Bryce Archie makes first career start at quarterback as the Bulls defense held Memphis to their second-fewest points on the season



ORLANDO, FLA., OCT. 12, 2024 – Playing in just the second game relocated due to a hurricane in program history, South Florida (2-4; 0-2 American) fell to Memphis (5-1; 1-1 American) 21-3 Saturday at Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Fla.



Due to the impacts of Hurricane Milton around the Tampa Bay area, the game was moved from its original Friday night date in Raymond James Stadium to Orlando, marking the second time a Bulls football game has been relocated due to a hurricane in the last three years. USF’s 2022 American Athletic Conference opener vs. ECU was moved to FAU Stadium in Boca Raton, Fla.



The Bulls returned to Camping World Stadium for just the second time ever and first since downing rival UCF, 24-17, in a 2006 contest in Orlando.



Linebacker Mac Harris led a strong defensive effort for the Bulls, posting a career-best nine tackles, while Tavin Ward made a highlight-reel interception. Jhalyn Shuler finished as the Bulls’ leading tackler with 10 stops in his first game back fully healthy from injury. The USF defense forced a season-high seven punts from Memphis while allowing 345 total offensive yards, just eight more yards than the Tigers’ previous season-low. The Tigers offense was held scoreless for the final 54 minutes, with the Memphis defense getting the team’s final points, and the Tigers 21 points were their second-fewest on the year behind a 20-point effort at Florida State.



The USF offense took the field with junior quarterback Bryce Archie making his first career start, replacing Byrum Brown who suffered a lower leg injury early in the third quarter of the Bulls’ Sept. 28 game at Tulane. Archie finished 22 -of -41 for a career-high 241 yards in his first career start.



Senior wide receiver Sean Atkins posted five catches to tie Andre Davis’ (2011-14) program record in career receptions (153). Atkins tallied 35 yards which currently has him fifth in career receiving yardage chart with 1,730.



Memphis jumped to an early 14-0 lead, scoring on two of its first three possessions before the USF defense settled in and forced thre punts, a turnover on downs, and a missed field goal to finish the first half. The Bulls offense was not able to generate much, as the Tigers posted a 231 to 69 yardage advantage and 18-minute advantage in time of possession in the first half, but a 52-yard field goal from Nico Gramatica to close the half kept USF in striking distance, trailing 14-3 at the break.



The Bulls got the ball to start the second half and Archie hit Josh Hardeman for a career-long 48-yard bomb to the Memphis 27. Three plays later the Bulls had a fourth-and-one at the UM18 and Archie came up just short on the quarterback keeper. The Bulls challenged the spot, but it was upheld after review.



The USF defense forced another three-and-out and the Bulls took over on their 30. Rain began to fall, and Archie’s deep pass directed at Michael Brown-Stephens was overshot and intercepted at the Memphis 2. Davion Watts returned it to the Memphis 40.



The Tigers drove to the USF45 before facing a fourth-and-two. The defense pressured Henigan and Tavin Ward intercepted his desperation pass at the 41. However, the Bulls couldn’t move the ball and punted it back.



Again, the defense rose to the occasion, forcing a punt for Memphis and getting the ball back for USF on its own 33. The Bulls again had to punt, and Andrew Stokes hit a 55-yarder to pin Memphis on its 5, one of five he landed inside the 20 on the day.



The Tigers got a big 38-yard run from Brandon Thomas up the middle on their first play to move to their 43 as the clock ran out in the third quarter. Again, the Bulls’ defense stiffened and forced a punt, this one downed on the USF1.



Archie rolled right and completed a short pass to Josh Porter who was hit hard immediately and fumbled in the endzone. Memphis recovered for a 21-3 lead with 11:17 to play.



The Bulls continued to fight, and Archie moved USF across midfield with a 21-yard strike to Hardeman at the UM29. But Archie’s pass to Sean Atkins on 4th-and-8 at the UM27 was incomplete and the Bulls last threat ended.



Back to the Start

Memphis took the opening kickoff. The Tigers converted on a fourth-and-one at the 50 to move into USF territory. Four plays later, Henigan hit Demeer Blankumsee for the opening touchdown, completing a nine-play, 75-yard opening drive.



The Bulls were forced to punt on their first possession, but the defense responded forcing a Memphis three-and-out and USF took over on its own 30. Archie hit Atkins on a quick pass, but Atkins was hit after gaining a few yards and fumbled. Memphis recovered on the Bulls’ 33.



Three plays later Memphis made it 14-0 when Henigan hit Mario Anderson Jr. for a nine-yard touchdown.



Following another Bulls punt, Memphis took over on its own 12 and drove to the USF39 before Shuler made a terrific play to intercept Henigan. However, officials flagged Decarius Hawthorne for roughing the passer on the play and Memphis kept the ball, moving to the USF24 after the penalty. The defense held at the USF21 and Memphis settled for a 39-yard field goal attempt that went wide right.



