The Daily Stampede - All PostsMeanwhile, in Tampa...https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/50067/v5-fav.png2023-06-27T10:00:00-04:00http://www.thedailystampede.com/rss/current/2023-06-27T10:00:00-04:002023-06-27T10:00:00-04:00The TDS Eulogies: Robert Steeg
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<figcaption>Robert Steeg/Daily Stampede</figcaption>
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<p>The Fozzie Bear of USF Twitter eulogizes this website.</p> <p id="BQ25Xm"><em>Like so many other SB Nation team sites over the past few years, the Daily Stampede website as you know it is </em><a href="https://twitter.com/StampedeSBN/status/1672046671989993477?s=20"><em>going bye bye</em></a><em>. We’ve anticipated this coming for long time now and have shifted our content towards our YouTube, Twitch, and Discord channels in recent months. While our staff still irons out the details over where to find us in the future, they offer a proper eulogy for our beloved “HATEBLOG.” First up: Steeg!</em></p>
<p id="J9MaTB">In 2017, as a recent graduate of the now pre-eminent and AAU University of South Florida, I was working odd jobs doing sales and working as a marketing director for a notable chicken sandwich place that’s closed on Sunday. I was missing the direction and passion in life, so I reached out to Collin Sherwin at The Daily Stampede to inquire about helping write for USF football since I had such a strong passion for college football (at the time). </p>
<p id="c5H0Hh">Now, a little background about my writing career up to that point:</p>
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<li id="15jymJ">I hated writing</li>
<li id="XmOm9A">I had no formal writing experience</li>
<li id="c2t2s0">I never took a professional writing class, communications course, and was notably bad at writing essays throughout high school and college</li>
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<p id="Nu0ZUk">Clearly, I was ready for the big leagues of writing for a Division 1 university football program. Thus, he told me to start writing in 2017 independently, doing pre-game previews, post-game wrap ups, key moments, etc. for the entire season to see what my stories looked like. After a full season of writing 26 different stories, I reached back out to Collin (who quickly passed me off to Nate) to express my interest in writing for this beloved university. I did everything I could to convince him to bring me on, showcasing my knowledge about college football offenses, mentioning I have a camera and can do photography, expressed my desire to learn more about other sports that I don’t have as much familiarity with (I still don’t quite understand baseball terminology). I could tell he could see the passion I had for the university, that many of us share, and he decided to bring me on.</p>
<p id="coCBbG">Now six years later, countless articles have been written, numerous photographs captured, a myriad of minutes recording podcasts completed, but most importantly an endless number of memories and more friends I could ever ask for are things I can hang my hat on. I wanted to pride myself on describing my writing and being a member of the media as “approachable”. Always keeping my DMs open, painting things in a positive light, acting a fool on the podcast, and recently being the voice of hope and reason that things can turn around. I had hardly considered myself a professional member of the media (clearly) and being the comedic relief (read: idiot) of the group became my schtick.</p>
<p id="ocwDSx">While this chapter of The Daily Stampede is closing, the dream will not die. We didn’t give up after the “Were we not 7-0?” moment, we didn’t give up after USF basketball left two players at an airport, we didn’t give up after Steve Masiello was USF’s head basketball coach for 20 minutes before discovering that he didn’t actually graduate from college, and we certainly didn’t give up after the lows of the Jeff Scott era. The highs were always around the corner. Watching generational athletes like Evelyne Viens, Quinton Flowers, Georgina Corrick, Shane McClanahan compete, but remembering that these are 18-22 year old kids who are chasing their own dreams. Chatting with coaches at local bars and putting them in the Pippa Harness. Interacting with fellow fans of the program and having fun sharing memories both new and old.</p>
