The Most Important Player for USF Basketball - Number 3
by Ken DeCelles on Jul 30, 2010 10:37 AM EDT
in Basketball
0 comments
For those new here, I made a list back in October choosing each member of the then 15 man roster, and ranking them on how important they were in terms of success with the basketball team as a whole. I'm going back now and redoing the list and seeing how I did. For the countdown so far, and to see each of the entries, click here.
There really isn't much separating Mike Mercer and Chris Howard on the countdown. Both guys did a tremendous job this year for us while logging an insane amount of minutes. Both brought completely different elements to the team that worked perfectly in the system. There really isn't a 2 and 3 on the countdown, but more of a 2 and 2a. But since we are doing this, the Third Most Important Player for USF Basketball This Year is Mike Mercer!
Mike had a fantastic senior year for us, averaging 9.2 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 1.4 assists this year for the Bulls. We don't need to go back on Mercer's history, but it's great to see that a guy who had a 2nd chance took the opportunity and relished each moment on the court this year.
Mike was guarding guys 3-4 inches taller than him regularly in Big East play, and more often that not locked them down. Mercer's wingspan and athleticism bothered opposing wings when going to the basket, and when they pulled up for a jumper Mercer's vertical persistently bother them.He really shouldn't have been able to take care of guys like Tom Abromaitis, but he was such a bulldog on that side that he wouldn't be denied.
Mercer's explosive dunks were a joy to watch this season. You could always count on at least one backdoor alley oop from Chris to Mike a game. Just watch this replay at around the 23 second mark and you can see what a beauty of a play it was. It could never be stopped. My favorite play of the year is the exclamation point that Mercer had to the end of the Georgetown game in DC. I'm sure Toro still has dreams about the reverse pump action slam. In can not be said how that play made everyone realize that USF was going to be a force. I still get a smile on my face whenever I think about it.
I hope Mike finds a place overseas to play ball. He certainly deserves the opportunity. If not, he can always fall back on the degree he earned here and make a good living for himself.
So who should be Number 2 on The Most Important Player for USF Basketball Countdown? Your answers are below.
This Wasn't The First Time Myrtice Landers Screwed Up
by Toro Grande on Jul 30, 2010 7:00 AM EDT
0 comments
I needed Myrtice Landers' assistance as an academic advisor when I was a political science undergrad, and she was still working in Undergraduate Studies. She failed me so miserably that I actually got a rather long apology from her boss with the assurance that "she won't be here much longer." That was in 2003. It is a damn miracle she made it this far.
I'm currently in search of an email chain that would explain everything, but I remember I wrote it from my admin.usf.edu account that no longer exists, so I don't know if I can find it. This was seven years ago, so my recollection is a bit hazy about the specific details, but there is one that I'll never forget.
I had an issue with a class I had taken previously (I don't remember if I was trying to drop it or grade replace it or what honestly... my academic record was more of a jumbled mess than Bluto Blutarsky's), and I had been in contact with Ms. Landers repeatedly about my case. There was some piece of paper I needed to turn in to her specifically to continue along the vast bureaucracy to which everyone that's attended a large public university can relate. Ms. Landers sat alone in her office, which I could see from the hallway outside as her door was wide open. She wasn't on the phone, and didn't appear to be in the middle of anything. I rapped on the door, reintroduced myself, and hoped to simply turn in the piece of paper to her. The reaction I got was somewhere between comical and horrifying. "Do you have an appointment?" "Um, no ma'am, I just need to..." "Make an appointment." "But I just need to..." (screaming at the top of her lungs) "I don't care!! Make an appointment!!"
It was unquestionably the worst I was ever treated by any staff person at USF at any point in my years there. And this was after Ms. Landers had screwed up my case multiple times previously. I eventually wrote an email to the Dean of Undergraduate Studies (her boss at the time), and a very nice woman went through my case and solved everything in about five minutes.
There are other things I want to say, but I don't want to besmirch someone without tangible proof, and I won't engage in random speculation or conjecture that I can't corroborate with evidence. But I feel safe in saying I wasn't the only one that got treated this way, or had to deal with some pretty blatant incompetence. The fact that her attorney is Wil Florin (a.k.a. Jonathan Alpert 2.0 for those with long USF memories) just adds fuel to this fire.
