Football
USF-Stony Brook Animated Drive Chart
by Ken DeCelles on Sep 6, 2010 4:21 PM EDT
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Postgame Thoughts: Bulls Throttle Stony Brook 59-14
by Voodoo 5 on Sep 4, 2010 11:48 PM EDT
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Just imagine what a beating this would have been if the special teams hadn't been so wobbly. All 14 of Stony Brook's points came off short fields set up by mistakes in the punt game -- Faron Hornes muffed his first punt, and then fumbled away the second, at which point he left the game. And after the officials blew an illegal formation call on a punt that USF downed inside the 5, Justin Brockhaus-Kann had to field a low snap on one knee on the rekick, instantly killing the play.
But other than that, the Bulls dominated. They outgained the Seawolves 562-249, forced four interceptions of Michael Coulter, and did pretty much whatever they wanted to do whenever they wanted to. The talent gap was obvious from the first USF offensive snap. B.J. Daniels threw a quick hitch to Dontavia Bogan, and all he had to do was make one man miss and then outrun everyone else to the end zone for a 59-yard touchdown. So even when USF briefly fell behind 14-7, I had no concern that they might actually lose the game. Once the special teams stabilized, it was over.
I'll do some more digging into specific parts of the game tomorrow when I chart everything. But some other quick thoughts:
-- Stony Brook has to find a quarterback with a stronger arm. I tweeted that I thought I could throw a football further than Coulter, and I'm not sure that was a joke. They made themselves one-dimensional because their quarterback may not be able to throw the ball more than 25 or 30 yards down the field. He threw one quick out that hung in the air for what seemed like forever, even though he and the receiver were only about 15 yards apart.
-- It looks like USF got out of the game totally unscathed on the injury front. Daniels gave us all a scare diving headlong into the end zone on USF's first touchdown, but he was OK. And Lindsey Lamar got racked up in the two-minute drill at the end of the first half, although he got back in the game later on. I didn't see anyone else get hurt on the Bulls side during the game.
-- Note to Drew Evangelista, who otherwise had a solid game punting for Stony Brook. When the ball goes over your head and into the end zone, just take the safety. You should not try to punt it with three guys at close range running right at you. This is not advised under any circumstances.
-- For a guy who was a running back a month ago, Joel Miller made a great catch on that touchdown at the end of the first half. That play pretty much iced the game at 31-14 with the Bulls getting the ball out of the locker room.
-- It was fun at the time to see the Bulls score 52 unanswered points. But I feel a little guilty. I know they were paid well for their time, but the Seawolves were just totally outmatched. It must be nearly impossible for them to get the kind of athletes you would need to stay in a game like this. USF was faster and better across the board. On the plus side, it looks like the Bulls' talent level is in the ballpark of where it was the last few years.
-- Yeah, we're going to have a nice highlight reel of the outstanding camera work from that game. Fortunately we get the same crew for the Western Kentucky and FAU games. And was it just me, or did it sound like J.B. Long and Shaun King (who has gained at least 100 pounds since his playing days) weren't even in the stadium?
-- We can now start talking about the Gators, who had an... um... let's say interesting game against Miami University this afternoon. A remotely competent team would have beaten them today. If Florida comes out anywhere near as limp next Saturday as they did this afternoon -- who knows?
USF-Stony Brook Haiku
by Ken DeCelles on Sep 4, 2010 10:31 PM EDT
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Friday Five Keys - USF vs. Stony Brook
by Voodoo 5 on Sep 3, 2010 7:11 PM EDT
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The day before each game, we'll share our five keys to the game. This week, here's what we'll be looking for against Stony Brook.
1. Stopping SBU's running game
From what Sam Kilb at The Statesman told us, the strength of the Stony Brook offense is their running game. With Mat Brevi, Stony Brook's top returning receiver, not making the trip due to injury, the Seawolves may have to rely even more on the run to keep them in the game. So there's a good opportunity for USF to begin proving their mettle against the kind of run-oriented teams that have given them so many problems the last few years, especially in Big East play. Getting the Seawolves offense off the field will also play into some of the other keys to the game.
2. Overcoming the excitement, and avoiding the temptation to look ahead to the Gators
Both teams have an excitement factor to contend with. This is the first time Stony Brook has ever played an FBS opponent, and I would guess this will be the biggest crowd they've ever played in front of. And of course it's the first game for USF with Skip Holtz in charge. Whoever can get all that nervous, excited energy out of their system and start playing football first will have an edge.
USF's other problem is that you can't help but look forward to next week's game before you've played this week's game. The same thing happened against Elon to start the 2007 season. USF was clearly looking forward to the game at Auburn the next week, and the Bulls came out flat, only winning 28-13.
