Brian Hartline didn't waste any time after arriving at South Florida living up to his reputation as a top-shelf recruiter.
Even though it was late in the cycle for attracting high school players for the Class of 2026, Hartline and his staff quickly assembled a roster that could make a run at USF's first football conference championship in program history.
The algorithms have taken notice.
The Bulls were the top Group of Six team in 247Sports Team Talent Composite ranking, and were No. 52 overall. That put the Bulls ahead of 14 power conference teams, including UCF.
Author Chris Hummer noted, "The 247Sports Team Talent Composite dates back to 2015. Since that metric's debut, all but one national champion (Indiana), ranked within the Team Talent Composite's top 15."
The metric shows that, on paper, USF should have more talent than any team it plays this season, short of qualifying for the College Football Playoff.
Granted, games aren't played on paper and blending essentially a brand new roster -- 58 incoming players overall, including 41 transfers -- into a cohesive unit can be tricky. But they've had eight months of meetings, practices, and team-building exercises leading up to the September 5 opener with FIU.
That's time enough develop critical relationships and trust among both players and coaches.
What's strange about all this is that while college football writers in general concede that USF will have the most talented team in the American Conference, they still slot the Bulls behind Navy, Army, Memphis, and UTSA in most of the preseason polls.
The reason, I guess, is that Hartline is a first-time head coach, so they don't know what to expect.
Tight end Wyatt Sullivan, a holdover from the Alex Golesh era, noted -- as did many other players -- the intensity with which Hartline and his staff operates.
"The workouts seem more intense than I've ever done, and the particular details are more precise than anything I've been a part of," Sullivan said.
Indeed, Hartline often talks about getting the smallest detail right.
"You always hear me say it's all about consistency so that's a big part of it for the for the offense and as individuals," he said.
Of course, the other teams have scholarship players too, so nothing is a given. Let's be honest, too -- Hartline won't pay the slightest attention to this ranking.
Nor should he.
But as we await the start of his first season with the Bulls, fans can appreciate what's going on and maybe this ranking adds a little extra juice to the mix.
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