<p id="rVPoYh">RIP TDS, long live H A T E B L O G</p>
https://www.thedailystampede.com/2023/6/27/23774017/daily-stampede-tds-eulogies-robert-steeg-usf-sb-nation-college-football-basketball-baseball-softballRobert Steeg2023-03-29T12:57:11-04:002023-03-29T12:57:11-04:00OK, For Real This Time: USF Men’s Basketball is Hiring Kennesaw State’s Amir Abdur-Rahim as New Head Coach
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<figcaption>Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>The search is finally over.</p> <p id="cJerf0">Our long national nightmare is over, USF men’s basketball finally has a head coach. According to Jon Rothstein, Vice President of Athletics Michael Kelly has chosen Kennesaw State’s Amir Abdur-Rahim to lead the Bulls in the new version of The American.</p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Sources: Kennesaw State's Amir Abdur-Rahim is finalizing a deal to be the next head coach at South Florida. Official announcement expected soon.</p>— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) <a href="https://twitter.com/JonRothstein/status/1641113660973105161?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 29, 2023</a>
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<p id="cRx8bs">Abdur-Rahim has spent the last four seasons with the Owls, turning around a program that had just one win during his first season all the way to a share of the regular season crown in the A-Sun, then winning the conference tournament to earn a bid in this year’s NCAA Tournament where they took 3-seed Xavier to the wire but fell 72-67. </p>
<p id="rIRp17">The Owls made the jump to division 1 basketball in 2005-2006, and this was the first time since 2004-2005 they had a winning record. KSU went 26-9 this season. </p>
<p id="OxMGVn">He went 45-74 in four seasons with the Owls, and received an extension prior to this year that was set to run through 2027. Abdur-Rahim spent one year at Georgia under Tom Crean prior to taking the KSU job, and helped the Bulldogs land a top-10 recruiting class that included eventual number one overall pick Anthony Edwards. He was at Texas A&M before that which included three NCAA Tournament bids. He also spent time at College of Charleston, Murray State, and Georgia Tech.</p>
<p id="fRaT7v"><a href="https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/id/35800830/kennesaw-state-unlikely-turnaround">Here’s an interesting note about his philosophy in program building</a>:</p>
<blockquote><p id="lHYIeJ">“This is as simple as I can put it: Every job is not a transfer portal job,” he said. “Some jobs have to be built with high school kids, to be able to sustain it over time. When you’re building a different team every year, everyone’s buy-in is not the same. We wanted to build with high school kids, get older with the same guys. I’ve been fortunate and blessed to be able to do that.” </p></blockquote>
<p id="TLal4h">The 42 year-old from Georgia is one of 12 children, and his older brother Shareef spent 12 seasons playin the NBA, and he’s now the president of the G-League. </p>
https://www.thedailystampede.com/2023/3/29/23661888/ok-for-real-this-time-usf-mens-basketball-hiring-kennesaw-states-amir-abdur-rahim-as-new-head-coachNathan Bond2023-03-20T12:07:57-04:002023-03-20T12:07:57-04:00REPORT: USF Men’s Basketball Set to Hire Former Notre Dame Head Coach Mike Brey
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<figcaption>Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>The long-time Fighting Irish coach stepped down after the season.</p> <p id="tIQtPa">The USF men’s basketball coaching search is over after they tabbed former Notre Dame head coach Mike Brey, according to Russ Wood of Rivals. </p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">The South Florida men's basketball coach search appears to be over.<a href="https://t.co/RpO8RAZ3W1">https://t.co/RpO8RAZ3W1</a></p>— Russ Wood (@RussHoops) <a href="https://twitter.com/RussHoops/status/1637835164830113792?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 20, 2023</a>
