Strength in Unity.

[Soapy]

-----------------------------------------------
#16 USF (4-1, 3-1) | 14 | 21 | 14 | 21 || 70
UCF (0-3, 0-1) | 0 | 14 | 13 | 0 || 27
-----------------------------------------------

Bulls bounce back from Georgia defeat by hanging seventy on rival Knights
The lock of the century might be a Malcolm Francois Sr. led USF squad coming off an upset loss, especially when facing an in-state rival.

Francois Sr. didn't call the dogs off as USF routed UCF 70-27 on Friday night to avenge their 41-35 loss at the hands of the Georgia Bulldogs last week.

USF intercepted Ricky Sharp three times in the first half as Jeff Jones was only needed for three quarters, throwing for three touchdowns and rushing for two more before true freshman Joey Spence finished the game.

USF was aided by back to back kickoff returns for touchdowns by true freshman Sam Washington which helped thwart any comeback effort from the Knights.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Scoring Summary
Quarter 1
[USF] K. Oliver, 3 Yd pass from J. Jones (5:47)
[USF] C. Williams, returned interception 65 Yds (4:36)

Quarter 2
[USF] J. Jones, 7 Yd run (7:39)
[UCF] G. Davidson, 30 Yd pass from R. Sharp (5:43)
[USF] J. Jones, 60 Yd run (3:49)
[UCF] C. McKnight, 4 Yd pass from R. Sharp (1:08)
[USF] J. McDowell, 8 Yd pass from J. Jones (0:02)

Quarter 3
[UCF] A. Dixon, 3 Yd pass from R. Sharp (6:35)
[UCF] A. Nichols, 45 Yd FG (4:09)
[USF] S. Washington, returned kickoff 98 Yds (3:59)
[UCF] A. Nichols, 49 Yd FG (2:01)
[USF] S. Washington, returned kickoff 100 Yds (1:48)

Quarter 4
[USF] J. McDowell, 4 Yd pass from J. Jones (7:17)
[USF] C. Wallace, 25 Yd pass from J. Spence (1:51)
[USF] C. Wallace, 35 Yd pass from J. Spence (0:00)
----------------------------------------------------------------
#16 South Florida Bulls
QB Jeff Jones: 20 of 27, 171 yards, 3 touchdowns, interception, 3 carries, 76 yards, 2 touchdowns.
QB Joey Spence: 7 of 8, 122 yards, 2 touchdowns, interception.
HB William Jones: 9 carries, 48 yards.
HB Dionte McCarthy: 4 carries, 43 yards.
TE Chris Wallace: 8 receptions, 119 yards, 2 touchdowns.
WR Derek Young: 4 receptions, 40 yards.
WR Jason McDowell: 4 receptions, 37 yards, 2 touchdowns.
S Wesley Adams: 10 tackles, 2 tackles for loss.
LB Chris Williams: 9 tackles, 3 tackles for loss, sack, interception.
LB Nick Robinson: 6 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, sack.
S Mark Robinson: 4 tackles, tackle for loss, 2 interceptions.
DE Adam Harvey: 3 tackles, 3 tackles for loss, sack.

Central Florida Knights
QB Ricky Sharp: 31 of 47, 322 yards, 3 touchdowns, 3 interceptions, sacked 3 times.
HB Adam Hamilton: 20 carries, 93 yards, 6 receptions, 42 yards.
TE Stephen Powell: 6 receptions, 43 yards.
WR Brian Brown: 5 receptions, 85 yards.
WR Garrett Davidson: 3 receptions, 44 yards, touchdown.
LB Adam Love: 8 tackles, tackle for loss, interception.
S Tyrone Wilson: 3 tackles, tackle for loss.

[RoyalTy]

Had to bury the Georgia loss by any means necessary.

[Agent]

70 points holy shit

[Soapy]

Had to bury the Georgia loss by any means necessary.

