When USF qualified for bowl games in each of the last two years, head coach Alex Golesh quickly said that while those were steps forward for the Bulls, it could not be the standard. The program has to be about championships.
Yet, USF is nearing the end of its 29th season in college football and, for the 29th time, the Bulls will not raise a championship banner. That much was all but assurred Saturday with a devastating, deflating 41-38 loss at Navy.
Goodbye championship. Goodbye College Football Playoff berth,
Yes, the Bulls are 7-3 and bowl eligible for the third straight year. They have the potential to finish this season with a 10-3 record. But knowing how much more this season could have been makes that seem like a hollow victory,.
It's not, of course. If the Bulls beat UAB and Rice to end the regular season and then win their bowl game for the third straight season, they'll have 10 wins. Being disappointed with that result just shows how far the program has come in three years.
But....yeah. It could have been so much more.
Bulls Nation, NOTHING takes away the pain of a heartbreaking loss, but wanted to say thank you to each & every one of you who made the trip. Truly grateful for the amount of green & gold at the tailgates & in the stands. Beyond incredible. Onward, together. LFGB always.🤘🏻😤
— Rob Higgins (@RHiggins_USF) November 16, 2025
The Bulls two American Conference losses -- road games at Memphis and Navy -- are by a combined six points, and both were attributable to defensive collapses. Memphis scored 17 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to win 34-31.
Navy, on the other hand, jumped ahead early, and then answered every time the Bulls pulled close. The Midshipmen had 524 total yards, including 338 on the ground.
Stopping the run was a priority for the Bulls,
Yet, Navy had four explosive runs, including touchdown runs of 76 and 64 yards.
After starting quarterback Blake Horvath left the game with an injury early in the fourth quarter, backup Braxton Woodson took over and ran for 103 yards and two touchdowns in the fourth quarter. Woodson and running back Alex Tecza combined for 229 yards on just 21 carries -- a 10.9 yards per carry average.
Head coach Alex Golesh lamented, "a series of explosive plays that we got to be able to contain, and the third and short situations where you got to be able to get to fourth and short and get off the field, we didn't. And then inversely, we had the fourth and short opportunity where we didn't convert. And I think that was a huge critical play in the game."
That was the dubious decision to forgo a field goal attempt and, instead, use offensive lineman Cole Skinner as the ball carrier when the Bulls faced fourth-and-one at Navy's 31 late in the first half. Skinner got stuffed.
If you're going to run in that spot, there was a 6-foot-3, 235-pound quarterback named Byrum Brown that would have been a better choice.
So, here we are. It won't be long until we learn USF's bowl opponent from multiple possibilities.
A matchup against a team from a power conference might add a little spice to the game -- but only a little., considering what was in front of the Bulls when the day began.