im pretty jelly of this chise, wish i could get into a cfb game long enough. props
yeah i started updating some of it the other day but still need to catch up on season recaps since that one takes the most time
at this point, might as well wait for CFB25 for you. this (along with Caesar's) might be a unicorn though going forward since there are going to be yearly releases going forward so now the challenge is how many seasons can you get in before next year's game
The Bullpen: USF's new staff deserves a ton of credit for success on the field as well as the recruiting trail
Jonathan Bright -- BullsNation.com Football Reporter
USF's coaching staff saw a major overhaul in the offseason with five of the team's on field assistants, including offensive coordinator Rhett Lashlee, accepting promotions elsewhere.
While it's still a relatively small sample size, USF head coach Malcolm Francois Sr. hit the new hires out of the park as USF stands undefeated, the top ranked team in the nation and a recruiting class that is already fifteen prospect deep this early in the cycle.
This is by no means a slight to the former staff as they had a major hand in USF winning back-to-back national championships and three of the last four but new voices certainly help in terms of recruiting, development and gameday decisions.
This is probably highlighted the most at the quarterback position as Peter Nicholson has instilled a lot of confidence in Mark Cunningham perhaps in a way that wasn't always the case with Lashlee. Cunningham had to beat out Jacob Venckus and Rashad Woodard throughout the offseason for the starting job last season and started the season with Woodard being brought in for several plays a game. It wasn't until the Stanford loss that the packages from Woodard lessened and Cunningham took total command of the offense, eventually improving. From the first day that Nicholson got on campus, he's made it clear that he's there to be an aid for Cunningham and that has improved his game.
On the recruiting trail, getting younger and fresher always helps and that appears to be case for USF as they sit with the nation's top class with all fifteen of their commits ranked four-star or higher. If you combine the next three schools in terms of blue chip prospects committed, they would still trail the Bulls as USC has five, Oregon has four and Wisconsin has three.
‣ Sam Jefferson has 'okay' first full start while Nick Ryan appears entrenched at left guard
USF freshmen offensive tackle Sam Jefferson started the UCF game and played the entire game in his first college start, getting called for a holding penalty that brought back a big play and surrendering a sack against the Knights.
USF offensive line coach Ryan Williams was honest in his assessment of Jefferson, citing some technique issues but that he was encouraged.
"I thought he was okay," Williams said after the game, "We'll need to look at the tape but overall, I liked what I saw and you know, you need these type of games to get better, you need those snaps."
It was the second straight game where Williams played the same five along the offensive line for the entire game as Jake Thompson got the start against Stanford two weeks ago. If the plan was to eventually get Jefferson a full game in prior to the brutal Champions Division stretch, it was good strategy and planning by Williams as it remains to be seen if the freshman is back into the lineup for the rest of the season as the level of competition increases again.
While right tackle continues to be a battle, Nick Ryan started and completed his third straight game of the season, having played in all four and has yet to surrender a sack.
‣ Charlie Robinson, Travis Jones openly competing for J.R. Reed's record
One of the only USF records to not have been broken during Francois Sr's tenure at USF is the career interception records set in 2003 by J.R. Reed with eighteen. With Charlie Robinson's interception on Saturday, the junior is now nine short of the record while Travis Jones' two interception performance puts him at eight career interceptions, leaving a long way to go for the record but not according to the two juniors.
"I definitely want to get it," Robinson said of the record, "Me and Trav [Jones] talk about it all the time at practice and we watch tape. When we see a missed opportunity [for an interception], we definitely bring it up to each other, can't let those get away."
A few players have come close with twelve career interceptions in Jake Lott, Sid Robinson and Kenny Fowler while Kyle Locher being the closest with four interceptions. Lott and Fowler were juniors that left early, leaving some potential interceptions on the table. While it's still early, Jones told the media after the game that if he is close to the record, it would impact his decision to return.
"I already got my degree," said Jones who graduated last December, "So on top of winning another national championship, maybe the Thorpe, that's probably the one thing that could bring me back for another year."
The expectation is for Robinson, after this season, to declare for the draft where he's expected to be one of the top corners taken. Happy hunting.