70 points holy shit

go tell ucf fans to dig they partna up

[Soapy]

Week 5 Top Stories
1. Fans in Columbus are mourning Ohio State's OT loss to Wisconsin.
2. Tennessee notches a conference win behind the arm of Grant.
3. Navy celebrates going 1-0 in conference play vs. Georgia Tech.
4. Penn State squeaks by Minnesota in conference play.
5. Sooners suffer a collapse against SEC adversary Mississippi State.
6. Notre Dame notches a conference win at home against Clemson.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Week 5 SEC Results
USF 70 - UCF 27 | TAMU 28 - ARK 27 | LSU 49 - UGA 39
MSST 38 - OU 14 | AUB 31 - FSU 27 | ALA 36 - MISS 33
UF 31 - SAM 10 | MIA 44 - BSU 17 | TENN 41 - TEX 38
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Week 6 SEC Schedule
#8 Alabama (5-0, 3-0) at #16 USF (4-1, 3-1)
Auburn (2-2, 1-2) at Miami (3-2, 2-2)
Texas State (1-3, 0-0) at #15 Texas (3-2, 2-2)
Arizona (2-1, 1-1) at Mississippi State (3-1, 2-1)
#14 LSU (3-1, 3-1) at Boise State (0-3, 0-1)
Florida (2-3, 1-3) at UNLV (3-1, 1-1)
Georgia (1-3, 1-2) at #5 Tennessee (5-0, 4-0)
Maryland (0-4, 0-2) at Florida State (2-3, 1-3)
Arkansas (1-3, 1-3) at Oklahoma (1-4, 1-4)
Kentucky (0-4, 0-4) at South Carolina (2-3, 2-3)
Marshall (0-3, 0-0) at #21 Ole Miss (3-1, 3-1)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Week 6 Notable Games
#6 Nebraska (4-0, 1-0) at #25 Michigan (4-0, 1-0)
#10 Oregon (3-0, 0-0) at #24 Colorado (2-1, 0-1)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Players of the Week
QB B.J. Hicks (Nebraska): 15 of 27, 203 yards, 25 carries, 129 yards, 6 total touchdowns.
LB Chris Williams (USF): 9 tackles, 3 tackles for loss, sack, forced fumble, interception.
-------
QB J.D. Taylor (LSU): 22 of 31, 318 yards, 17 carries, 79 yards, 6 total touchdowns.
LB Chris Williams (USF): 9 tackles, 3 tackles for loss, sack, forced fumble, interception.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Top 247 Five-Star Commitments
#1 Maurice Bennett [WR #1]: 6'4", 206lbs | Tampa, FL | 5-star | University of South Florida
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Notable Florida Recruiting Commitments
#1 Maurice Bennett [WR #1]: 6'4", 206lbs | Tampa, FL | 5-star | University of South Florida

[Soapy]

Week 6 Preview: vs. #8 Alabama Crimson Tide
Record: 5-0, 3-0 SEC
Head Coach: Kevin Sherrer (140-28 at Alabama, 13th year, 195-54)
Offensive Coordinator: Dabo Swinney (Spread)
Defensive Coordinator: Andrew Christensen (3-4 D)

Team Leaders
Passing: Will Tate (1439 yards, 16 TD, 3 INT, 186.4 rating)
Rushing: Michael Neal (417 yards, 7.9 ypc, 2 TD)
Receiving: Courtney Purcell (31 receptions, 499 yards, 6 TD)
Defense: Josh King (10 tackles, 4 INT, 2 PBU)

Team Rankings
Points Per Game: 16th
Total Offense: 5th
Rushing Offense: 88th
Passing Offense: 4th
Total Defense: 31st
Rushing Defense: 21st
Passing Defense: 50th
Turnover Differential: 7th

Team Schedule
vs. TCU: W 42-0
vs. Alabama A&M: W 42-9
vs. Miami: W 31-24 OT
vs. FSU: W 38-31
at #21 Ole Miss: W 36-33

