A Decade Later, The American Conference's "Powerful Minds" Intitiative Continues to Have an Impact
October 15, 2026 | Football, Athletic Medicine, Student-Athlete Enhancement, Women's Lacrosse
Ten years ago, as part of the American Conference Student-athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC), former South Florida football center Cameron Ruff was an integral part of launching the league's mental-health initiative — "Powerful Minds.'
It's still going, still helping, still trying to bridge the gap in what Ruff called "a part of the conversation that is sometimes missed in college athletics.''
"As athletes, we've constantly been taught how to break through barriers,'' said Ruff, 31, a South Florida offensive lineman from 2014-17 and now an offensive-line coach at Jesuit High School, his alma mater. "When we faced physical barriers, we had coaches, athletic trainers, strength coaches and medical professionals too help us recover, improve and keep moving forward.
"But what happens when the barrier is mental? For decades, athletes who struggled mentally could be labeled as 'soft' or 'crazy' or even treated as though they were a problem. We wanted athletes to understand that it's OK to not be OK. Asking for help does not make you weak. That was the perception we wanted to change.''
During the American Conference's Mental Health/Powerful Minds Week, Ruff addressed the South Florida Student-Athlete Advocacy Council (SAAC), which comprises student-athlete leaders from each of USF's 21 varsity sports, to talk about the progress made in the initiative's decade of work.
Ruff said South Florida's athletic administration has strongly embraced the concept of providing mental-health assistance. Lee Dorpfeld, the Director of Sport Psychology for USF Athletics, provides a constant helpful presence and South Florida student-athletes constantly point to his perspective as a major benefit.
"When I was at USF, it was around the time that social media was becoming more available and student-athletes were starting to find their voice in telling their story,'' Ruff said. "There were times I was fighting myself and doubting myself. There are issues that have built up over the last 10 years and I see it pretty clearly because I coach high school ball now.
"With social media and media gratification toward establishing everyone's identity these days, you find yourself in comparisons with others. What you realize, with healthy perspective, is how everyone is not going to be a positive moment. And the negative moments don't mean the end of the world. These things make sense. But all of us, particularly young people, need to talk this out and come to grips with things, instead of keeping it inside and letting it build up to become a large problem. It's recognizing when something becomes a problem and understanding how to get the help you need to balance it out.''
Ruff's words resonated with the South Florida SAAC members.
"Talking is good because you need to address the elephant in the room,'' said football player Greg Otten, South Florida's current SAAC vice president. "Dr. Lee (Dorpfeld) is a giant resource for all of us. As student-athletes, we all have an enormous time commitment. At times, there just isn't time to decompress like a normal person because we're always going on to the next thing. It's managing that time, dealing with pressure and being able to just move on when you make mistakes. These are things some kids grapple with. You have to recognize when things get to be too much and know that you don't have to face it alone.''
Lacrosse athlete Kerrigan Gilmore, the current SAAC secretary, described the South Florida support as "endless.'' She said the key is having student-athletes willing to utilize the resources and maintain healthy perspective.
"There's a lot on the plates of young people these days,'' Gilmore said. "With social media, there's the danger of letting the opinions of others getting too much in your head. Even though it's because they want you to get better, coaches can be hard on you. There's schoolwork, family life, upholding your nutrition to keep your body right, building relationships with friends and performing well in your sport.
"I hear my parents and other family members talking about the 'olden days' and sometimes it seems like we are dealing with things they never had to face. This social media stuff is so toxic for the brain. Comparison is the thief of joy and my generation is constantly being placed in situations where they are comparing themselves to others and feeling like they don't measure up. And that's not good. We're all different. We all have a different path. I think that's why mental health is so important and I'm so happy to be at a place like USF, where it is treated as a very important issue.''
Ruff said he's proud of the legacy that has been built.
"Mental health was an issue when I played and it's even more of an issue these days,'' Ruff said. "More people are listening. More people are helping. That was the idea when we came up with this (Powerful Minds) concept. It makes me feel good that it's still helping today.''
–#GoBulls–
Joey Johnston
Athletics Senior Writer