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<p id="cf4r6a">Brey spent the last 23 years coaching the Fighting Irish, and led Notre Dame to 13 NCAA Tournaments, including back-to-back Elite Eight appearances in 2015 and 2016. His last few seasons in South Bend left a lot to be desired. Since COVID in 2020, he’s had one NCAA Tournament appearance sandwiched between two losing season—including this year’s 11-21 (3-17 ACC).</p>
<p id="AJPZD2">Notre Dame also recorded 20 or more wins in 16 of his 23 seasons. He finished with a 483-280 record over those 23 seasons. Prior to Notre Dame he coached at Delaware in the late 1990s and had two NCAA Tournament appearances there before getting the Notre Dame job. </p>
<p id="7elyRh">Brey also spent eight years as an assistant coach at Duke, and won two national championships with Coach K in 1991, and 1992.</p>
<p id="jgfUdv">Interestingly, Brey’s son, Kyle is the head football coach at IMG Academy. The elder Brey also went to high school at DeMatha in Maryland.</p>
https://www.thedailystampede.com/2023/3/20/23648503/report-usf-mens-basketball-set-to-hire-former-notre-dame-head-coach-mike-brey-acc-aac-south-floridaNathan Bond2023-03-12T20:14:23-04:002023-03-12T20:14:23-04:00USF Women’s Basketball Team is No. 8 Seed in Greenville 1 Regional, Will Face No. 9 Marquette
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<figcaption>Morgan Tencza/The Daily Stampede</figcaption>
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<p>The AAC regular season champions head into the tournament with something to prove. </p> <p id="s3uRul">The South Florida Bulls women’s basketball team earned the no. 8 seed in the Greensville 1 regional of the 2023 NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament where they’ll face No. 9 Marquette on Friday.</p>
<p id="WIEAEp">The winner will get to face the winner of No. 1 seed South Carolina vs. No. 16 Norfolk State. The Golden Eagles finished 21-10 (13-7 Big East).</p>
<p id="cDnOEp">The Bulls (26-6, 15-1 AAC) won The American regular season title with ease, but was bounced in the quarterfinals of the conference tournament last week by Wichita State. Thanks to a strong non-conference slate that saw the Bulls beat Alabama, Texas, and Arkansas, their participation in the tournament was never in doubt. </p>
<p id="vEXQqr">The Bulls are making their ninth NCAA Tournament appearance in program history, and 8th in the last 10 years. </p>
<p id="ykzTOX">USF is 4-17 all-time against Marquette.</p>
<p id="XK7NcE">Led by AAC Co-Players of the Year in Elena Tsineke, and Dulcy Fankam Mendjiadeu, the Bulls will look to finally break through, and make it to the second weekend of the tournament for the first time in program history. </p>
https://www.thedailystampede.com/2023/3/12/23636830/usf-womens-basketball-team-seed-region-will-face-team-jose-fernandez-aac-ncaa-march-madnessNathan Bond2023-03-10T14:09:18-05:002023-03-10T14:09:18-05:00BREAKING NEWS: USF Men’s Basketball Coach Brian Gregory Fired After Six Seasons
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<figcaption>John Reed-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>Coaching men’s basketball at USF is tough, but you can’t do that..</p> <p id="ryoK6G">USF men’s basketball coach Brian Gregory has fired after six seasons in Tampa, according to Jon Rothstein. <em>The Daily Stampede </em>started to hear rumors late yesterday that the decision to fire Gregory was just a matter of when, not if. USF has announced the decision as well.</p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Source: South Florida has parted ways with Brian Gregory.</p>— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) <a href="https://twitter.com/JonRothstein/status/1634264660001038369?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 10, 2023</a>
