USF Basketball's Wilson Named To Preseason American All-Conference First Team
October 09, 2026 | Men's Basketball
USF Men's Basketball picked third in preseason conference coaches poll
TAMPA (OCT. 9, 2026) – South Florida senior guard Sonny Wilson, a former Michigan Gatorade Player of the Year and MAC All-Conference performer, was named to the Preseason American All-Conference First Team by conference coaches on Friday.
First-year South Florida Head Coach Chris Mack's Bulls, which welcomed 15 new players in the offseason, were picked third in the preseason poll of all 13 conference men's basketball coaches. They picked Wichita State (140 points and nine first place votes) first, followed by Memphis (131, 4 first place votes), South Florida (118), Tulsa (99) and Charlotte (95) rounding out the top five.
The Bulls will face three of the top five teams in the preseason poll – Memphis, Tulsa and Charlotte – in their first three conference games. The Bulls take on Wichita State in a pair of February games – Thursday, Feb. 4 in the Yuengling Center and Thursday, Feb. 18 in Wichita.
Wilson and fellow guard Mike James, a former four-star recruit out of Orlando who started his career at Louisville, were selected team captains for the 2026-27 season. They will join Mack in representing the Bulls at the American Conference Tipoff at the JW Marriott in downtown Tampa on Monday.
Wilson (6-1, 175) was joined on the Preseason American All-Conference First Team by Florida Atlantic guard Kanaan Carlyle, Memphis guard Jayden Reid, North Texas guard Je'Shawn Stevenson, and Wichita State center Will Berg.
Wichita State also had two players selected to the Preseason Second Team – guard Jordan Frison and forward Dillon Battle – while Memphis had one – forward Tylik Weeks. Rounding out the second team, UAB saw two players selected – guards Justyn Fernandez and Deuce Jones – as did Temple – guards Derrian Ford and Gavin Griffiths.
A transfer guard from Toledo, Wilson came to South Florida having played in 99 career games with 98 starts and having logged 1,338 points, 373 rebounds, 331 assists and 101 steals in his three seasons with the Rockets. Wilson earned all-conference recognition in each of his three seasons playing at Toledo. As a junior in 2026, he finished seventh in the league in scoring (17.0 ppg) and assists (4.6 apg) and posted the second-best assist/turnover ratio (2.9) in the league.
The 2026-27 South Florida Basketball Season presented by Tampa General Hospital will tip off on Monday, Nov. 2 vs. Charleston Southern in the Yuengling Center. It will be the first of a 14-game non-conference schedule. Fans first look at a new Bulls team will be an exhibition game on Oct. 19 vs. St. Leo (7 p.m.) in the Yuengling Center. The Bulls open conference play on Wed., Dec. 30 at Tulsa before returning home to face Memphis (Sun., Jan. 3) and Charlotte (Thur., Jan. 7).
Season tickets for the 2026-27 season may be purchased by visiting USFBullstix.com or calling 1-800-GoBulls. Single game tickets will go on sale at a future date.
South Florida returns one player – guard Josh Omojafo – from the 2025-26 squad that went 25-9, reached the NCAA tournament and won an American Conference title (claiming both the regular season and tournament crowns) for the second time in three years. The Bulls reloaded with 12 transfer portal additions and three high school signees. The portal class features four players with a composite rating of .9100 or higher and a four-star rating, according to 247Sports. The Bulls' average transfer rating of 89.00 ranks third among Group of 6 programs, while the overall class ranked among the top 10 nationally among the Group of 6 according to 247Sports.
Follow South Florida Men's Basketball
For the latest updates from South Florida Men's Basketball, visit GoUSFBulls.com.
Follow South Florida men's basketball on Facebook, X, Instagram and Youtube.
Get Your Tickets Today!
Call 1-800-GO-BULLS (1-800-462-8557) or email BullsTickets@usf.edu to claim your season or single-game tickets. You can also download the South Florida Bulls app on the Android or Apple stores to purchase tickets and parking. Visit USFBullsTix.com for more information.
About South Florida Men's Basketball
South Florida men's basketball named Chris Mack as the program's 13th head coach on March 25, 2026. Mack came to Tampa after a pair of 20-win seasons at the College of Charleston. With more than 300 career wins, he brought a career winning percentage of nearly 68 percent to South Florida, including 12 20-win seasons and nine NCAA Tournament appearances. He led both Xavier and Louisville to the NCAA Tournament and made four Sweet 16 appearances and one Elite Eight with Xavier.
The program, entering its 56th season in 2026-27, won American Conference regular season championships in 2024 and 2026 and claimed the conference tournament title in 2026. The Bulls have made 14 postseason appearances, including four NCAA Tournaments (the last in 2026), nine NITs, and a CBI championship in 2019. Three former Bulls players – Chucky Atkins, Charlie Bradley, and Rodenko Dobras – have had their jerseys retired and are members of the USF Athletic Hall of Fame, while two coaches – Amir Abdur-Rahim (2023-24) and Bobby Paschal (1986-96) – join them in the Hall of Fame.