The academic support staff at USF does incredible work. If Ms. Landers didn't meet their high standards (and in my case, which was previous to her employment with Athletics, I can assure you she didn't), then I think it's safe to assume the department made a decision based on her performance, and not her skin color.
But we don't want to be anything but fair here. If you've got a story about Ms. Landers going above and beyond the call of duty, or failing you like she did me, leave it in the comments. The only caveat on this one is if you mention any negative interaction you had with her personally, please include your name.
The Bulls and The Situation... GTL!! JERSEY SHORE LIVE CHAT!!
by Toro Grande on Jul 29, 2010 5:33 PM EDT
169 comments
You know it's the ultimate guilty pleasure. And you know we've still got nine days until Fall Practice. So we're going off topic at 10pm EST to live chat the greatest show in television history, as well as everything surrounding USF Athletics. But please, only bring us serious USF topics during commericals... as I might need to inspect J-Woww's latest tattoo on DVR rewind and freeze frame.
Oh yeah, we might also mention Skip, Myrtice Landers, recruiting, drivers licenses, or anything else related to our beloved Bulls as the Cruel Summer winds to a close.
Bring your A Game... and your Pitino jokes. Is July 29th now officially the Anti-Columbus Day for our Italian friends??
USF athletics facing racial discrimination charge from fired academic adviser | University of South Florida Bulls blog: USF Sports Bulletin | tampabay.com & St. Petersburg Times
Press conference at 11:00 by Mrs. Landers and her attorney Wil Florin, who is also Jim Leavitt's attorney. This should be fun.
Show Me Something: Jacquian Williams
by Voodoo 5 on Jul 28, 2010 11:59 PM EDT
in Football
0 comments
(Editor's note: This is another in my occasional series on players who I will be especially interested to see in action this season.)
Honestly, I could have put Mistral Raymond or Jerrell Young in here along with Jacquian Williams, because all of them are going to have vital roles in defensive coordinator Mark Snyder's 4-3 under defense. I think this is the first time USF has ever had a base defense other than the standard 4-3, so it's worth covering the 4-3 under in some detail.
The 4-3 under defense brings the strong-side linebacker (currently Williams) down to the line of scrimmage any time a tight end is in the game, giving you essentially a five-man defensive front. The SLB lines up outside the tight end, while the rest of the defensive line moves down towards the weak side of the formation. The other two linebackers also shift over towards the strong side.
For a complete dissertation on how the 4-3 under defense works, I'll direct you to this post from Trojan Football Analysis - it includes an excellent presentation from Pete Carroll, who ran the 4-3 under defense at USC. To make a long story short, the defense is designed to help stop the run and free up your weak side defensive end (currently Craig Marshall) to rush the passer with mostly one-on-one matchups. Your other two linebackers have simpler lanes to the ball carrier, and you can bring the free safety (currently Raymond) into the box to protect against weak-side runs or to pick up slot receivers. Then your corners typically either man up with one or both safeties over the top, or they drop back along with one of the safeties into a cover 3 zone.
The 4-3 under will probably be the counter to teams like Rutgers, Connecticut, and Pittsburgh, who tend towards pro-style formations and power running. (These teams just so happen to be the ones that USF has traditionally had the most trouble against.) And that's going to put a lot of pressure on Williams. He'll have to make plays in run support and contain. The SLB simply cannot be taken out of the play in this defensive scheme, or you'll give up big gains on the ground. Williams will also have to be ready to cover the tight end when they go out for a pass. Third downs are going to be a big challenge with these teams that set themselves up for manageable third-down conversions.
It's a difficult assignment, especially because he's not the ideal size to be playing a strong-side linebacker in this scheme at only 222 pounds. Williams does have a lot of speed, though, and I would guess that the coaches are hoping that he's fast enough to overcome his relatively small size. It will be something to keep a close eye on, because how well Williams can adapt may determine how successful USF's defense is this season.
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Previously in this series: Justin Brockhaus-Kann, Evan Landi
LB Sam Barrington Arrested for Driving with a Suspended Liscence
per Greg Auman.
This is just getting ridiculous...
Best of the Bull-ogosphere July 18-26
by Ken DeCelles on Jul 26, 2010 12:17 PM EDT
in Bull-ogosphere
5 comments
There is a lot we didn't get to over the past week, so here is the best of the rest.