‣ Bulls fans got a taste of Justin Thomas' potential with 81-yard touchdown
Expectations are insanely high for five-star recruits, especially when they are the top player in the class. Carl Graham caught 56 passes and had nine touchdown as a freshman and was viewed as a dissapointment by some who expected some more fireworks from the former top ranked prospect.
Justin Thomas' college career has gotten off to a relatively quiet start but he exploded in a big way against UCF, taking the corner and leaving the Knights defense in his rearview mirror for the 81-yard score, his first run of the season of over 20 yards.
Thomas has already had probably more of a workload than most expected with 32 carries on the season, just seventeen less than Jacob Wheeler who many projected to be the workhorse of the offense.
Week 7 Preview: vs. #14 Michigan Wolverines
Record: 2-1, 1-1 Champions Division
Head Coach: Major Applewhite (36-20 at Michigan, 5th year, 157-160)
Offensive Coordinator: Steven Davis (Spread)
Defensive Coordinator: John Papuchis (4-3 D)
Team Leaders
Passing: Bubba Hennessy (878 yards, 8 TD, INT, 206.8 rating)
Rushing: Drew Reid (172 yards, 5.9 ypc, 4 TD)
Receiving: James Wilson (14 receptions, 255 yards, TD)
Defense: Andre Wise (23 tackles, 4 TFL, 1.0 sack, 3 PBU)
Team Rankings
Points Per Game: 8th
Total Offense: 3rd
Rushing Offense: 39th
Passing Offense: 6th
Total Defense: 25th
Rushing Defense: 95th
Passing Defense: 10th
Turnover Differential: 78th
Team Schedule
vs. Youngstown State: W 66-7
vs. #21 Oklahoma: L 38-31
at BYU: W 24-13
South Florida takes Michigan to school in 63-16 beatdown
USF's running game got off to a slow start under new offensive coordinator Peter Nicholson, posting unimpressive numbers in the first few games of the season. Any questions about the effectiveness of a rushing offense in Nicholson's offenses were answered on Saturday against Michigan as the team ran for 367 yards and seven touchdowns in the Bulls 63-16 win over the Wolverines.
USF freshman Justin Thomas rushed for 179 yards with three touchdowns on just 16 carries while Jacob Wheeler averaged 8.6 yards per carry, totaling 172 yards and two touchdowns. Victor King also added two more touchdowns on the ground as part of USF's goal line package.
Michigan kept it interesting in the first half thanks to a pick six by Brandon Richard in the first quarter and another interception in the second quarter to cut a promising USF drive short. But the game split open in the second half with USF scoring 42 unanswered points aided by Thomas and Wheeler along with Cunningham throwing back to back touchdowns to Scott Price.
As explosive as USF's offense was, Michigan's was the anthesis, totaling just 190 yards of total offense and senior quarterback Bubba Hennessy -- a white Bubba -- threw for a season low 95 yards.
---------------------------------------------------------------- Scoring Summary
Quarter 1
[MICH] B. Richard, returned interception 92 Yds (1:33)
[USF] J. Thomas, 56 Yd run (0:55)
Quarter 2
[USF] V. King, 1 Yd run (2:26)
Quarter 3
[USF] J. Thomas, 1 Yd run (5:11)
[USF] J. Wheeler, 6 Yd run (1:35)
Quarter 4
[USF] S. Price, 29 Yd pass from M. Cunningham (5:39)
[USF] S. Price, 17 Yd pass from M. Cunningham (5:01)
[USF] J. Wheeler, 32 Yd run (0:38)
[USF] J. Thomas, 30 Yd run (0:08)
---------------------------------------------------------------- #1 South Florida Bulls
QB Mark Cunningham: 27 of 31, 319 yards, 2 touchdowns, 2 interceptions, sacked once
HB Jacob Wheeler: 20 carries, 172 yards, 2 touchdowns
HB Justin Thomas: 16 carries, 179 yards, 3 touchdowns
HB Victor King: 2 carries, 6 yards, 2 touchdowns
WR Carl Graham: 9 receptions, 123 yards
WR Scott Price: 7 receptions, 101 yards, 2 touchdowns
LB Damon Hill: 5 tackles
S Clarence Sullivan: 5 tackles, 2 tackles for loss
LB Julian Harrell: 4 tackles, 2 tackles for loss
DT Brent Lawrence: 4 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, 2 sacks
DT Brandon Smith: 3 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, sack
CB Ernest Jones: 2 tackles, interception
#14 Michigan Wolverines
QB Bubba Hennessy: 15 of 25, 95 yards, interception, sacked 6 times, fumble (lost)
HB Drew Reid: 15 carries, 79 yards
WR Calvin Nicholson: 1 carry, 40 yards
WR Nick Guerrero: 3 receptions, 35 yards
WR James Wilson: 3 receptions, 34 yards
S Brandon Richard: 12 tackles, 2 interceptions
S Will Choudja: 11 tackles
USF land potential center of the future with commitment from IMG's Brett Pennington
Eddie Fernandez -- 247 Sports USF Insider
The University of South Florida got another commitment along the offensive line on Saturday with center Brett Pennington committing to the Bulls while in attendance for the Bulls win over Michigan during his official visit.
