USF's football recruiting rise Is fueled by victories over power conference programs

We're deep enough into recruiting for the Class of 2027 that we can safely say that USF's Brian Hartline's reputation in that area was not just hype.

According to 247Sports, Hartline and his staff have assembled the 57th-ranked class in the country. That not only tops the American Conference, it also is the top-rated class among schools outside the power conferences.

Compare that to last year's ranking for Alex Golesh. It finished at No. 90 overall and 6th in the American. To be fair, though, the Bulls lost some recruits who had committed while Golesh was still here, including Armwood High quarterback Rhys Brush.

And at Auburn, Golesh has put together the 11th-ranked class in the country -- so there is that.

Meanwhile, turning the focus back to our favorite team, here are some of the programs with classes ranked below USF.

They include Florida State, Arizona, Houston, Iowa, BYU, Virginia, Arizona State, and at No. 75, UCF.

Bear in mind these are verbal commitments. Nothing is official until a player signs on the line in early December, but it's Bulls fans have to be encouraged about what Hartline is doing.

I don't get too caught up in the number of stars by a player's name. We've all seen 5-star players wash out while 2- and 3-star guys become stars. To me, what's more interesting are the teams that USF had to beat get some of their guys.

For instance, Brian Dillard of The First Academy in Orlando, who is listed as an athlete, was wooed by Iowa, Kentucky, Kansas State, and Maryland.

Quarterback Kevin Verpaele of Merritt Island had chosen Pittsburgh over Florida, Rutgers, and South Carolina before USF swooped in and flipped him.

Wide receiver Shedon Isaac chose USF over Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Colorado, and Illinois.

Linebacker Terrell Pinkney II could have gone to Michigan or multiple other P-4 schools.

According to data from Bulls247, 15 of USF's 19 hard commitments from Class of 2027 members had P-4 offers -- in many cases multiple ones.

Why is this happening?

The resources USF's administration poured into football certainly is a major factor. That gives Hartline and his staff a chance to sell recruits on something more than just sunshine and nearby beaches. The new stadium in 2027 is another selling point, obviously.

But in most cases, I'd say it's Hartline himself along with the staff he put in place. And starting next year, the players will able to play for five seasons instead of the standard four. Nothing is certain in the Transfer Portal world, of course. And we'd be naive to think other programs won't try to lure Hartline away.

However, to the outside eye he is building something concrete for a university on the move. Apparently his recruits agree.

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