The 65,000 screaming fans present at Raymond James Stadium enjoyed quite a show as then 18th-ranked underdog USF bulls secured a 21-13 upset over fifth-ranked West Virginia on Friday night.
It was undoubtedly the hugest victory in USF football history and it propelled the Bulls to number 6 in the national polls. The move finally proved that the Bulls belong among the top football teams in the country and the team's consecutive victories against West Virginia and the recent defeat of Auburn were not lucky flukes.
For the weeks and days preceding the game, USF students, alumni and current players continuously heard how the mountaineers intended revenge for the Bulls’ win over West Virginia last year. But it was the Bulls instead of the Mountaineers that put on a show of punishing the Mountaineers and rendering one of the supposed best colleges mostly ineffective. An offense who previously had averaged more than 350 yards per game rushing was help to a mere 188 yards over 48 carries. The Mountaineers showed up with the second ranked rushing game in college football, including two Heisman Trophy candidates. These facts, however, did not seem to intimidate the Bulls, who played with aggressive confidence from the first snap of the ball, and effectively shut the supposed awesome Mountaineer offense down. For three consecutive years, the Bulls have limited top-ranking running back Steve Slaton and pretty early in the game they injured quarterback Pat White and knocked him out of the game.
The Bulls have been confident that it’s defense could hold any team on any night. The Bulls proved it Friday night. Bulls head coach Jim Leavitt has expressed pride in his team’s performance, but stressed that the Bull’s goal is to win the Big East title, beating the Mountaineers on the way to get there. He says he is already analyzing tape of the game, identifying reoccurring mistakes, with an eye on correcting them for upcoming games.
If the defeat of the Mountaineers and subsequent leap to number 6 in the polls isn’t enough, one poll even ranks USF the best team in the state.
After entering the poll for the first time two weeks ago following a win over Auburn, the Bulls have risen to number 6 in the AP poll and number 9 in the coaches' poll.
USF’s descent into the top 10 is the fastest rise ever for a college football team. Even better, USF is sitting pretty. USF is undefeated (4-0) with many of the top 10 teams recently struggling while USF’s star rises. Oklahoma, Florida, Texas and Rutgers were all upset this weekend.
USF is in its 11th season of college football. In the early days, Coach Jim Leavitt and his staff practiced on a shoestring at Chamberlain high school and had to pull their cars up to the practice field so that the team could see during night practices.
USF has been in the Football Bowl Subdivision (I-A) since 2001. USF will play Florida Atlantic on Saturday.
It was undoubtedly the hugest victory in USF football history and it propelled the Bulls to number 6 in the national polls. The move finally proved that the Bulls belong among the top football teams in the country and the team's consecutive victories against West Virginia and the recent defeat of Auburn were not lucky flukes.
For the weeks and days preceding the game, USF students, alumni and current players continuously heard how the mountaineers intended revenge for the Bulls’ win over West Virginia last year. But it was the Bulls instead of the Mountaineers that put on a show of punishing the Mountaineers and rendering one of the supposed best colleges mostly ineffective. An offense who previously had averaged more than 350 yards per game rushing was help to a mere 188 yards over 48 carries. The Mountaineers showed up with the second ranked rushing game in college football, including two Heisman Trophy candidates. These facts, however, did not seem to intimidate the Bulls, who played with aggressive confidence from the first snap of the ball, and effectively shut the supposed awesome Mountaineer offense down. For three consecutive years, the Bulls have limited top-ranking running back Steve Slaton and pretty early in the game they injured quarterback Pat White and knocked him out of the game.
The Bulls have been confident that it’s defense could hold any team on any night. The Bulls proved it Friday night. Bulls head coach Jim Leavitt has expressed pride in his team’s performance, but stressed that the Bull’s goal is to win the Big East title, beating the Mountaineers on the way to get there. He says he is already analyzing tape of the game, identifying reoccurring mistakes, with an eye on correcting them for upcoming games.
If the defeat of the Mountaineers and subsequent leap to number 6 in the polls isn’t enough, one poll even ranks USF the best team in the state.
After entering the poll for the first time two weeks ago following a win over Auburn, the Bulls have risen to number 6 in the AP poll and number 9 in the coaches' poll.
USF’s descent into the top 10 is the fastest rise ever for a college football team. Even better, USF is sitting pretty. USF is undefeated (4-0) with many of the top 10 teams recently struggling while USF’s star rises. Oklahoma, Florida, Texas and Rutgers were all upset this weekend.
USF is in its 11th season of college football. In the early days, Coach Jim Leavitt and his staff practiced on a shoestring at Chamberlain high school and had to pull their cars up to the practice field so that the team could see during night practices.
USF has been in the Football Bowl Subdivision (I-A) since 2001. USF will play Florida Atlantic on Saturday.
