USF football can look back on some memorable road victories

Sept 8, 2007; Auburn, AL, USA; South Florida Bulls quarterback (8) Matt Grothe passes during the fourth quarter against the Auburn Tigers at Jordan-Hare Stadium in Auburn. Grothe was 18 of 27 for184 yards as the Bulls beat the Tigers 26-23 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Photo By John Reed-USA TODAY Sports / John Reed-US Presswire

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No. 1: USF 24, West Virginia 19. Nov. 11, 2006. The Bulls were coming off a 31-8 loss against Louisville when they traveled to Morgantown to face 7th-ranked West Virginia.

Under head coach Rich Rodriguez, West Virginia was 9-1 and had an explosive offense. The Mountaineers averaged 41 points and 330 rushing yards per game and still held out hope for a Bowl Championship Series bid. On paper, it didn’t look good for the Bulls.

The game wasn’t played on paper, though.

USF smothered West Virginia running back Steve Slaton, holding him to 43 yards to break his streak of six consecutive 100-yard games. The Bulls also scored on 9-yard fumble return by George Selvie, and redshirt freshman quarterback Matt Grothe completed 22 of 30 passes for 279 yards and a touchdown.

Besides ruining their BCS hopes, the loss also broke West Virginia’s run of two consecutive Big East Conference championships.

Interesting sidenote: West Virginia’s kicker that day was Pat McAfee, the same guy who endlessly promotes himself now as a member of ESPN’s College GameDay.

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