Injuries
ALA TE #11 Dustin Ham, Junior | 6'6", 276lbs | 80 ovr, 83 spd, 87 acc, 86 cth, 68 rbk (out)
ALA C #73 Derrick Brown, Junior | 6'3", 298lbs | 91 ovr, 92 pbk, 89 rbk, 78 str
ALA OLB #50 Brandon Robinson, Junior | 6'4", 250lbs | 87 ovr, 74 spd, 90 acc, 59 awr, 89 tkl, 90 bsh, 79 zcv, 79 pmv, 63 fmv
ALA S #32 Luis Whitehead, Junior | 6'5", 201lbs | 87 ovr, 95 spd, 92 acc, 70 awr, 83 tkl, 79 mcv, 80 zcv
--------
USF RB #4 Bobby Jackson, Sophomore | 5'9", 188lbs | 86 ovr, 97 spd, 90 acc, 82 btk, 71 car, 98 elu (out)

Alabama Crimson Tide Projected Starters
QB #17 Will Tate, Rs Junior | 6'1", 237lbs | 87 ovr, 61 spd, 73 acc, 91 awr, 86 thp, 86 tha
HB #25 Michael Neal, Senior | 5'10", 198lbs | 86 ovr, 87 spd, 88 acc, 87 btk, 85 car, 79 trk
WR #80 Courtney Purcell, Senior | 6'3", 205lbs | 90 ovr, 88 spd, 99 acc, 86 cth
WR #82 Gary Morgan, Rs Senior | 5'11", 190lbs | 84 ovr, 86 spd, 91 acc, 83 cth
WR #88 Daniel Green, Sophomore | 5'10", 189lbs | 83 ovr, 92 spd, 93 acc, 82 cth
TE #87 Graham Frazier, Freshman | 6'2", 257lbs | 79 ovr, 84 spd, 85 acc, 86 cth, 65 rbk
LT #62 Anthony Beard, Senior | 6'6", 277lbs | 92 ovr, 93 pbk, 87 rbk, 93 str
LG #64 Pete Smith, Freshman | 6'4", 312lbs | 79 ovr, 80 pbk, 85 rbk, 86 str
C #67 Victor Harmon, Rs Sophomore | 6'4, 298lbs | 88 ovr, 85 pbk, 93 rbk, 91 str
RG #70 Warren Collier, Freshman | 6'2", 295lbs | 80 ovr, 85 pbk, 80 rbk, 90 str
RT #72 Mark Whaley, Junior | 6'6", 290lbs | 89 ovr, 89 pbk, 89 rbk, 90 str
---------------------
DE #1 Matt McKeon, Freshman | 6'6", 257lbs | 84 ovr, 73 spd, 82 acc, 83 str, 75 pmv, 88 fmv, 76 bsh
DE #60 Corey Thurman, Freshman | 6'6", 251lbs | 78 ovr, 83 spd, 79 acc, 79 str, 78 pmv, 70 fmv, 83 bsh
NT #99 Matt Treangen, Junior | 6'1", 302lbs | 90 ovr, 80 acc, 87 str, 96 pmv, 80 fmv, 93 bsh
OLB #57 Jason Washington, Sophomore | 6'1", 235lbs | 83 ovr, 85 spd, 90 acc, 47 awr, 80 tkl, 82 bsh, 67 zcv, 74 pmv, 75 fmv
ILB #53 Rob Dunbar, Rs Senior | 6'1", 235lbs | 88 ovr, 77 spd, 90 acc, 68 awr, 80 tkl, 92 bsh, 78 zcv
ILB #96 Mark Preston, Senior | 6'1", 219lbs | 82 ovr, 85 spd, 86 acc, 56 awr, 85 tkl, 76 bsh, 80 zcv
OLB #2 Jeff Whitefield, Junior | 6'2", 225lbs | 91 ovr, 80 spd, 88 acc, 58 awr, 92 tkl, 93 bsh, 81 zcv, 72 pmv, 73 fmv
CB #20 Josh King, Junior | 6'1", 179lbs | 88 ovr, 93 spd, 92 acc, 66 awr, 99 mcv, 96 zcv, 87 press
CB #21 Rian Gates, Sophomore | 5'11", 180lbs | 86 ovr, 99 spd, 97 acc, 63 awr, 88 mcv, 92 zcv, 84 press
NB #22 Jonathan Reid, Rs Senior | 6'1", 192lbs | 82 ovr, 92 spd, 94 acc, 75 awr, 92 mcv, 88 zcv, 80 press
S #48 Ricky Williamson, Freshman | 6'3", 210lbs | 81 ovr, 97 spd, 93 acc, 53 awr, 72 mcv, 76 zcv, 85 tkl
S #45 Frank Lindsey, Sophomore | 6'1", 203lbs | 84 ovr, 87 spd, 97 acc, 57 awr, 78 mcv, 82 zcv, 85 tkl
K #15 Tony Meeks, Senior | 6'0", 175lbs | 78 ovr, 83 kick power, 74 kick accuracy
P #6 Doug Jones, Junior | 6'0", 225lbs | 92 ovr, 99 kick power, 86 kick accuracy