Pennington was in attendance along with fellow highly ranked interior offensive linemen prospect Ed Foster (Texas) and tight end Russell Arrington, the four-star out of Miami. The visit went well with Foster and Arrington according to sources with Pennington joining the recruiting efforts following his commitment.
"I definitely want to get those guys on board," Pennington told CBS Sports of Foster and Arrington, "We're not done yet, we got more coming."
The nation's third ranked center, the Arizona native picked USF over offers from Stanford, Virginia Tech, Army, Michigan State and others with the Cardinal being the biggest threat to the Bulls throughout his recruitment.
A bit undersized at six-feet, Pennington transferred to IMG as a junior and it's been a tough eighteen months as he was demoted from the national team to the varsity team after struggling last season. Since then, Pennington has been a rotational piece along the offensive line for IMG's varsity team which is their second tier roster.
While the physical traits are there, it's fair to question's Pennington's high ranking when comparing him to other prospects in the class, including some of his future USF teammates who he is ranked higher than such as Luis Pearson. Internally at USF, there were some discussions on if Pennington would be a take following the commitments from Pearson, Kevin Brown, and Brian Jackson but ultimately, the team felt that the potential is still there for Pennington and view him as the potential starter at center following the departure of current starter Kyle Jones and the projected next starter, Nick Ryan who is a class ahead of Pennington. He also provides USF some depth insurance in the event that Jones declares for the draft this season.
2043 USF Recruiting Class
WR Ryan Murray [WR #1]: 6'0", 180lbs | Springdale, OH | 5-star | 4.46 40-yd dash, 270 Bench Press Max, 200 Squat Max
HB/WR Dave Parker [ATH #9]: 6'1", 214lbs | Tampa, FL | 5-star | 4.40 40-yd dash, 330 Bench Press Max, 315 Squat Max
CB Brandon Bryant [CB #1]: 6'1", 179lbs | Lakeland, FL | 4-star | 4.34 40-yd dash, 265 Bench Press Max, 215 Squat Max
G Kevin Brown [G #4]: 6'4", 308lbs | Rome, GA | 4-star | 4.94 40-yd dash, 435 Bench Press Max, 645 Squat Max
DE Seth Whitaker [ATH #28]: 6'1", 252lbs | Miami, FL | 4-star | 4.70 40-yd dash, 380 Bench Press Max, 640 Squat Max
DE Dante Avery [DE #9]: 6'2", 255lbs | Orlando, FL | 4-star | 4.60 40-yd dash, 430 Bench Press Max, 605 Squat Max
DB Cameron Stokes [ATH #31]: 6'3", 205lbs | Pensacola, FL | 4-star | 4.44 40-yd dash, 270 Bench Press Max, 290 Squat Max
TE Jake Bryant [TE #6]: 6'6", 260lbs | Canton, OH | 4-star | 4.82 40-yd dash, 370 Bench Press Max, 280 Squat Max
G Brian Jackson [G #36]: 6'3", 312lbs | Tampa, FL | 4-star | 4.84 40-yd dash, 430 Bench Press Max, 620 Squat Max
C Brett Pennington [C #3]: 6'0", 304lbs | Fountain Hills, AZ [IMG] | 4-star | 5.08 40-yd dash, 430 Bench Press Max, 525 Squat Max
LB Nate Jacobs [ILB #6]: 6'5", 225lbs | Tampa, FL | 4-star | 4.74 40-yd dash, 345 Bench Press Max, 645 Squat Max
S Shawn Franklin [S #5]: 6'3", 202lbs | Natchitoches, LA | 4-star | 4.52 40-yd dash, 390 Bench Press Max, 360 Squat Max
G Luis Pearson [G #10]: 6'5", 294lbs | Shelby, NC [IMG] | 4-star | 5.00 40-yd dash, 460 Bench Press Max, 665 Squat Max