The Bulls play their home games at the 10,400-seat Yuengling Center on the USF Tampa campus.
TAMPA (OCT. 9, 2026) – South Florida senior guard Sonny Wilson, a former Michigan Gatorade Player of the Year and MAC All-Conference performer, was named to the Preseason American All-Conference First Team by conference coaches on Friday.
First-year South Florida Head Coach Chris Mack's Bulls, which welcomed 15 new players in the offseason, were picked third in the preseason poll of all 13 conference men's basketball coaches. They picked Wichita State (140 points and nine first place votes) first, followed by Memphis (131, 4 first place votes), South Florida (118), Tulsa (99) and Charlotte (95) rounding out the top five.
The Bulls will face three of the top five teams in the preseason poll – Memphis, Tulsa and Charlotte – in their first three conference games. The Bulls take on Wichita State in a pair of February games – Thursday, Feb. 4 in the Yuengling Center and Thursday, Feb. 18 in Wichita.
Wilson and fellow guard Mike James, a former four-star recruit out of Orlando who started his career at Louisville, were selected team captains for the 2026-27 season. They will join Mack in representing the Bulls at the American Conference Tipoff at the JW Marriott in downtown Tampa on Monday.
Wilson (6-1, 175) was joined on the Preseason American All-Conference First Team by Florida Atlantic guard Kanaan Carlyle, Memphis guard Jayden Reid, North Texas guard Je'Shawn Stevenson, and Wichita State center Will Berg.
Wichita State also had two players selected to the Preseason Second Team – guard Jordan Frison and forward Dillon Battle – while Memphis had one – forward Tylik Weeks. Rounding out the second team, UAB saw two players selected – guards Justyn Fernandez and Deuce Jones – as did Temple – guards Derrian Ford and Gavin Griffiths.
A transfer guard from Toledo, Wilson came to South Florida having played in 99 career games with 98 starts and having logged 1,338 points, 373 rebounds, 331 assists and 101 steals in his three seasons with the Rockets. Wilson earned all-conference recognition in each of his three seasons playing at Toledo. As a junior in 2026, he finished seventh in the league in scoring (17.0 ppg) and assists (4.6 apg) and posted the second-best assist/turnover ratio (2.9) in the league.
The 2026-27 South Florida Basketball Season presented by Tampa General Hospital will tip off on Monday, Nov. 2 vs. Charleston Southern in the Yuengling Center. It will be the first of a 14-game non-conference schedule. Fans first look at a new Bulls team will be an exhibition game on Oct. 19 vs. St. Leo (7 p.m.) in the Yuengling Center. The Bulls open conference play on Wed., Dec. 30 at Tulsa before returning home to face Memphis (Sun., Jan. 3) and Charlotte (Thur., Jan. 7).
Season tickets for the 2026-27 season may be purchased by visiting USFBullstix.com or calling 1-800-GoBulls. Single game tickets will go on sale at a future date.
South Florida returns one player – guard Josh Omojafo – from the 2025-26 squad that went 25-9, reached the NCAA tournament and won an American Conference title (claiming both the regular season and tournament crowns) for the second time in three years. The Bulls reloaded with 12 transfer portal additions and three high school signees. The portal class features four players with a composite rating of .9100 or higher and a four-star rating, according to 247Sports. The Bulls' average transfer rating of 89.00 ranks third among Group of 6 programs, while the overall class ranked among the top 10 nationally among the Group of 6 according to 247Sports.
Follow South Florida Men's Basketball
For the latest updates from South Florida Men's Basketball, visit GoUSFBulls.com.
Follow South Florida men's basketball on Facebook, X, Instagram and Youtube.
Get Your Tickets Today!
Call 1-800-GO-BULLS (1-800-462-8557) or email BullsTickets@usf.edu to claim your season or single-game tickets. You can also download the South Florida Bulls app on the Android or Apple stores to purchase tickets and parking. Visit USFBullsTix.com for more information.
About South Florida Men's Basketball
South Florida men's basketball named Chris Mack as the program's 13th head coach on March 25, 2026. Mack came to Tampa after a pair of 20-win seasons at the College of Charleston. With more than 300 career wins, he brought a career winning percentage of nearly 68 percent to South Florida, including 12 20-win seasons and nine NCAA Tournament appearances. He led both Xavier and Louisville to the NCAA Tournament and made four Sweet 16 appearances and one Elite Eight with Xavier.
The program, entering its 56th season in 2026-27, won American Conference regular season championships in 2024 and 2026 and claimed the conference tournament title in 2026. The Bulls have made 14 postseason appearances, including four NCAA Tournaments (the last in 2026), nine NITs, and a CBI championship in 2019. Three former Bulls players – Chucky Atkins, Charlie Bradley, and Rodenko Dobras – have had their jerseys retired and are members of the USF Athletic Hall of Fame, while two coaches – Amir Abdur-Rahim (2023-24) and Bobby Paschal (1986-96) – join them in the Hall of Fame.
The Bulls play their home games at the 10,400-seat Yuengling Center on the USF Tampa campus.
– #GoBulls –
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