[Soapy]

September 2029, 2035 - Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, Florida



-----------------------------------------------
ALA (5-1, 3-1) | 3 | 7 | 0 | 0 || 10
#16 USF (5-1, 4-1) | 7 | 3 | 10| 3 || 23
-----------------------------------------------

Robinson, Bulls defense torment Will Tate as USF trounces Alabama 23-10
Alabama redshirt junior Will Tate struggled last season against USF's defense, completing just 56 percent of his passes for 163 yards with the bulk of his yards coming in the second half when the team was forced to throw it.

The second time around was somehow even worse as Tate was intercepted four times by USF, with three of his errant passes going to true freshman safety Mark Robinson, in USF's 23-10 win over the Tide on Saturday afternoon.

Two red zone turnovers helped keep Alabama in the game as it was tied entering the second half at 10 apiece despite being thoroughly outplayed. USF's offense started getting it going in the second half behind Jeff Jones (353 yards passing) and William Jones, who rushed for 137 yards and were able to put the game away with ease in the second half.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Scoring Summary
Quarter 1
[ALA] T. Meeks, 23 Yd FG (2:31)
[USF] J. Green, 10 Yd pass from J. Jones (1:00)

Quarter 2
[USF] M. Pleasant, 32 Yd FG (5:44)
[ALA] G. Morgan, 3 Yd pass from W. Tate (1:32)

Quarter 3
[USF] M. Pleasant, 31 Yd FG (3:37)
[USF] D. McCarthy, 4 Yd run (2:05)

Quarter 4
[USF] M. Pleasant, 31 Yd FG (1:45)
----------------------------------------------------------------
#16 South Florida Bulls
QB Jeff Jones: 28 of 38, 353 yards, touchdown, 2 interceptions, 8 carries, 30 yards.
HB William Jones: 23 carries, 137 yards, 4 receptions, 45 yards.
WR Derek Young: 7 receptions, 75 yards.
TE Chris Wallace: 5 receptions, 60 yards.
WR Marques Iosefo: 4 receptions, 77 yards.
WR Jason McDowell: 4 receptions, 67 yards.
LB Chris Williams: 5 tackles.
DE John Allen: 3 tackles, 3 tackles or loss, sack.
CB Kevin Collins: 2 tackles, interception.
S Mark Robinson: 1 tackle, 3 interceptions.
K Mike Pleasant: 3 of 4 FG, FG Lng of 33, 2/2 XP

#8 Alabama Crimson Tide
QB Will Tate: 14 of 24, 185 yards, touchdown, 4 interceptions, sacked once.
HB Michael Neal: 16 carries, 67 yards.
WR Gary Morgan: 5 receptions, 110 yards, touchdown.
S Ricky Williamson: 9 tackles.
CB Rian Gates: 8 tackles, 2 tackles for loss.
LB Jason Washington: 2 tackles, 2 interceptions.

