Near the end of last season, USF traveled to Charlotte and blew out the 49ers 59-24. The Bulls ran for 426 yards that day, but Charlotte had a player that day who caught the attention of the USF coaching staff.
Cartevious Norton ran for two touchdowns, the second of which pulled Charlotte to within 21-17 in the third quarter before USF steamrolled from there.
Flash forward to December 16, about three weeks after that game. That’s when it was announced that Norton, who had entered the Transfer Portal, was headed to USF.
USF RB Cartevious Norton and 1st Team American All Conference RB has high high upside. This first play tells you everything you need to know about him and at 5’11 225 he has no business with this type of top end speed.
— BIP’s List (@BIPsList) July 25, 2025
Full Team: https://t.co/i9E08LO24E pic.twitter.com/zo6qBS82yZ
USF offensive coordinator Joel Gordon was already familiar with Norton, having coached him in 2022 when both were at Iowa State.
George “Geo” Courides, USF’s head strength and conditioning coach, was also at Iowa State then.
They knew what Norton could do out of the Bulls’ backfield, and they knew how badly they would need someone like him for the 2025 season. USF’s top three running backs were in their final season of eligibility.
Those backs – Kelley Joiner, Nay`Quan Wright, and Keith Ta`Ron Keith – combined in that Charlotte game for 24 carries, 228 yards, and five touchdowns.
They also combined last season for 1,728 rushing yards, 28 rushing touchdowns, and 43 receptions. That trio had combined for 168 games of college football experience
That’s a lot of production to replace, but Norton is a big piece of the puzzle to help do that. He is the most experienced running back in the room.
Gordon said having Norton is “comforting to come to a program.”
“You didn't have to kind of go through that process of coming into another program and figuring out what this program is going to be about. He knew what we were and how we do things.”
Norton is 5-foot-11 and 222 pounds. Gordon described his running style as “rugged.”
Gordon has also pushed Norton to be a leader, especially to the younger players.
“Early on, I wasn't as vocal, so now, since I know that I'm the oldest in the room, more most experienced, I'm trying to become more vocal and just lead by example and let the guys follow,” he said.
“But also, I mean, it's not too much, because we all just, we all have one standard, and that just be us every day. Be a dog and go out there and just execute our plays and just be the same person. So we all hold each other to the same standard. So they can tell me when I'm wrong, like it's all the same, just as they've been playing a lot.”
Norton grew up in Waycross, Ga., and likely would have stayed for his final season in Charlotte if head coach Biff Poggi hadn’t been fired the day after losing to the Bulls.
He arrived at the decision to leave, he said, as he does in most things – through prayer.
“I’m really a man of faith and pray, so I just pray on situations and go with my heart,” he said.
He added, “I have familiar faces here, so it all clicked and made sense for me.”
It made sense for the Bulls, too.