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<p id="HBpOHv">Gregory spent much of the last six seasons trying to create a competent offense to compete in the AAC, but it never materialized save for the CBI title team in 2018. Gregory’s teams were continually among the worst offensive teams in the country, punctuated by the historically bad 2021-2022 team.</p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Year 1: 10-22, 3-15 AAC<br>Year 2: 24-14, 8-10 AAC (CBI title)<br>Year 3: 14-17, 7-11 AAC <br>Year 4: 9-13, 4-10 AAC (Fired racist coach, mass exodus)<br>Year 5: 8-23, 3-15 AAC (historically bad offensively) <br>Year 6: 14-18, 7-11 AAC<br><br>How do you justify keeping Brian Gregory? <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/USF?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#USF</a></p>— The Daily Stampede (@StampedeSBN) <a href="https://twitter.com/StampedeSBN/status/1633913473871609858?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 9, 2023</a>
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<p id="I8qSCm">Throughout his tenure, the Bulls showed some flashes of improvement, but almost always immediately cratered back to earth in spectacular fashion. </p>
<p id="KSgjZ6">USF Vice President of Athletics Michael Kelly will now conduct his first men’s basketball coaching search as AD. He rightfully caught flack from national media and fans for giving out an extension to Gregory (and head football coach Jeff Scott) during the pandemic, and now those two extensions look more ridiculous after Kelly fired both of them just over a year after announcing them. </p>
<p id="WvBRdu"><a href="https://gousfbulls.com/news/2023/3/10/south-florida-announces-change-in-leadership-of-mens-basketball-program.aspx">USF’s statement on the firing:</a> </p>
<blockquote><p id="FeieKj">“Brian has been a true ambassador for the University of South Florida,” Kelly said. “Ultimately, our head coaches and programs are judged by on-court success, and we have not lived up to our expectations for men’s basketball. We thank Brian and his family for all they have done for USF and wish them the very best in their journey.”</p></blockquote>
https://www.thedailystampede.com/2023/3/10/23634247/report-usf-mens-basketball-coach-brian-gregory-fired-after-six-seasons-aac-michael-kelly-cbiNathan Bond2023-03-06T18:57:41-05:002023-03-06T18:57:41-05:00USF Football Spring Practice Preview: Tight Ends
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<figcaption>Morgan Tencza/The Daily Stampede</figcaption>
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<p>The under utilized/underperforming unit gets a chance to prove themselves with a new staff</p> <p id="MLWJIO"><em>Spring practice began today so we will breakdown each position group as we gear up for football season. </em><em><strong>Note: </strong></em><em>We will not guess on what impact freshmen who are not on campus yet will have on the team.</em></p>
<h3 id="6lXH0W"><strong>Tight Ends</strong></h3>
<p id="qV0S8F"><strong>Position Coach</strong>: Clay Patterson</p>
<p id="4M49OK"><strong>Key departures</strong>: Chris Carter (Transfer/Tulane), Chris Motillo</p>
<p id="E7UsTK"><strong>Key returnees</strong>: Gunnar Greenwald, Jayson Littlejohn</p>
<p id="5kBeIW"><strong>Key additions</strong>: Weston Wolff (Transfer/Maryland), Teigan Martin (Transfer/Liberty)</p>
<p id="lI1G2X">On the bright side for the Bulls in 2023, they don’t have to replace a lot of production at the tight end position compared to some of the other positions on offense. The downside to that is, the tight ends over the five years have been nonexistent in the counting numbers department. Don’t get us wrong folks, blocking is a vital part of a tight end’s job, but when it comes to the passing game, there’s been a lot to be desired from the group. </p>
<p id="24yJ03">Greenwald led the tight end room in 2022 with four catches. Littlejohn had a 100% catch-to-touchdown ratio with two catches, two touchdowns. That’s the extend of the production. </p>
<p id="WpbWPk">Maryland transfer Weston Wolff comes to Tampa with one career catch for the Terps..in 2021. Also transferring in is Teigan Martin, a freshman TE from Liberty. He came onboard after national signing day, but is on scholarship. He was a 3-star recruit according to 247.</p>
<p id="lheGxR">The Tennessee offense used their tight ends in variety of ways in 2022, splitting out wide, in tight, and even Princeton Fant rushed the ball six times for five touchdowns. Golesh’s offense is all about creating space, and getting people open, it’d be a good guess that someone in this room will catch more than four ball this season. </p>