[Soapy]

Week 6 Top Stories
1. The Bulldogs edge out Tennessee despite the 107,091 fans in Neyland Stadium.
2. The Minnesota campus is buzzing after a victory over #11 Army.
3. Vanderbilt invades The Horseshoe and barely wins against the Buckeyes.
4. Kansas gets clobbered in conference play by Missouri 45-15.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Week 6 SEC Results
USF 23 - ALA 10 | MIA 38 - AUB 17 | TEX 45 - TXST 10 | MSSU 29 - ZONA 22
LSU 30 - BSU 23 | UF 35 - UNLV 27 | UGA 24 - TENN 21 | FSU 32 - UMD 20
OU 35 - ARK 12 | UK 49 - SCAR 31 | MISS 42 - MARSH 10
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Week 7 SEC Schedule
Kentucky (1-4, 0-4) at Vanderbilt (3-3, 3-3)
#14 Texas (4-2, 2-2) at Oklahoma (2-4, 2-4)
Texas A&M (3-1, 1-0) at #19 Ole Miss (4-1, 3-1)
UL Lafayette (1-3, 0-0) at Auburn (2-3, 1-3)
Georgia Southern (2-3, 0-0) at Florida State (3-3, 1-3)
Mississippi State (4-1, 2-1) at #13 Tennessee (5-1, 4-1)
#11 LSU (4-1, 3-1) at Florida (3-3, 1-3)
Wyoming (1-4, 1-1) at Miami (4-2, 3-2)
South Carolina (2-4, 2-3) at Arkansas (1-4, 1-4)
#12 Alabama (5-1, 3-1) at Georgia (2-3, 2-2)
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Week 7 Notable Games
#16 Wisconsin (4-1, 2-0) at #17 Army (2-1, 1-1)
#6 Purdue (5-0, 3-0) at #5 Nebraska (5-0, 2-0)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Players of the Week
TE Adam Sykes (Middle Tennessee State): 11 receptions, 230 yards, 5 touchdowns.
S Mark Robinson (USF): 1 tackle, 3 interceptions.
-------
QB Ryan Joseph (Miami): 21 of 28, 305 yards, 26 carries, 130 yards, 4 total touchdowns.
S Mark Robinson (USF): 1 tackle, 3 interceptions.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Top 247 Five-Star Commitments
#1 Maurice Bennett [WR #1]: 6'4", 206lbs | Tampa, FL | 5-star | University of South Florida
#15 James Jones [ATH #6]: 5'11", 208lbs | Casa de Oro, CA | 5-star | University of Washington
#19 Pat Mackey [ATH #7]: 5'11", 208lbs | Steubenville, OH | 5-star | University of Notre Dame
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Notable Florida Recruiting Commitments
#1 Maurice Bennett [WR #1]: 6'4", 206lbs | Tampa, FL | 5-star | University of South Florida
#150 Edwin Mackey [OLB #8]: 6'4", 221lbs | Miami, FL | 4-star | University of Miami

[Soapy]

Bulls keep adding local talent in tight end prospect Antoine Frank, Fort Lauderdale's Denman
Eddie Fernandez -- 247 Sports USF Insider

The University of South Florida has landed two more commitments to their 2036 class in fullbacks Antoine Frank and Obadiah Denman, who were both on campus this past weekend for their official visit.

Frank is a three-star out of local Bloomingdale High School where he is a two-way starter for the Bulls at defensive end and running back. He's been recruited by other schools such as Alabama, Clemson and Florida Atlantic as a fullback although USF views him as a tight end at the next level in a similar fashion as Chris Wallace as a detached tight end. He's a decent athlete with good ball skills that should translate to the next level.

Denman is more of a traditional fullback but in Doug Nussmeier's offense, which doesn't use one, he'll likely play tight end at the next level. Similar to Denman, his ball skills are there and on display at the 7 on 7 circuit but his high school offense runs a Wing T offense where that isn't on display. Denman plays the 4-back position which use him primarily as a blocker.

As USF heads into conference play, recruiting should ramp up and commitments could be coming soon. A name to watch is four-star center Leroy Richards who is set to be on campus for an official visit next weekend for the Notre Dame game as well as five-star corner Tyler Matthews.