DE Brian Neal [DE #17]: 6'8", 260lbs | Mullins, SC | 4-star | 4.64 40-yd dash, 430 Bench Press Max, 570 Squat Max
CB Anthony Sharp [CB #7]: 5'9", 180lbs | Tampa, FL | 4-star | 4.34 40-yd dash, 220 Bench Press Max, 280 Squat Max
OLB Oliver Colvin [OLB #13]: 6'3", 232lbs | Fort Lauderdale, FL | 4-star | 4.56 40-yd dash, 430 Bench Press Max, 555 Squat Max
2043 USF Recruiting Board
CB Jonathan Brown [CB #3]: 6'1", 164lbs | McKinney, TX | 4-star | USF, Stanford, Oklahoma
G Ed Foster [G #5]: 6'2", 321lbs | Dallas, TX | 4-star | USF, USC, Michigan State
TE Russell Arrington [TE #5]: 6'6", 270lbs | Miami, FL | 4-star | USF, Alabama
LB Marcus Wiley [OLB #55]: 6'2", 215lbs | Phoenixville, PA | 3-star | USF, Alabama, Texas, Michigan
-----------------
K Ricky Anderson [K #1]: 6'0", 178lbs | Miami, FL | 3-star | Committed to Miami
P Mike Webb [P #2]: 5'11", 202lbs | St. Petersburg, FL | 3-star | Florida, Auburn
Week 7 Top Stories
1. Miami University rolls on, this time against MAC opponent Illinois.
2. Alabama notches a conference win against Stanford behind the arm of Ingram.
3. Virginia Tech takes care of business as they take down rival Georgia Tech.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- Week 7 Champions Division Results
USF 63 - MICH 16 | ALA 41 - STAN 24
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- Week 8 Champions Division Schedule
BYU (1-5, 0-4) at #23 Purdue (3-1, 1-0)
#20 Oklahoma (3-3, 2-3) at #4 Alabama (6-1, 5-1)
#19 Michigan (2-2, 1-2) at Oregon (1-3, 0-2)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- Week 8 Notable Games
#1 USF (5-0, 4-0) at #10 Georgia (5-1, 4-1)
West Virginia (5-0, 2-0) at #18 Florida (6-0, 5-0)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- Players of the Week
QB Jacob Daw (Iowa State): 26 of 31, 423 yards, 6 touchdowns, 7 carries, 37 yards
LB Jeff Williams (SMU): 9 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, sack, interception
-------
HB Justin Thomas (USF): 16 carries, 179 yards, 3 touchdowns
S Brandon Richard (Michigan): 12 tackles, 2 interceptions, touchdown
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- Top 247 Five-Star Commitments
#2 Antonio Craft [TE #1]: 6'7", 243lbs | Hanahan, SC | 5-star | University of Alabama
#4 Ryan Murray [WR #1]: 6'0", 180lbs | Springdale, OH | 5-star | University of South Florida
#5 Maurice Darby [ATH #2]: 5'10", 191lbs | Van Wert, OH | 5-star | Ohio State University
#8 Craig Butler [ATH #5]: 5'11", 177lbs | Coppell, TX | 5-star | Michigan State University
#12 Kelly Brown [WR #3]: 6'0", 188lbs | Miami, FL | 5-star | University of Miami
#18 Dave Parker [ATH #9]: 6'1", 214lbs | Tampa, FL | 5-star | University of South Florida
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- Notable Florida Recruiting Commitments
#12 Kelly Brown [WR #3]: 6'0", 188lbs | Miami, FL | 5-star | University of Miami
#18 Dave Parker [ATH #9]: 6'1", 214lbs | Tampa, FL | 5-star | University of South Florida
#48 Brandon Bryant [CB #1]: 6'1", 179lbs | Lakeland, FL | 4-star | University of South Florida
#65 Darnell Norwood [ATH #20]: 6'2", 190lbs | Miami, FL | 4-star | University of Miami
#89 Seth Whitaker [ATH #28]: 6'1", 252lbs | Miami, FL | 4-star | University of South Florida
