The soothsayers (and video game) say no way USF football even stays close to Alabama

Here at Green, Gold and Bold, we fully understand what the USF football team is up against when the Bulls face Alabama on Saturday in Tuscaloosa. We’re going to watch the game anyway.

There’s no need to belabor that Alabama is top-heavy with elite talent. Just to rub it in, though, the ‘Bama marketing crew was happy to tweet that Crimson Tide alums combined to sign NFL contracts worth more than $1 billion in the just-completed offseason.

They crossed that threshold after former Crimson Tide cornerback Patrick Surtain Jr. signed a four-year contract worth $96 million on Wednesday with Denver. That made him the highest-paid defensive back ever.

Yeah, yeah, yeah … we get it.

Anyway, I scrolled through several prediction sites to see if they give the Bulls a modicum of hope.

Spoiler alert: They don’t.

FROM SI.COM: “The simulations strongly favor the Crimson Tide to take care of things at home this week. SP+ predicts that Alabama will defeat USF by a projected score of 47-14.

“Other analytical models also expect Alabama to easily win the game and move to 2-0. That includes the College Football Power Index, a computer prediction model that uses data points from both teams to simulate games 20,000 times to pick winners.

“Alabama is expected to win the game in the overwhelming 97.7 percent of the computer's simulations, while USF comes out the projected winner in the remaining 2.3 percent of sims.”

“Alabama has made it clear it looks to leave last year's game in the past and it should have no issue handling South Florida on Saturday. It will be the Crimson Tide's final home game before it opens SEC play on Sept. 28 vs. No. 1 Georgia.”

TUSCALOOSA NEWS PREDICTS 'BAMA 42-10: “Alabama has made it clear it looks to leave last year's game in the past and it should have no issue handling South Florida on Saturday. It will be the Crimson Tide's final home game before it opens SEC play on Sept. 28 vs. No. 1 Georgia.”

UNDERDOG DYNASTY: South Florida shocked the college football world by keeping this close until the waning moments last year, but pulling the same stunt against Alabama won’t be easy. Yes, this South Florida team is in all likelihood improved from last year’s — even on the defensive side.

But the Crimson Tide are more explosive offensively than they were early on last season and there are no questions in Jalen Milroe’s capabilities this time. Milroe provides dual-threat skills at quarterback that Alabama severely lacked in the 2023 matchup, and that alone opens up the Crimson Tide offense. Add home run playmakers like Justice Haynes and Ryan Williams to the mix, and the Crimson Tide should see a continuation of what transpired last Saturday in Tuscaloosa.

South Florida should approach this game with the same aggressiveness it brought defensively in 2023, but it might not be enough this year. The Tide roll to a convincing victory, exorcising the demons from last year’s closely-contested battle.

Prediction: Alabama 49, South Florida 13

ROLL TIDE WIRE: Matt – Alabama 42, South Florida 13

A head-to-head series in which Alabama owns a 2-0 all-time advantage, it’s hard to imagine a repeat of the 2023 matchup happening here. Expect the Crimson Tide to make a statement here with a blowout win over the Bulls and for the margin of victory to be a lot larger than 17-3 a year ago.

Brody – Alabama 45, South Florida 10

Alabama is coming off an impressive Week 1 win over Western Kentucky. The Crimson Tide will look to improve to 2-0 against a scrappy USF squad. Last season, Alabama struggled against USF en route to a 17-3 victory. This season will be a lot different. The Crimson Tide are led offensively by a vetted, poised quarterback in Jalen Milroe. The defense seems to be an improved squad under the direction of Kane Wommack. I think that Alabama has too much firepower for the Bulls.

Sam – Alabama 52, South Florida 7

The Alabama Crimson Tide looked outstanding in Game 1 of the Kalen DeBoer era, thumping Western Kentucky 63-0. This week, the Tide host the USF Bulls, a team they struggled mightily with last year in an ugly 17-3 victory. Obviously, DeBoer wasn’t on the sidelines for the game last year, and it was the one game Jalen Milroe didn’t start. I think this Alabama team is light years ahead of where they were this time last year and manhandles USF on Saturday.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL NETWORK: Although USF should score more than the 3 points they put up last year, the Crimson Tide are a top-five team in the nation and will challenge for the natty in 2024. The talent discrepancy, specifically on defense, could see Alabama insert their backups in the second half and coast to their second straight win.

Prediction: Alabama 55, USF 17

Finally, I turned to the EA Sports video game.

Not good.

The simulation called for a 41-21 Alabama win, which would be a little less painful than some of the previous prognostications.

Oh, whatever. Let's see how it goes.