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USF Bulls: Looking Ahead To A Promising 2021 Football Season

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The college football season was crazy last year. Most of that had to do with the Covid-19. It led to the NCAA just having in-conference games. This will be my fourth year covering USF football. The first year, the USF Bulls won their first seven games. Then the wheels fell off and they lost the final five regular-season games. After winning seven games they qualified for a bowl game. Unfortunately, they would lose that game and the worst part about it is it was on their home turf. The second year was not as good as the first one. It started with a home opener versus the Wisconsin Badgers. The Badgers dominated USF right from the start of the game. They would only win four games all season the result was that head coach Charlie Strong would be removed from his duties as head coach.

 

Many of the fans wanted to change at the head coaching position because of them having an 11-14 record in the final two years of Strong’s tenure. Michael Kelly the AD was on the search for the next USF Bulls head coach. It did not take him long as he decided on co-offensive coordinator Jeff Scott. Scott had been a protégé of Dabo Sweeney at the University of Clemson. Sweeney has led the Tigers to multiple national championships. When Scott came here the first thing, he wanted to do was draw the USF fans back. He wanted to get out in the community and start to get the bad taste that Strong left in the fans’ mouths. I liked that he was excited to try and get the fans back. His first season was screwed because of the virus. The Bulls only won one game in 2020.

 

I attended the USF Bulls Spring game also known as the green vs white game. It was fun to see fans in the stands. It was eerie to be at a college football game with no fans in the stands. The one game that the Bulls won in 2020 was their home opener against the Citadel Bulldogs 27-6. The stadium had crown noise pumped in and it was very strange. This is a new team and Coach Scott has the team moving in the right direction. There were many great plays on both sides of the ball. The one aspect that was a huge problem was the quarterback position. It seems that Scott could not figure out who his starter was. In this game, we saw four of them. The defense was an issue and that was a good aspect to watch at the spring game.

 

Out-of-conference Games

The first four games of the USF Bulls schedule are not in-conference. The first game of the season will be on September 2nd. It will be on the road against the North Carolina State Wolfpack. To me, this game could be a statement game for the Bulls. I think that many see this as a loss for USF. I think they are good enough to win. This might be one of those games that the Wolfpack looks over because of how weak the Bulls look. The next game will be the home opener for the Bulls. This is the game I am most looking forward to and their opponent is the Florida Gators. The game will take place on September 11th. This is one of the games that I believe the Bulls will be overmatched like they were against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish last year.

 

At this point, I can see the USF Bulls with a 1-1 record. The following Saturday, September 18th, they will play against the Florida A&M Rattlers. Many experts believe that this will be the only game that the Bulls will win this year but I disagree. I think this will be one of the easiest wins they will have in 2021. They cannot overlook the game and should come out and take revenge on the Rattlers after the loss to the Gators. The final out-of-conference game will be against the BYU Cougars. This will be on the road. These two teams met back in 2019 in Tampa at Raymond James Stadium. The Bulls won that game at their homecoming by a final score of 27-23. I believe this is another winnable game for USF and they will move into conference play at 3-1 or at least 2-2.

 

In-Conference Games

The USF Bulls will start AAC play against the SMU Mustangs, their second straight road game. The Mustangs have been a good team the last couple of years. I think that the Bulls have the team to beat them this year. The first in-conference home game will be against the Tulsa Golden Hurricanes. The Bulls beat the Golden Hurricanes back in 2018 on a last-minute field goal. I can see this game being as close as that one. The next game will also be a home game against the Temple Owls. Last year this game was very close, and the Bulls lost by a fumble in the 4th quarter. This year I can see them beating them at home. At this point, the Bulls would have five games left. I could see them bowl eligible by then.

 

The final five games start on the road against the East Carolina Pirates. This is a team that the USF Bulls have had a good series with. Last year they lost to the Pirates and this year the Bulls look to get revenge. In the next game, USF returns home to play against the Houston Cougars. Last year the Cougars dominated the Bulls. This year the Bulls will have a better game plan. I can see them going strong into the game against the Cincinnati Bearcats. This is a game that they will struggle and the Bearcats could once again win the AAC. The last two games of the season will both be on the road. The first game will be against the Tulane Green Wave. This is a toss-up and it could be a win or a loss for USF.

 

The final game is on Black Friday against in-state rival the UCF Knights. The Knights have had the USF Bulls number the last few years. Last year, the Bulls had a late fumble that cost them the game. This is going to be an interesting game because the Knights have a new head coach in Gus Malzahn. This might be the year the Bulls can take advantage of that. It would be huge to see USF beat UCF especially at their house in Orlando. I am looking forward to the first good of many seasons under Jeff Scott this year in 2021.

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