#90 Doug Miller [HB #10]: 6'1", 211lbs | Orlando, FL | 4-star | University of Washington
#97 Dante Avery [DE #9]: 6'2", 255lbs | Orlando, FL | 4-star | University of South Florida
#107 Drew Ryan [WR #22]: 6'4", 205lbs | Quincy, FL | 4-star | University of Pittsburgh
#108 Cameron Stokes [ATH #31]: 6'3", 205lbs | Pensacola, FL | 4-star | University of South Florida
#109 Jeff Schultz [ATH #32]: 6'6", 265lbs | West Palm Beach, FL | 4-star | University of Florida
#121 Brian Jackson [G #36]: 6'3", 312lbs | Tampa, FL | 4-star | University of South Florida
#132 Aaron Stewart [ATH #34]: 6'1", 216lbs | Haines City, FL | 4-star | Florida State University
#133 Alfred Robbins [T #1]: 6'5", 329lbs | Orlando, FL | 4-star | University of Miami
#144 T.J. Richard [S #3]: 6'3", 199lbs | Deltona, FL | 4-star | Boston College
#158 Nate Jacobs [ILB #6]: 6'5", 225lbs | Tampa, FL | 4-star | University of South Florida
#172 Waylon Gates [C #4]: 6'1", 285lbs | Fort Lauderdale, FL | 4-star | Stanford University
#189 Anthony Sharp [CB #7]: 5'9", 180lbs | Tampa, FL | 4-star | University of South Florida
#219 Oliver Colvin [OLB #13]: 6'3", 232lbs | Fort Lauderdale, FL | 4-star | University of South Florida
#270 Eric Hardy [WR #56]: 6'4", 231lbs | Cutler, FL | 4-star | University of Florida
Ed 'Big Nasty' Foster commits to USF as Bulls continue to bolster its offensive line
Eddie Fernandez -- 247 Sports USF Insider
Another day, another top interior prospect along the offensive line has committed to the University of South Florida. On Monday, it was fifth ranked offensive guard Ed Foster committing to USF over USC and Michigan State just days after Brett Pennington's commitment.
Foster is the fourth 4-star guard prospect that USF has committed along with a center commit in Pennington although USF views Kevin Brown and Luis Pearson as potential offensive tackles at the next level.
Nicknamed 'Big Nasty' for his build and physical playing style, Foster slimmed down to 321 pounds for his senior season after playing in the 340 pound range earlier in his playing days at Allen High School in the Dallas area. The decision to shed some of the bad weight came after Foster camped as an underclassmen at USF and got a chance to speak with USF offensive line coach Ryan Williams who told Foster he needed to drop some pounds if he wanted to be an elite prospect.
"You don't really hear that from coaches when they're recruiting you," Foster said of Williams' comment and the impact it had, "Coach Ry [Williams] is going to tell you exactly what you need to hear, not what you want to hear so he earned my respect that day and we just kept growing our relationship from there."
Foster is an impressive athlete with his footspeed and ability to generate movement when coming off the ball. The ideal pulling guard, Foster is also really effective against pass rushers and does a great job of washing their rush.
With the offensive line secured, USF's top priority this season, the Bulls have started to expand their recruiting board with recent offers going out to some local prospects in Clearwater quarterback Shawn Williams, Sarasota running back David Thomas and Largo's James Boyd, who has some positional versatility along both lines of scrimmage.
They've also offered kicking specialists Jonathan Love and Josiah Henderson.
