Not the Same Old South Florida: 18th-ranked USF Bulls Have Miami’s Full Attention

When USF was preparing to head to Gainesville last Saturday for its game against Florida, it was popular to say the Bulls had the Gators’ full attention after beating 25th-ranked Boise State.

People are saying the same thing now about the Bulls as they head to 5th-ranked Miami as the only team in the country this season to win their first two games against ranked opponents.

Yes, I’m sure Miami is aware of what the Bulls can do. Even though the Hurricanes are favored by 16.5 points on FanDuel, I don’t believe anyone there believes this will be an easy game.

Head coach Mario Cristobol certainly doesn’t.

“This is as good of a football team as we will play this season, and the evidence is all over the tape,” he said on The Joe Rose Show on WQAM.

That’s quite a compliment, considering that Miami defeated Notre Dame to open the season and has games remaining against Florida, Florida State, and SMU.

USF was unranked and essentially invisible on a national level at the start of the season. Now, they are one of the biggest stories in college football and jumped into the Top 25 this week for the first time in nearly seven years at No. 18.

"They are not ranked high enough, quite honestly," Cristobal said.

Plugged-in college football fans probably are familiar with USF quarterback Byrum Brown. What they may have trouble wrapping their arms around is the fact that the Bulls’ defense has been exponentially better than the unit that was scorched for 50 points last season when Miami beat USF in Tampa.

I was surprised to see the Bulls are only 93rd in total defense on the NCAA statistics page. They’ve played much more effectively than that, surrendering only 23 points combined in their two wins. Plus, many of the teams ahead of the Bulls have played one or two creampuffs, which inflated their stats.

The NCAA bases that ranking on total yardage, but the Bulls have played a “bend but don’t break” style so far. They are tied for 23rd in red zone defense, which is a better indicator of where they are now.

Last year,  USF was rated 65th in that category.

Even if the Bulls fall short at Miami, they have proven the mantra started by the late Amir Abdur-Rahim and now embraced by Bulls coach Alex Golesh that, “This ain’t the same old South Florida, my brother.”

You can bet that the Hurricanes are aware of that. The Bulls have their attention.