Training camp opens on Wednesday, August 5, for USF, which is exactly one month before the Bulls' open the regular season at home against FIU.
You all know by now the turnover after last season -- 58 new players, including 41 through the Transfer Portal. The are only two returning starters on offense and just one on defense.
The mostly new coaching staff (with two holdovers from Alex Golesh's staff) will bring a new approach on offense and a high pressure attack mode on defense.
While Golesh's go-go approach on offense often lit up the scoreboard, it sometimes left the defense a bit bedraggled after spending on average about 35 minutes on the field per game. That ranked 133rd out of 136 FBS teams last season.
New head coach Brian Hartline plans to operate a more conventional pro set, although he said, "We'll go tempo at times if we need to."
Most of the pundits have the Bulls finishing in the middle of the American Conference pack, or perhaps a little higher. They still are often predicted to finish behind Tulane, Navy Memphis, UTSA, or second-week opponent Army.
While those forecasts often concede that on paper USF might have the best talent in the league, the uncertainty behind a first-year head coach is an X-factor that makes tempers predictions about what the Bulls can accomplish.
With that in mind, let's take a look at the individual position groups. We can't make too many snap judgments because Hartline has stressed that no one has a position locked in yet. Although we can theorize, those decisions will be made later in camp.
OFFENSE
Quarterback: The focus is on LSU transfer Michael Van Buren Jr. and Mississippi State transfer Luke Kromenhoek.
Van Buren seems to have the edge at starting and he brings a little more game experience to the table than Kromenhoek. In his previous starts at Mississippi State and LSU, Van Buren played a combined 17 games and 12 starts.
He perfomed well after being thrown into a tumultuous situation last season in Baton Rouge, and his two-year stat line includes 2,896 yards and 19 touchdowns. He also ran117 yards and six touchdowns.
He was a 4-star coming out of high school and originally committed to Oregon before signing with Mississippi State.
Kromenhoek was also a 4-star recruit and originally signed with Florida State, where he played in six games with two starts. He threw for 502 total yards and three touchdowns on 44 of 84 passing and rushing for an additional 113 rushing yards for a team that finished 2-10.
He was sacked eight times in a 31-11 loss to Florida. He played in just games in his one season at Mississippi State.
Hartline has said both QBs will be needed this season. Transfers KJ Cooper and Jayden Bradford add depth.
Running backs: There likely will be a "committee" approach to this group. Alvon Isaacs is back from last season and had 350 yards and 73 carries and 14 receptions for 141 yards.
Chase Garnett returns as well. He was highly regarded coming out of Liberty Christian HS in Fort Worth, Texas. Garnett was a true freshman in 2025 and only saw action in two games with eight carries for 81 yards. However, 74 of those yards came on six carries in USF's blowout win at North Texas. Garnett had a 26-yard scamper in that game.
There will be a lot of focus on Dartmouth transfer D.J. Crowther. Last season he 191 carries for 929 yards and 10 touchdowns. At 5-11 and 215 pounds, he is built like a bowling ball.
Jason Collins Jr,, a transfer out of Morgan State, is another name to watch.
Wide receivers. Given Hartline's renown at developing wide receivers while at Ohio State, there will be a lot of interest in this room. -- especially given the wholesale departure to Auburn from the 2025 roster.
Bryson Rodgers, a 4-star recruit out of Wiregrass High School near Tampa, accompanied Hartline from Ohio State and will get a chance to escape the enormous shadows of the Buckeyes' deep, deep receiver corps.
Mudia Reuben came on late last season after transferring from Stanford and returns. He should develop into a reliable weapon in this rebuilt offense. JeyQuan Smith also returns after a solid 2025 campaign where he saw action in all 13 games and started the Cure Bowl. He was also a major contributor on special teams.
Arhmad Branch is another name to watch. He's a transfer from Purdue after a high school career where he was a 4-star prospect ranked as the No. 22 recruit from Missouri.
Tight ends. Holdover Wyatt Sullivan stands out among the seven players in this group. But perhaps the biggest wild card is TE coach Sean Binckes. He arrives at USF from the Las Vegas Raiders, where he worked with all-pro Brock Bowers.
Hartline's offense emphasizes TE participation, so this will be an interesting group to watch and develop.
Offensive line. We'll keep a close eye on this unit. Thomas Shrader is the only returning starter, so Hartline and his staff made liberal use of the portal. There are 14 linemen (out of 18 total) that are 300 pounds or more. Imagine the food budget for this group! Ideally, training camp will sort this out and allow for a rotation to keep this unit fresh, the quarterbacks upright, and the running backs seeing open spaces.
Defense
Defensive line. There is a complete overhaul of this unit from last season, but on paper it looks like the Bulls will be bigger, faster, and probably stronger -- especially against the run.
On the interior, opponents will have to deal with portal acquisitions Asani Redwood (6-3, 300 pounds), Major Dillard (6-2, 330), and Terry Simmons, Jr. (6-2, 325). There is a lot of size and depth behind those guys because Hartline and defensive coordinator Josh Aldridge prioritized strength up front.
It's notable that Hartline praised Aldridge's knowledge of the American Conference after spending last year in the same position at East Carolina. Hartline singled out the service academies -- Army and Navy -- who can blister opponents with the run game.
Linebackers. This is another unit that should be stout after making heavy use of the portal. Grayson "Pup" Howard arrives from Florida, Michael Harris checks in from Maryland, and Sam Robinson moves in from Rutgers. Howard also won acclaim at Florida for his run-stopping ability. Zavier Hamilton returns from last year to add strength and depth to the unit.
The mix-and-match portion of this defense can be found in the "Jack" linebackers. That's a hybrid outside linebacker and edge-rush position. The Bulls have six players listed at that spot, C.J. Hicks, a former 5-star who transferred from Ohio State, is listed as a defensive end but is capable of playing the Jack as well.
This position fits in well with Aldridge's basic scheme designed for pre-snap disguises and motion.
Secondary. Safety Tavin Ward is back after a solid 2025 season and he'll be joined by an impressive cast of newcomers from the portal.
The list includes corners Za'Quan Bryan from Minnesota, Tayvion Beasley from BYU, and Amarion Fortenberry from Kansas State.
Special teams. No worries about place-kicking. Nico Gramatica returns after a season where he hit 75 percent of his field goal attempts, including the game-winner as time expired at Florida.
Australian native Luke Goater likely becomes the full-time punter, while Alvon Isaac and JeyQuan Smith had a lot of kickoff return experience last year and are back. Transfers Kenny Odom and Cameron Seldon might factor into that too.
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