Much has been made about the turnover on the USF football roster for the upcoming season. The Bulls have 54 new players, which is half of the team.
However, that’s only part of the story.
As offensive coordinator Joel Gordon looks around the various groups on his side of the ball, here’s what he doesn’t see.
His best receiver from the past two years, Sean Atkins, is gone. A new tight end, Wyatt Sullivan, figures to see a lot of playing time.
Kelley Joiner, Nay`Quan Wright, and Ta`Ron Keith are gone. They were the top three running backs from last year.
Quarterback Bryce Archie, who started eight games in 2024, is gone.
The offensive line returns four starters, but even within that group, there are many new faces, including those from high school recruiting and the Transfer Portal.
Start by filling the hole Atkins left behind. That was a top priority through the spring and the weeks leading up to fall training camp.
“Great players come and go, and when they leave, it's an opportunity for the next man up to try to hopefully learn and emulate a lot of the things that they watched Sean do,” Gordon said.
But even without Atkins, could the wide receiver group be stronger overall than it was in 2024?
It’s possible.
Keshaun Singleton was a revelation in the second half of last season. Tennessee transfer Chas Nimrod brings sprinter’s speed to the position; he ran track in high school and was part of a record-setting 4x100 relay team.
True freshmen Jeremiah Koger and Kory Pettigrew chose USF over multiple P4 offers.
Earlier this year, head coach Alex Golesh was concerned about the running back depth after the three mainstays departed. It doesn’t seem to be an issue now.
A pair of transfers – Cartevious Norton (Charlotte) and Sam Franklin (Oklahoma) – should get the bulk of the work, but true freshman Chase Garnett and redshirt freshman Alvon Isaac are names to keep in mind.
Golesh called Isaac “a hidden gem located in Hawthorne.”
We saw last year, after Brown got hurt, how important the backup quarterback is. Behind Brown are three players who have never appeared in a college game. The only other QB with game experience is Tennessee transfer Gaston Moore, and he just got here last week.
At this close to the start of the season, getting the other quarterbacks sufficient reps in practice is difficult.
“There's not enough reps to go around for everybody. And what happens through the summer, even going back to the spring and into the summer, those reps are earned,” Gordon said.
“The guys that got the first crack at it when we start ball camp yesterday, those are the guys that have earned the opportunities to get the first reps, the second reps, whatever they are,” Gordon said.
“And they understand that we have clear communication year-round about that you're competing every single day. But in the situation that we're in right now, yeah, there's, there's youth underneath Byrum that hasn't played college football before. I’ve got to be creative and make sure that as long as they're earning reps, we're putting them in situations that are as close to game situations as possible.”