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It was a throwback for the USF Bulls as they were wearing the original 1997 jerseys when the program started. Under a cloudless beautiful blue sky, their opponent was the Charlotte 49ers. This was the Bulls’ first conference game. For the 49ers, it was their second, as they lost their first one to the Rice Owls last week. USF was coming off a bye week after a big win over the South Carolina State Bulldogs. They dominated the Bulldogs, and many predicted the same result against the Charlotte 49ers. If the Bulls play like they did against the Bulldogs, the 49ers are in big trouble. USF was inducting former Bulls into the program Hall of Fame at halftime, including former head football coach Jim Leavitt and former head basketball coach Amir Abdur-Rahim, who passed away.
The USF Bulls wore their green tops, gold pants, and gold helmets with the original 1997 logo. The visiting Charlotte 49ers were in all-white uniforms with white helmets. The 49ers won the toss and deferred to the second half. After the kickoff, the Bulls scored in just six plays on a 37-yard touchdown run by Cartevious Norton. The first scoring drive lasted less than 60 seconds. The great crowd on hand let their Bulls know it. On USF’s second drive, they fumbled, and the 49ers recovered. USF’s defense held strong, not allowing the 49ers to get a first down. Shortly after that, USF once again had a quick drive that resulted in a 38-yard touchdown pass to true freshman Jeremiah Koger, which was Koger’s first collegiate reception.
It just got worse for the Charlotte 49ers as they had a punt blocked, resulting in a safety. With the first quarter not yet over, the Bulls led 16-0. The only thing that went wrong for USF in the first quarter was dropped passes. As the first quarter came to an end, the USF Bulls led 23-0. The late touchdown was the first career touchdown for Mudia Reuben. Another bad play for the 49ers was an interception with 19 seconds left in the first quarter. This marked 13 straight games that USF has forced a turnover. This was the most points the Bulls had in a first quarter since last year against the Tulsa Golden Hurricanes, in which they scored 28 points. The Bulls kept pouring on the points as shortly into the second quarter they added three more to increase their lead to 26-0.
Charlotte finally got their first first down in the second quarter. The Bulls also committed two turnovers, both fumbles. The 49ers made a change at quarterback, with Zach Wilcke replacing Gayson Loftis. USF could not stay off the turnover train as Byrum Brown threw an interception, bringing the Bulls’ turnover number to three. In a way, it looked like USF started to get a little sloppy. Taking advantage of that sloppiness, the 49ers got their first touchdown and cut into USF’s lead, 26-7. That would not affect USF, as they drove the field very quickly and put up another touchdown on a pass reception to Chas Nimrod, giving the Bulls a 33-7 lead. The first half was dominated by USF, despite the three turnovers, holding the 49ers to less than 100 yards of total offense.
Byrum Brown recorded his first 100-yard rushing game of 2025; he had six last year and accounted for five touchdowns. This came after Charlotte’s first turnover of the game. The 49ers recorded five first downs in the third quarter, more than the previous two combined. Once again, for the second consecutive drive, the 49ers turned the ball over by way of a fumble. Byrum Brown threw his second interception, the fourth turnover for the Bulls. The 49ers took advantage and scored their second touchdown of the game, pulling within 15 points, 33-18. Cartevious Norton got hurt, and both teams, out of respect, took a knee while the medical staff worked on him. USF would score two more touchdowns, and the 49ers would score one, and the final score was 54-26.
How big a win was this for the USF Bulls to start with a blowout win in their first conference win? Leave a comment below.
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Author Profile
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Director of Operations for NGSC Sports
Covers USF Athletics in Football, Baseball, Lacrosse, and Softball.
Also covered both major and minor league baseball in the Tampa Bay Rays and Clearwater Threshers.
He also covers college football bowl and conference championship games.
It might seem like just covers team sports he also covers both the PGA & LIV Tours and writes and announces for the Pinellas Park High School Patriots in football and basketball.
He also has two sports podcasts in the P&W Sports Report and The Walker Report.
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