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https://www.thedailystampede.com/2023/3/6/23628143/usf-football-spring-practice-preview-tight-ends-aac-gunnar-greenwald-alex-goleshNathan Bond2023-03-06T18:00:51-05:002023-03-06T18:00:51-05:00USF Football Spring Practice Preview: Running Backs
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<figcaption>Cyndi Chambers / USA TODAY NETWORK</figcaption>
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<p>USF has to replace an all-american running back. </p> <p id="MLWJIO"><em>Spring practice began today so we will breakdown each position group as we gear up for football season. </em><em><strong>Note: </strong></em><em>We will not guess on what impact freshmen who are not on campus yet will have on the team.</em></p>
<h3 id="6lXH0W"><strong>Running Backs</strong></h3>
<p id="qV0S8F"><strong>Position Coach</strong>: Associate head coach/run game coordinator/RB coach Matt Merritt </p>
<p id="4M49OK"><strong>Key departures</strong>: All-American RB Brian Battie (Transfer/Auburn), Jaren Mangham (Transfer/Michigan State)</p>
<p id="E7UsTK"><strong>Key returnees</strong>: K’won Powell, Kelley Joiner, Michel Dukes, Jason Albritton</p>
<p id="5kBeIW"><strong>Key additions</strong>: Nay’Quan Wright (Transfer/Florida), Dominic Gonnella (Transfer/North Dakota State)</p>
<p id="yrxn5o">The Bulls entered the 2022 season with four running backs that could’ve carried the load as RB1, and everyone felt comfortable with any of Battie, Mangham, Joiner, or Dukes being the bell cow. But, after injuries to Mangham and Joiner early in the season, it was clear Battie was The Guy for the Bulls on the ground.</p>
<p id="mTKGyW">How do you replace Battie, who rushed for 1,186 yards and eight touchdowns, while also being one of the best kick returners in the country? That answer is TBD. </p>
<p id="VhbwlE">Enter Florida Gators transfer RB Nay’Quan Wright. The Opa-Locka native rushed for 753 yards, and five scores during his three years in Gainesville. He brings a lot of burst, and power (5’9, 196 LBS) to the running back room. It nearly seems like the Bulls coaching staff are trying to 1-for-1 the lose of Battie as much as they can with the addition of Wright. </p>
<p id="iPv7aa">Joiner in the past has shown he can be explosive, but an early foot injury, and rust when he finally played again led to just 44 yards on 12 carries in 2022. Add in Powell to the mix where he ran for 123 yards in 2022, but most of it came in a blowout loss at Louisville, there aren’t many reliable options in that room right now. </p>
<p id="YNUM2N">Mikey Dukes’ best ability in 2022 was his availability as he played in 11 games for the Bulls. He added 54 carries for 188 yards, and five touchdowns. He chipped in eight receptions for 72 yards as well. </p>
<p id="kiZFD9">NDSU transfer Gonnella and Jason Albritton seem to be taking up the same space as a bruising short yardage runner. Gonnella ran for over 1,300 yards in 28 games for the Bison, so there’s experience there. </p>
<p id="IkXPiB">How this running back room shakes out is going to very telling in what new head coach Alex Golesh values from his tailbacks. </p>
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https://www.thedailystampede.com/2023/3/6/23628056/usf-football-spring-practice-preview-running-backs-florida-auburn-brian-battie-aac-nayquan-wrightNathan Bond2023-03-06T17:13:00-05:002023-03-06T17:13:00-05:00USF Spring Practice Preview 2023: Defensive Backs
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<figcaption>Morgan Tencza / The Daily Stampede</figcaption>
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<p>Hope springs eternal for this secondary with a lot of experience and a new scheme. </p> <p id="dsJTk9"><em>Spring practice began today so we will breakdown each position group as we gear up for football season. </em><em><strong>Note: </strong></em><em>We will not guess on what impact freshmen who are not on campus yet will have on the team.</em></p>
<h3 id="6lXH0W"><strong>Defensive Backs</strong></h3>