2043 USF Recruiting Class
WR Ryan Murray [WR #1]: 6'0", 180lbs | Springdale, OH | 5-star | 4.46 40-yd dash, 270 Bench Press Max, 200 Squat Max
HB/WR Dave Parker [ATH #9]: 6'1", 214lbs | Tampa, FL | 5-star | 4.40 40-yd dash, 330 Bench Press Max, 315 Squat Max
CB Brandon Bryant [CB #1]: 6'1", 179lbs | Lakeland, FL | 4-star | 4.34 40-yd dash, 265 Bench Press Max, 215 Squat Max
G Kevin Brown [G #4]: 6'4", 308lbs | Rome, GA | 4-star | 4.94 40-yd dash, 435 Bench Press Max, 645 Squat Max
DE Seth Whitaker [ATH #28]: 6'1", 252lbs | Miami, FL | 4-star | 4.70 40-yd dash, 380 Bench Press Max, 640 Squat Max
G Ed Foster [G #5]: 6'2", 321lbs | Dallas, TX | 4-star | 4.84 40-yd dash, 440 Bench Press Max, 630 Squat Max
DE Dante Avery [DE #9]: 6'2", 255lbs | Orlando, FL | 4-star | 4.60 40-yd dash, 430 Bench Press Max, 605 Squat Max
DB Cameron Stokes [ATH #31]: 6'3", 205lbs | Pensacola, FL | 4-star | 4.44 40-yd dash, 270 Bench Press Max, 290 Squat Max
TE Jake Bryant [TE #6]: 6'6", 260lbs | Canton, OH | 4-star | 4.82 40-yd dash, 370 Bench Press Max, 280 Squat Max
G Brian Jackson [G #36]: 6'3", 312lbs | Tampa, FL | 4-star | 4.84 40-yd dash, 430 Bench Press Max, 620 Squat Max
C Brett Pennington [C #3]: 6'0", 304lbs | Fountain Hills, AZ [IMG] | 4-star | 5.08 40-yd dash, 430 Bench Press Max, 525 Squat Max
LB Nate Jacobs [ILB #6]: 6'5", 225lbs | Tampa, FL | 4-star | 4.74 40-yd dash, 345 Bench Press Max, 645 Squat Max
S Shawn Franklin [S #5]: 6'3", 202lbs | Natchitoches, LA | 4-star | 4.52 40-yd dash, 390 Bench Press Max, 360 Squat Max
G Luis Pearson [G #10]: 6'5", 294lbs | Shelby, NC [IMG] | 4-star | 5.00 40-yd dash, 460 Bench Press Max, 665 Squat Max
DE Brian Neal [DE #17]: 6'8", 260lbs | Mullins, SC | 4-star | 4.64 40-yd dash, 430 Bench Press Max, 570 Squat Max
CB Anthony Sharp [CB #7]: 5'9", 180lbs | Tampa, FL | 4-star | 4.34 40-yd dash, 220 Bench Press Max, 280 Squat Max
OLB Oliver Colvin [OLB #13]: 6'3", 232lbs | Fort Lauderdale, FL | 4-star | 4.56 40-yd dash, 430 Bench Press Max, 555 Squat Max
2043 USF Recruiting Board
CB Jonathan Brown [CB #3]: 6'1", 164lbs | McKinney, TX | 4-star | USF, Stanford, Oklahoma
TE Russell Arrington [TE #5]: 6'6", 270lbs | Miami, FL | 4-star | USF, Alabama
OL/DL James Boyd [ATH #35]: 6'4", 275lbs | Largo, FL | 4-star | Alabama, Texas, Miami, Michigan, USF
K Jonathan Love [K #10]: 6'0", 178lbs | Horn Lake, MS | 3-star | USF, Michigan State
QB Shawn Williams [QB #22]: 6'4", 235lbs | Clearwater, FL | 3-star | Auburn, Clemson, USF
HB Davis Thomas [HB #82]: 6'2", 199lbs | Sarasota Springs, FL | 3-star | Florida State, Miami, USF
K Josiah Anderson [K #16]: 6'2", 195lbs | Sans Souci, SC | 3-star | USF
LB Marcus Wiley [OLB #55]: 6'2", 215lbs | Phoenixville, PA | 3-star | USF, Alabama, Texas, Michigan
-----------------
K Ricky Anderson [K #1]: 6'0", 178lbs | Miami, FL | 3-star | Committed to Miami
P Mike Webb [P #2]: 5'11", 202lbs | St. Petersburg, FL | 3-star | Florida, Auburn
The Bullpen: USF offensive line coach Ryan Williams downplays the idea of a 'cohesive unit for cohesive sake' as rotation continues
Jonathan Bright -- BullsNation.com Football Reporter
USF played with yet another offensive line combo against Michigan with Cole Britton getting his first start at right tackle since the first game of the season and played the entire game after not playing at all in USF's three previous games.