- Probably one of the cooler things to watch on GoUSFBulls.com is the daily construction photos of all the new projects in the Athletic District. You can see the progress on the football practice fields, the new softball and baseball stadiums, the tennis courts renovation, and the Muma Basketball Center. My favorite has to be the softball stadium for the fact that they have to start from scratch while the other sites were already at other USF venues.
- Green, Gold, and Bold continues their breakdown of the USF roster with a look at the wide receivers, tight ends, and tackles. You can also check out their countdown of the 5 greatest moments of USF football last year.
- Who likes Lee Roy Selmon's BBQ? Do you like an AYCE buffet with draft beer included? What about a bus ride to a Rays game that has said free beer included? I see everyone is pretty excited. Well LRS is doing all of that plus a ticket to the game and a Rays/USF hat all for $75. With Toro just arriving back in Tampa, I'm sure there will be at least one V5er doing this.
- The Oracle is starting to rev up again with a countdown of 10 players to watch at fall camp. Pretty much all the usual suspects you would expect in a list like this, but I don't know why you would include Sterling Griffin. It seems that he wouldn't even be ready for fall camp, but what do I know.
- Speaking of fall camp, Greg Auman is reporting that the football team might be staying at Dodgertown in Vero Beach for the first two weeks of fall camp. Skip went to the Berkshire Mountains while at UConn for camp, and Dr. Lou frequently did this while at Notre Dame. Skip talked about the positives while at camp on Friday saying,
"I think we need to get into a camp atmosphere -- we have to have camaraderie and chemistry building, players getting used to coaches and coaches getting used to players. This allows us to do that with zero distractions, and as a new staff, there's an advantage in being able to do that."
I'm a huge fan of this. With it being the first year of the Holtz regime, having the coaches and players get to know each other's tendencies would be huge in an isolated setting. Plus being at a place like Dodgertown is awesome. It's a great facility, and it just oozes with history and tradition.
- To all those Bulls fans who love wasting $75 on a tie, Vineyard Vines has just the thing for you! They have just released two USF ties, and they both look pretty dang good. Wearing one of those would be great for USF Fridays, but those are just a little bit out of my price range. (h/t gopbull07)
The USF YouTube of the week and more for you after the break.
QB Matt Floyd Commits
I didn't even realize there was more than one Sling 'n' Shoot, let alone that USF would get a commit out of it. (I told you I suck at following recruiting.) Floyd is a 6'2", dual-threat quarterback out of Milton, where he combined for 2100 yards and 23 TDs last season as a junior.
If you subscribe to Scout, there's a video interview at the link above, in addition to the article.
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Bulls Football Schedule
| Stony Brook | Sat 09/04 | 7:00 PM EDT |
@
Florida
|
Sat 09/11 | 12:21 PM EDT |
| Western Kentucky Hilltoppers | Sat 09/25 | TBA |
| Florida Atlantic | Sat 10/02 | TBA |
|
Syracuse
|
Sat 10/09 | TBA |
|
@
West Virginia
|
Thu 10/14 | 7:30 PM EDT |
| @ Cincinnati | Fri 10/22 | 8:00 PM EDT |
|
Rutgers
|
Wed 11/03 | 7:00 PM EDT |
|
@
Louisville
|
Sat 11/13 | TBA |
| Pittsburgh | Sat 11/20 | TBA |
|
@
Miami
|
Sat 11/27 | TBA |
|
Connecticut
|
Sat 12/04 | TBA |
Big East Conference Standings
(updated 1.3.2010 at 2:55 AM EST)
| Conf | Overall | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | W | L | |
| Cincinnati Bearcats | 7 | 0 | 12 | 1 |
| Pittsburgh Panthers | 5 | 2 | 10 | 3 |
|
West Virginia Mountaineers
|
5 | 2 | 9 | 4 |
|
Rutgers Scarlet Knights
|
3 | 4 | 9 | 4 |
|
Connecticut Huskies
|
3 | 4 | 8 | 5 |
| South Florida Bulls | 3 | 4 | 8 | 5 |
|
Syracuse Orange
|
1 | 6 | 4 | 8 |
|
Louisville Cardinals
|
1 | 6 | 4 | 8 |
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