<p id="qV0S8F"><strong>Position Coach</strong>: Defensive Passing Game Coordinator & Safeties Coach James Rowe, Cornerbacks Coach Matt Birkett </p>
<p id="4M49OK"><strong>Key departures</strong>: DB Mekhi LaPointe, S Vincent Davis</p>
<p id="E7UsTK"><strong>Key returnees</strong>: DB’s Aamaris Brown, Daquan Evans, TJ Robinson, Jayden Curry, and Jaelon Stokes. Safeties T-Mac Simpson, Logan Berryhill, Will Jones II, Christian Willians, and Matthew Hill. </p>
<p id="5kBeIW"><strong>Key additions</strong>: DB Jarvis Lee Jr.</p>
<p id="RJJ0mQ">The defensive backs unit had a rough go in the 2022 football season, beginning when standout fan-favorite Vincent “Smoke” Davis announced he had to miss the entire season due to a neck injury and step away from the game of football. That was a harbinger for a season in which the USF defense was near the bottom of every major defensive category including 131st (out of 131 teams) in YPG with 516.6 and a whopping 7.42 yards per play. </p>
<p id="EcS42l">Giving up less than 6,199 total yards will be a tall task for new defensive coordinator Todd Orlando, but the secondary will return nearly the entire production from last year outside of graduating Mekhi LaPointe and Davis who entered the transfer portal and will look to play one more season elsewhere. New defensive passing game coordinator James Rowe returns to USF where he played baseball in in the early 00’s leaving a job with the Chicago Bears to help set the back-half of the secondary on the right track. In a year where coaches are leaving college for positions in the NFL, convincing Rowe to return to his alma mater was a huge coup for the former Broyles award finalist. Cornerbacks coach Matt Birkett comes from James Madison where the Dukes were in the top ten in total defense during his four-year tenure. </p>
<p id="rZcIGx">Turning the page to the 2023 spring season, head coach Alex Golesh will trust Todd Orlando’s aggressive “multiple” defensive unit will pair perfectly with his aggression on offense. Replacing LaPointe’s veteran leadership and 53 total tackles will be no easy task, but USF will have a lot of experienced talent and some new faces to transition into the new defense. Coach Jeff Scott hit the transfer portal to fill much of the secondary the last three seasons and you can see that in the majority of the two-deep being filled with players who transferred in. </p>
<p id="DXXhNh">Kansas State transfer junior Aamaris Brown had a breakout year being named to the All-AAC Fourth Team by Phil Steele in ‘22 with 27 total tackles, five passes defended, and two interceptions in 11 games. Senior T-Mac Simpson (Eastern Michigan) played in all 12 games with 44 tackles and junior TJ Robison (Rutgers) had 37 tackles in nine games. </p>
<p id="1Vns4b">Junior Will Jones II (Kansas State) finally made his USF debut in 2022 playing in all 12 games at the safety position with 32 total tackles, one tackle for loss, and two passes defended. Senior Christian Williams (Miami (FL)) returns with 40 total tackles, two tackles for loss, and one fumble recovery and Clemson transfer Ray Thornton III saw limited time with three tackles and one pass defended in three games. Senior Matthew Hill (Auburn) will also bring game experience to the safeties room.</p>
<p id="GQztat">Junior Jayden Curry broke out with 40 total tackles, one interception, and two fumble recoveries on the season and will look to expand on his role in the new defense. Senior Daquan Evans and juniors Ben Knox and Logan Berryhill will also compete for playing time in the new system. Highly touted Freshman Jarvis Lee, Jr. is also on campus for spring practice as the three-star from IMG Academy was Golesh’s third highest rated recruit in the 2023 class. </p>
<p id="U7uTD3">With a new scheme and whole new coaching staff - spring practice will be focusing on the type of talent that is on campus and how to best utilize their skill sets. Continuity in the secondary will play a huge part in helping a defense that was 130th in pass efficiency and 124th in passing yards allowed. </p>
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https://www.thedailystampede.com/2023/3/6/23623870/usf-spring-practice-preview-2023-defensive-backs-14-safeties-aac-secondaryAnthony Vito