Britton, who USF offensive line coach Ryan Williams describes as USF's best run blocker 'by far', was part of the 5-men unit that paved the way for USF's 367 yard performance on the ground against the Wolverines.
Since the opener, Williams and the Bulls have started Jake Thompson and Ryan Jefferson at right tackle with both players having games where they rotated and played an entire game which was the case for Britton on Saturday for the first time this season.
"His conditioning definitely held up," Williams said of Britton's play, "That's probably your biggest concern when a guy hasn't played in a game in a while because you can't really replicate the emotional and physical toll of a real game in practice, no matter how hard you try."
Williams said Britton's impressive play in practice and scrimmage led to the decision for him to start after the hiatus as well as it being a strategical and game plan specific decision, something he says will likely continue.
"In an ideal world, your best five is your best five for whatever scenario and you have this cohesive unit that's going to gel together. As a coach, that's what you want but to be a cohesive unit for cohesive sake doesn't really optimize the talent that you have. We feel really good with our top seven, top eight guys so if a situation calls for them to play, we feel confident playing them so if anything, I view it as an advantage and not a disadvantage to be able to plug guys in at different roles and feel confident that they can get the job done against this specific team for this specific game plan."
As expected, Williams did not comment on who will get the start against Georgia who have a top six pass defense but similar to Michigan, struggle against the run.
‣ USF DC Trai Martinez publicly calls out linebacker unit for lack of plays
Even after holding Michigan's offense to just sixteen points -- only nine of which were on the defense -- USF defensive coordinator and linebacker's coach Trai Martinez was visibly upset on the sideline for most of the game which carried into the postgame press conference.
"We're just not making enough plays at that position," Martinez said of his linebacker's, "The plays are certainly there for us to make and the guys are in position, they're good athletes so we expect them to make those plays, not just wrap up guys after they've ran past [the line of scrimmage]."
Martinez highlighted a play in the second quarter where Michigan ran a fake screen followed by a hard slant on the front side which they had ran earlier in the game. Linebacker Damon Hill diagnosed the play correctly and can be seen hedging towards the path of the slant but pulled up, allowing the completion to happen. Martinez was very animated on the sidelines following that play, gesturing to Hill throughout the rest of the drive which ended in a field goal.
"Those are the plays you dream of as a player," Martinez added, "You've got to pull the trigger, get there and make a play. If he drops it or the quarterback pulls it, runs up the middle, we live with that. We're an aggressive defense but we're just not playing like it at that position."
Martinez hinted towards a possible switch at the position where Hill has been the primary starter with 27 tackles but just two tackles for loss.
‣ Clearwater's Shawn Williams thrilled with dream USF offer but taking recruitment slow
Clearwater High School quarterback Shawn Williams was at USF's game against Michigan not as a recruit but as a fan, something he's done for almost every USF home game since he can remember.
"We're always there with my family," Williams says, "I don't really remember too many Saturday where we're not there. We had a [high school] game rescheduled to a Saturday my sophomore year and we still went after my game."
The longtime fan got the long awaited offer from the hometown Bulls last week, his first FBS offer and the one he always dreamed of receiving. Williams caught some buzz over the summer with an impressive showing at one of Auburn's camp and followed it up by throwing for Clemson and Alabama over the summer. Williams had camped at USF a few times but had little to no interaction with the coaching staff until the past few weeks with Peter Nicholson eventually crowning Williams as the Bulls top target at the position.
"It's definitely exciting," Williams said of the offer, "I've always dreamed of playing for them but [recruiting is] a long process so trying to just stay level headed, let it play out and see where we go from there."
Auburn, Clemson and Alabama remain in communication along with Miami but have yet to offer the Tornado quarterback.