3. Start creating identities on the team
Every preview that places USF low in the Big East rankings cites that they lost all these great players. Jason Pierre-Paul, George Selvie, Matt Grothe, Nate Allen, Kion Wilson, Carlton Mitchell - they're all gone. But it's not like there won't be new players taking their place. We just don't know who they are yet. Often people confuse "anonymous" with "bad", and they only change their mind when you have players that they recognize. This is the first chance for someone to step up and get back some of the buzz and the attention that you only seem to get when people know your players.
Who's going to step up at wide receiver, especially with A.J. Love and Sterling Griffin injured? Is anyone going to separate themselves from the crowd at running back? Who will be the next big thing on the USF defense? Can B.J. Daniels take the next step up and become a nationally-known quarterback? It's hard to make a big leap in public perception against an FCS team, but this is where it starts.
4. Get comfortably ahead so the backups can get some much-needed reps
Figuring Stony Brook is likely to run the ball a lot, and knowing USF's weak link on offense is its passing game, this could be a fast, maybe even defensive-oriented game where the Bulls don't have much of a chance to pile up a safe lead. Possessions could be limited and the clock could be almost constantly running. Can USF get far enough ahead of the Seawolves soon enough that they can get some of their young players and second-teams some valuable (and necessary) game experience? The Bulls will need to cash in as many early opportunities as possible to do this.
And this goes without saying, but the earlier you get safely ahead, the earlier you get your star players off the field so they are healthy for the Florida game.
5. How much of next week's game plan do you want to work on in the game?
The eternal argument of "how much do you show the week before a big game." Hopefully the Bulls can work with a relatively easy game plan and not have to use any of what I like to call Billy Barool plays - the ones you go to when you absolutely need something that will work. That might be a play designed to take advantage of a matchup or a scheme, or an exotic blitz or coverage on defense. The more you can take into Gainesville that the Gators haven't seen on film, the more options you have. At the same time, maybe you work on some of next week's game plan anyway, because it's more important to get the execution right in game conditions. The eternal argument.
USF Football Over/Unders For 2010
by Voodoo 5 on Aug 31, 2010 8:30 AM EDT
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I thought I'd throw out a few theoretical USF football stats for the 2010 season, along with arguments for why the team (or individual players) might or might not exceed them. If you feel strongly about these one way or the other, tell us in the comments.
These are pretty basic over/unders just to get you thinking. I wish I had more time to come up with some really deep stuff like "David Bedford will get 12 tackles for loss" or "George Baker will have nine passes defensed", but it was not to be.
Over/under #1: B.J. Daniels will run for 500 yards this season.
Argument for the over: It's not easy to reform a quarterback who likes to run, and Daniels might be the best open-field athlete on the team. He broke 100 yards rushing four times last year, and if he tucks it down and runs he can get huge chunks of yards. Even if he doesn't, it's only a little around 40 yards per game, assuming there's a bowl game.
Argument for the under: Skip Holtz and Todd Fitch just don't want him running often enough to get that many yards rushing. Daniels will also know in the back of his mind that he cannot let himself get injured, because it would probably hose the entire season. Also, sacks count as negative rushing yards in college football, so he'd have to run for like 800 yards to net out to 500.
Over/under #2: The Bulls will score 300 points this season.
Argument for the over: With 12 or 13 games, it's not going to take that many points per game to hit 300, a total the Bulls have easily reached each of the last three seasons. There are several easy games on the schedule with which USF can pad their point total. And a couple days ago Holtz talked about the importance of not letting off the gas against weaker competition. (Last year East Carolina had a huge lead against Appalachian State and eased off the throttle in the fourth quarter, only to see the Mountaineers get back in the game.)
Argument for the under: With the running back position still unsettled and A.J. Love and Sterling Griffin out until at least October, it may be difficult to string drives together, even against weaker opponents. With road games against Florida, West Virginia, and Miami, and teams like UConn who love to play it tight, the Bulls may find it difficult to score on several occasions this year.
Finally Time For Football - Game Week Preview
by Voodoo 5 on Aug 29, 2010 2:01 PM EDT
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We've been waiting almost six months to get into game mode around here. The wacky offseason helped kill a lot of time, and we came up with some other diversions, but we're finally starting our football routine this week. Here's a preview of what you should look for leading up to the first game of the season against Stony Brook:
SUNDAY: I will finally post the #4 player on our 15 For 15 list (I'm uploading a highlight reel from his best game to YouTube now). I will also roll out our Big East blogger game, called "Protect Your Unit." Yes, it has to do with gambling. Yes, it's going to be awesome. Yes, it's for entertainment purposes only.
