USF's Byrum Brown is producing points and records at a rapid-fire rate

USF received the opening kickoff last Saturday night for the Homecoming game against Florida Atlantic. Over the next three minutes and 10 seconds, this is what Bulls quarterback Byrum Brown did.

He had a 16-yard run on third-and-10 for a first down. He hit Keyshaun Singleton for a first down on third-and-nine. He hit Singleton again for 12 yards, and two plays later he sprinted up the middle for a 22 yard touchdown. The Bulls were off and running (and passing) for a 48-13 win that improved their record to 6-1 overall and 3-0 in the American Conference.

Brown threw for 256 yards and three touchdowns, and he ran for 111 yards and one touchdown.

It's just another ballgame with Byrum being Byrum.

Brown has four straight games with three or more touchdown passes. That's the longest streak in USF history and the longest active streak in the nation. He is one of eight players in the NCAA to have at least four games with three or more TD passes this season, and he joins Quinton Flowers and B.J. Daniels as the only USF players with four games of three-plus TD passes in a season.

Being in the same sentence with Flowers and Daniels is rarefied air.

After a broken leg ended his season prematurely last year, there naturally were questions about how he would bounce back. He answered that clearly on opening night when he went out of his way to crash into Boise State safety Ty Benefield at the end of a 23-yard touchdown run.

He hasn't slowed since.

Obviously, the Bulls expected Brown to be productive and electric this season, but is it fair to say he has exceeded those hopes?

"I don't know if I would say exceeded expectations. I would tell you his own expectations are higher than anybody can ever put on him. We sit down every week, on Sunday and Monday, and just talk through how he felt, he did, and the areas where he can grow, and I give him my two cents," Bulls coach Alex Golesh said.

"I would tell you that where he's exceeded expectations is the mental side of it. He's in such an incredible headspace."

Take the previous game at unbeaten North Texas as an example of that mental state.

Brown lost fumbles on USF's first two drives and ended the first quarter by throwing an interception. A lot of guys would have their confidence shaken, but not Brown.

"I walked over, he's just sitting there smiling, like, I jacked that up. Come on, let's rock. So that's as the head coach, you walk over, and he's like, Coach, I screwed that up. I got you. We're good. Just like, let's roll," Golesh said.

The 18th-ranked Bulls need Brown to stay on a roll Saturday when they travel to Memphis. A win would keep USF on track for the first conference championship in program history, and it would deal a death blow to the Tigers' chances. Memphis coach Ryan Silverfield is keenly aware of the threat Brown brings.

"It starts and ends with him. He carries their team, certainly from an offensive standpoint. He can throw it as well as any quarterback in the country. He can run it as well as any quarterback in the country," Silverfield said.

Put him in the category of best improvisers, too. If a play breaks down or his receivers are covered, he can be in the defensive backfield before the defenders realize it. Give Brown a step and you might as well head to the bench and regroup.

There's another trait Brown has that doesn't show up on the stat sheet.

"When you come in (to the USF building) and his car sitting there in the parking lot, am I late? You know, like, like, I'm four hours early, and this guy beat me in here," Golesh said.

"It gives the entire program confidence that your quarterback is the hardest worker, the toughest, the smartest, and is willing to own the state."