2036 USF Recruiting Class
WR Maurice Bennett [WR #1]: 6'4", 206lbs | Tampa, FL | 5-star | 4.42 40-yd dash, 270 Bench Press Max, 270 Squat Max
FB/TE Antoine Frank [FB #5]: 6'2", 236lbs | Bloomingdale, FL | 3-star | 4.66 40-yd dash, 305 Bench Press Max, 270 Squat Max
FB Obadiah Denman [FB #28]: 6'1", 249lbs | Fort Lauderdale, FL | 3-star | 4.62 40-yd dash, 365 Bench Press Max, 270 Squat Max

2036 USF Recruiting Board
WR D.J. Manning [WR #2]: 5'10", 181lbs | Miami, FL | 5-star | Florida State, Miami, USF, Alabama, Georgia Tech
WR Brian Harris [WR #3]: 6'1", 180lbs | Columbia, TN | 5-star | USF, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Texas, Virginia Tech
CB Tyler Matthews [CB #1]: 5'11", 169lbs | Thomaston, GA | 5-star | Georgia, Alabama, Notre Dame, Auburn, USF
C Brad Bonner [C #4]: 6'2", 290lbs | Bradenton, FL | 4-star | USF, Army, Michigan State, Stanford, Oregon
C Leroy Richards [C #2]: 6'2", 292lbs | Miami, FL | 4-star | Nebraska, Ohio State, Penn State, Texas, USF
DE David Richardson [DE #5]: 6'3", 240lbs | Tampa, FL | 4-star | USF, Florida State, Miami, Michigan State, LSU
LB Brett Freeman [OLB #12]: 5'11", 207lbs | Vero Beach South, FL | 4-star | USF, Georgia Tech, Florida State, Miami, Navy
S Brady Johnson [S #9]: 6'5", 208lbs | Boca Grande, FL | 3-star | NC State, Tulsa, Fresno State, Air Force, USF
S Adrian Bolden [S #33]: 6'3", 219lbs | Miami, FL | 3-star | Miami, USF, Florida State, Georgia Tech, FAU
T Dane Clay [T #22]: 6'3", 321lbs | Winter Haven, FL | 3-star | FAU, USF, Kansas, Middle Tennessee State
G Brandon Jones [G #47]: 6'5", 275lbs | Orlando, FL | 3-star | USF, Penn State, Nebraska, Purdue

[Soapy]

Bye Week Report: Was Georgia a concerning sign or a blip on the road to a championship encore?
Anthony Washington -- The Tampa Bay Chronicles

Despite losing a ton of talent from last season on both sides of the ball, USF appeared to be on their way to another College Football Playoff appearance and likely the favorites to come away with the title again, their third in five years.

On September 15th, those dreams came to a screeching halt with USF's 41-35 loss to a three-loss Georgia Bulldog team as Heisman hopeful Jeff Jones threw three interceptions and USF's defense allowed 186 rushing yards and Georgia was able to convert on fifty percent of their third downs. To make matters worse, they also lost one of their top players in running back Bobby Jackson, who had season ending knee surgery the following week.

Since then, USF has scored 93 points in their last two games and allowed just ten points to Alabama last week to find themselves back in the top ten. With Notre dame losing to unranked North Carolina State and Virginia Tech, USF won't get too many more opportunity to climb into that top four as the 24th ranked Fighting Irish and No. 4 Stanford are the only remaining ranked opponents on their schedule. They'll need impressive performances in those games if they want to be back in the College Football Playoffs.

Team Leaders
Passing: Jeff Jones (70.7% completion, 1770 yards, 19 TD, 8 INT, 171.0 QB rating)
Rushing: Bobby Jackson (505 yards, 8.7 ypc, 3 TD)
Receiving: Chris Wallace (30 receptions, 436 yards, 4 TD)
Defense: Mark Robinson (18 tackles, 3 TFL, 6 INT, 2 PBU)

Team Rankings
Points Per Game: 3rd -- 45.2 PPG
Total Offense: 1st -- 539.0 YPG
Rushing Offense: 72nd -- 185.0 YPG
Passing Offense: 1st -- 354.0 YPG
Scoring Defense: 6th -- 18.0 PAPG
Total Defense: 29th -- 358.8 YAPG
Rushing Defense: 1st -- 100.5 YAPG
Passing Defense: 112th -- 258.3 YAPG
Turnover Differential: 50th -- (1)

