It was hard to tell what got more media attention last Thursday: USF’s smashing 34-7 opening win over Boise State, or the appearance of Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce taking in the game between Nebraska and Travis’ alma mater, Cincinnati.
Actually, it wasn’t hard to tell at all. The newly engaged couple was on every newscast the next day. USF showed up here and there, mostly on SportsCenter (but in a time block behind the happy couple).
"Congrats to the newly-engaged couple. It's a love story, baby just say yes."
— Caleb Noe (@CalebNoeTV) August 29, 2025
ESPN shows Taylor Swift & Travis Kelce at Arrowhead Stadium, watching Cincinnati vs. Nebraska. pic.twitter.com/zPjSfHWwgy
However, some folks were paying attention to the Bulls.
The Bulls received 25 votes in the Associated Press college football poll released on Tuesday. That was good enough for 33rd place, which isn’t bad considering that a week ago, voters ignored them.
That total also led the other American Conference teams that made the list – Tulane, Navy, and Memphis.
USF also received nine votes Tuesday in the USA Today coaches poll. Based on vote totals, the Bulls ranked No. 39.
Among American Conference teams in that poll, that trailed Tulane, Navy, and Memphis. Go figure.
Boise State, which was ranked 25th entering the game, went bye-bye from the poll.
And College Football News jumped the Bulls to 37th after having them 71st last week.
Hey, it’s a start.
The last time the Bulls were ranked was in October of 2018. We don’t need to belabor that point.
Taylor and Travis aside, USF made the most of its opportunity to make a first impression in routing the Broncos. However, let’s get real: Florida, which is this week’s opponent, is ranked 15th and is made of sterner stuff.
Plus, the game is at The Swamp. It is sold out and will be filled with nearly 90,000 partisans shouting “Go Gators” and other things less printable. When the Gators are rocking at The Swamp, your ears will feel like they’re inside a jet engine.
“You can't make it solely about that, but the crowd noise is real. I've been there. There's a chunk of our team that's been there. The majority of our staff have been there. So, it's a factor. It'll certainly affect how you operate, specifically offensively,” USF coach Alex Golesh said.
“Our job as coaches is to prepare our guys to not allow it to be a factor. But that's part of home-field advantage, and we've got to make sure that we find a way so that it isn't a factor in how we play.”
FanDuel has Florida favored by 17.5 points, which seems a bit high to me. However, there’s no question that the Gators are, as the cliché goes, mobile, agile, and hostile.
Plus, quarterback DJ Lagway could be the best quarterback USF faces this season. The Gators’ offensive line is top shelf, and they have one of the top defenses in the country.
It all adds up to a major opportunity for the Bulls to make another national splash. And this time, Travis and Taylor won’t be there to steal the spotlight.
“Our guys are really, really confident. Our guys are really, really excited. It's a huge game for us because it's the next game,” Golesh said.
“It's a huge game for us because it's an in-state team. It's a huge game for us with another opportunity on national TV (the SEC Network) to showcase what we’re building and where we're going.”