MONDAY: I'll have some fun over/unders for the Bulls this season. If you're wondering where to go with Ryne Giddins's 26-sack prediction for this season, here's a hint: take the under. These are also for entertainment purposes only.
WEDNESDAY-ISH: If Ken can find someone associated with Stony Brook to trade Q&A's with, our Bulls Recon series will return to start getting you ready for Saturday's game.
THURSDAY: #3 on our 15 For 15 countdown will go up. Our first set of Protect Your Unit picks will be posted, and the Thursday night open thread will be available for you to talk about the first games of the year, including Wannstache heading out to Utah to see if he can really outdo himself this year and torch his team's season before we get to Labor Day.
FRIDAY: Our game prediction thread. I'm pretty sure we all like USF to win this week.
SATURDAY: We know a lot of you will be at the game, but we'll have a Game Thread open for conversation, so have those smartphones dialed into the site. Toro and Ken will probably be at all the home games and some of the road ones as well, but I'll be in nearly every football game thread holding court since I have to watch the games on TV. You can also talk about other games going on, like the LSU-North Carolina slugfest, or Cincinnati going out to Fresno to take on Pat Hill's mustache.
After the game there will be some brief thoughts, and on Sunday we'll find something from the game to focus on in depth with some video clips to go along with it. Then we'll start getting ready for Florida, and the cycle begins again.
And of course if things come up along the way (hopefully nothing like major injuries or academic problems), we'll catch those as well. So get ready, everyone. We're almost there.
USF Football Practice Roundup: Back to School Edition
by Ken DeCelles on Aug 27, 2010 9:12 AM EDT
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Apologies for the lack of practice updates. We've been busy trying to compile a Big East blogger challenge that we will introduce next week. Just a small spoiler, it has its roots with the best sports radio show the Tampa Bay area has ever had. That should narrow it to one or two people for you.
- If you haven't seen it already, Coach Holtz released his 2nd depth chart of the fall earlier this week, and Greg Auman like always provides a quality breakdown of the new two-deep. Surprises include Bradley Battles passing Demetris Murray and becoming a co-starter at RB with Moise Plancher, and George Baker becoming a co-starter at corner with Kayvon Webster. If you would like to see the depth chart in all of its glory, click here. I'm sure it will change a couple of more times before the season starts when some people come back from injuries.
- Speaking of injuries, Green, Gold, and Bold has a good rundown on the current injury situation on the squad. Nothing that we haven't heard of, but its good to see everything in one place. I am glad that everyone is still expecting Sterling Griffin to be ready by October.
- Skip hates practicing on the first day of school
- Final scrimmage is today, and from there it looks like we should have our final depth chart and go into our gameweek routine on Sunday after a day off on Saturday. Skip will be paying some extra attention to special teams today according to Scott Carter. We talked about the lack of production from all of our special teams units this earlier this summer, and if you want to reread our breakdown, click here.
- Finally, don't worry about any nooners in Tampa for the time being, as the first three home games against Stony Brook, Western Kentucky, and Florida Atlantic are all starting at 7:05. This pleases us greatly.
USF Football, Unwitting Groupon Ad Copy Victim
by Voodoo 5 on Aug 26, 2010 7:30 AM EDT
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Groupon is a Web site where people can get special deals on things to do in their area - but only if enough people want to take advantage of it. The offer on Groupon Tampa on Wednesday was for USF football season tickets, and individual tickets to the Western Kentucky and FAU games. (Greg Auman noticed it earlier, and Toro got one of these e-mails in his inbox.)
Great idea by the sales and marketing department to push the single-game tickets. Those games aren't as easy to sell as, say, tickets to the Pittsburgh game, so any way to help get fans out there to see the Bulls play is a good one. And it worked - almost 800 people took advantage of the offer before it expired at midnight.
But I'm going to guess that no one took a look at the typically weird things Groupon writes for their deals, because What. The. Hell. Is. This. (Click on the image for a larger image of the ad. I did that just in case the Web page disappeared.)
Now, I can tell USF didn't write this because of the brand foul in that picture. They would never mix the "U" athletic logo with the University wordmark like that. I can also tell USF didn't write this because... well, let's just take a closer look.
In the animal kingdom, football is played with cheetah running backs, buffalo lineman, and a seagull that is forced to curl up and act as the ball.
Wait a minute. Humans are in the animal kingdom. (Finally AP biology pays off!) I don't remember seeing anything like this at USF games.
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