Spat On but Unshaken: USF’s Cole Skinner Turns Disrespect Into Game-Changing Moment

We’ve all seen the play where Florida’s Brendan Bett spat on USF offensive lineman Cole Skinner. It earned Bett a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty and an ejection from the game.

There was just 2:04 left in the fourth quarter when that happened, and the Bulls trailed the Florida Gators by one point. Instead of second-and-10 from their own 24-yard line, the penalty gave USF a first down near midfield. The Bulls eventually cashed in on a short field goal by Niko Gramatica at the gun for an 18-16 victory.

Bett was castigated for his action, and he later issued an apology to his team, Florida fans, and Skinner.

Fair enough. Move on.

However, what hasn’t gotten enough attention is how Skinner stayed cool in the heat of the moment. Given the same circumstance, many players would have retaliated. That would have led to offsetting penalties, costing their team a precious 15 yards.

And how did Skinner keep his emotions in check?

USF coach Alex Golesh has the answer.

“It has been hammered (in practice and meetings) about as hard as you possibly can. Through our prep, through fall camp, spring, anytime a situation comes up, it ain't all sunshine and rainbows out there either,” he said.

“Every time a situation comes up, we coach the heck out of what composure looks like, what discipline looks like.”

Imagine the emotion that must have enveloped Skinner at that moment. Nearly 90,000 fans were at The Swamp, the vast majority of whom were yelling at the top of their lungs for the Gators.

Tight ballgame against an in-state rival. Fourth quarter. And an opposing player just spat in your face.

Stay cool?

Well, Skinner did.

If he hadn’t, who knows if the Bulls could have won the game? That win will look huge if USF is vying for a College Football Playoff spot at the end of the season.

“I think it speaks a lot to our culture and where we've worked together as a program. And I give Cole Skinner a lot of credit personally as well,” Bulls center Cole Best said. “I even told him right after the play, like, man, that just saved us. You know, you being smart. He's a very level guy. He's very in control of his emotions, and I never had any doubt that he would retaliate.

“But I mean, getting spit on in the face, that's probably the most disrespectful thing you could do to another person. So speaking to his character and our culture and how we carried ourselves, I was just beyond proud of him in the way that he handled that, and it ended up paying off huge for us.”

Spitting on another player obviously is a rare event. However, Golesh said he and his staff prepare the Bulls to handle more commonplace composure lapses that could lead to bad outcomes.

“Two-minute situations, helmet off, situation, use of time-out situations. There are composure situations of guys running into the end zone and dropping the ball before they cross the goal line. We literally do this any time a situation arises; we show it, discuss it, and have the guys talk through it,” he said.

“Whatever happened, but you're able to show like it's always the second guy that gets caught. For us, winning in the margins is not killing yourself.”