Team Schedule
vs. Mississippi State (4-1) -- W 63-7
at #11 LSU (4-1) -- W 42-0
vs. Florida (3-3) -- W 38-23
at Georgia (2-3) -- L 41-35
at UCF (1-3) -- W 70-27
vs. #12 Alabama (5-1) -- W 23-10
Oct. 13 vs. #24 Notre Dame (homecoming)
Oct. 20 at Auburn
OPEN
Nov. 2 at #4 Stanford
Nov. 10 vs. Florida State
Nov. 17 vs. Miami
Nov. 24 at Texas A&M

Biggest takeaways from first half of the season

• The young guys are as good as advertised
  USF landed the top recruiting class last cycle and it came in with a ton of hype and so far, they've managed to match expectations.
  
  Derek Young leads the team in receptions with thirty-one and fellow true-freshman and former five-star Jason McDowell leads the team with five receiving touchdowns. Even non-starters have made plays in Sam Washington (30.5 yards per catch, 183 yards) and Jarod Green (88 yards, 2 touchdowns).
  
  Up front, USF is starting two true freshmen in Chris Booker and Ed McKinney at both guard spots and while they're far from finished products, they aren't liabilities as true freshmen in one of the hardest transitions from the high school level to the college level.
  
  Defensively, true freshman Mark Robinson leads the team in interceptions with six while fellow safety Wesley Adams is second on the team in tackles (35).
  -
• Doug Nussmeier was the right call for OC
  A lot of fans worried that going from a wide open offense that Malcolm Francois Jr. and Mario Greer have ran the past two seasons to a more pro style offense would have a negative impact on recruiting and the offense. While the former has yet to be fully tested, Nussmeier's offense is clearly working and perhaps no one has benefited quite like Jeff Jones.
  
  Jones' yardage numbers are down but his completion percentage and quarterback rating are up from last season and if not for the three-interception performance against Georgia, his TD:INT ratio would also be on par with his previous record breaking seasons.
  
  With Jackson set to turn in 2036, he could be due for a big year as he recovers from that injury. Prior to it, the second-year running back was averaging 126.3 yards per game and 8.7 yards per carry. In a fourteen game season, he was on track to rush for over 1,700 yards.
  -
• The defense took a step back but still serviceable
  The defense was elite last season and while it's certainly not that, it's performance against Alabama gives hope that it could still be a really good unit capable of winning a championship.
  
  The lack of pass rush is a big concern with the leading sack artist having only three sacks but as the season progresses, Kevin Beck should continue to improve and if he does, this defense will as well.

What to watch for in second half of the season

• Can Jones keep McCarthy at bay as team's top ball carrier?
  Senior running back William Jones rushed for 137 yards against Alabama, half of his season's yardage total in a performance that likely kept him as the team's top running back following Jackson's injury.
  
  Hot on his heels is true freshman receiver turned running back Dionte McCarthy who is averaging 8.3 yards per carry and has scored two touchdowns on just twenty two carries. McCarthy is a good looking athlete at six-foot and 211 pounds whose showed promising signs whenever he's on the field.
  
  Jones will likely be the starter for the rest of the season but as the season progresses, the splits between both players could tighten.
  -
• Will Iosefo's production and involvement ramp up?
  Unlike last season, USF has a ton of talent at receiver and one of the consequences is Marques Iosefo's target numbers going down compared to last season when he was one of just three scholarship receivers on the roster.
  
  The junior out of Hawai'i is still productive, averaging 49 yards per game but he's got just one touchdown this year compared to fourteen last season. As Jones and Iosefo get more and more comfortable in the offense, the connection should return to elite status.
  
  The one thing to keep an eye on however is true freshman Sam Washington. When he's been on the field, he's been explosive averaging 30.5 yards per reception as he has game breaking speed from the slot.