serve as assistant director of scouting.

Will Shields, a member of the USF staff since 2023, will continue in his role as coordinator of scouting strategy. Shields and Fahey have been part of developing three Bulls recruiting classes that ranked at the top of the American Conference.

Jenna Learn returns to South Florida as the director of recruiting. A USF graduate, she previously served in roles with the Bulls football program in recruiting and operations. Learn returns to Tampa after serving two years as the director of recruiting for UTSA.

Jes Hryn will serve as executive assistant to the head coach/recruiting. A University of Alabama graduate, Hyrn comes to USF with experience having worked with several college football programs including Alabama, North Carolina, Texas Tech, Temple and Charlotte, as well as with the NFL's Carolina Panthers and Chicago Bears.

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ABOUT USF FOOTBALL
The USF football program first took the field in 1997 and completed its 29th season in 2025. In 2025, Bulls went 9-4, earned a third straight bowl appearance, made the program's first College Football Playoff ranking appearance, and were ranked four times in the weekly AP Top 25 poll. USF completed construction on a new $22-million Indoor Performance Facility in 2023 and a $349-million on-campus stadium and football operations center broke ground in the fall of 2024 and is slated for completion by 2027. The Bulls have posted 18 winning seasons, earned 16 All-America selections (including two consensus selections, the last coming in 2021), as well as 35 first-team all-conference honorees. USF has had 30 players selected in the NFL Draft while the Bulls have made 13 bowl game appearances (going 8-5), which is tied for the third-most in the first 25 seasons of a program's bowl eligibility. USF posted back-to-back 10-win seasons in 2016 and 2017, logging a program-record 11-2 mark in 2016, while finishing both seasons ranked in the Top 25. USF spent a program-record 20 straight weeks ranked in the Top 25 during the 2016 and 2017 campaigns and reached as high as No. 2 in the Associated Press rankings during the 2007 season.