Archie led the offense back on the field, but after a dropped pass was sacked for a seven-yard loss and the Bulls were forced to punt from their own 9. Memphis drove to the USF38 where they faced a 4th-and-2. Ward made the stop short of the first down on the running play and the Bulls took over with 8:37 to play in the half.



The Bulls moved just across the 50 but no further, and Memphis took over on its own 10 after the Stokes punt. The Tigers drove to midfield, but again the USF defense held after a nice pass break-up from Brent Austin on third-and-long.



USF took over on its own 14 after the punt with 1:50 to play in the half. USF failed to gain a first down after three plays and had to punt back to Memphis with 1:12 to play. The Bulls defense delivered another three-and-out and the Bulls got another chance with 39 seconds to play from their own 24. USF drove across the 50 and got a roughing the passer call on Memphis on the final Hail Mary play of the half. That set up a 52-yard field goal attempt for Gramatica who knocked it through to get the Bulls on the board, down 14-3 at the half.



KEY STATS

• The Bulls’ defense forced seven punts, two turnovers on downs, and grabbed an interception. The seven punts marked a season-high for Memphis.

• The Bulls’ defense held Memphis scoreless for eight straight drives (39 minutes and 35 seconds of game clock) after allowing two touchdowns on the first three drives.

• The Bulls held the Tigers to their second-lowest scoring total all year (21 points), only one more than the Tigers had at FSU.



NOTABLES

• LB Mac Harris posted a career-best nine tackles.

• DB Tavin Ward hauled in his third career interception for his first of the season.

• WR Sean Atkins -Sits tied for first with Andre Davis all-time in career receptions (153) and fifth all-time in career receiving yards (1,730) in USF program history.

• K Nico Gramatica – made a 52-yard field goal improving to 3-for-3 from 50-plus yards on the year and moved into second all-time with three 50-yard field goals on the season. Marvin Kloss posted four in 2013.



UP NEXT

The Bulls will return to Tampa for the first time in three weeks to take on UAB in a Homecoming clash on Saturday, Oct. 19. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+.

Double-edged sword award

Senior punter having a career year for the Bulls



TAMPA, OCT. 15, 2024 – Senior punter Andrew Stokes (Perth, Australia) continues his strong play for South Florida football as he earned recognition on the Ray Guy Award’s weekly national honor roll for the second straight outing following his performance against Memphis.



Saturday vs. Memphis the 6-6 Australia native punted seven times for a 46.6 yards per punt average and pinned the Tiger’s inside their own 20 a career-best five times. Stokes’ efforts had Memphis starting drives from their own 5, 10, 12, 14 and 19-yard lines on the day and included 60, 56 and 50-yard efforts.



Stokes was also named to Ray’s 8 following a strong outing at Tulane in which he posted a 46.4-yard average, landing three balls inside the 20 and hitting a 61-yard long. Stokes’ punts had the Green Wave starting from their own 11, 12 and 15-yard lines.



Stokes has set a new USF record with 157 consecutive punts without a block and his 14 punts inside the 20 through the Bulls’ first six games this year put him on pace to challenge the USF season record of 30 set by Justin Brockhaus-Kann in 2011. With 60 punts inside the 20 on his career, including 24 in 2023, Stokes is also well within range to challenge Brockhaus-Kann’s USF career record of 68 (2009-12).



Stokes’ current season average of 44.9 yards per punt, his career best by over three yards, ranks second in the American Athletic Conference and No. 22 nationally and is on pace for the second-best season mark in program history and just the third over 44 yards per punt.



Stokes is carrying a 41.0 career punting average that would place him fourth on the all-time USF career charts. His career punts and punting yardage totals are both on pace to rank him among the top five all-time in those categories at USF.



USF takes on UAB in a 3:30 p.m. kickoff Saturday at Raymond James Stadium. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+ and 102.5 HD-2 and Bulls Unlimited digital radio.

The predicted conference team winners and players as voted on by the coaches are out. We are close folks!

Men's Conference favorite and who is on the 1st and 2nd teams

Men's Conference team prediction


Preseason Player of the Year
Yaxel Lendeborg, Sr., F, UAB

Preseason Freshman of the Year
Jared Harris, G, Memphis

Preseason All-Conference First Team
Yaxel Lendeborg, Sr., F, UAB*
RJ Felton, Sr., G, East Carolina
PJ Haggerty, R-So., G, Memphis
Tyrese Hunter, Sr., G, Memphis
Jamal Mashburn Jr., Gr., G, Temple

Preseason All-Conference Second Team
Efrem 'Butta' Johnson, Jr., G, UAB
Alejandro Vasquez, Sr., G, UAB
KyKy Tandy, Gr., G, Florida Atlantic
Colby Rogers, R-Sr., G, Memphis
Jayden Reid, So., G, South Florida

Remember a grade of 60 is the baseline doing your job.

It takes about 10 snaps to get an accurate view of the snap counts

Offensive skill performers +10 snaps
WR- Michael Brown Stephens 65.1 PFF in 30 snaps
QB- Bryce Archie 63.6 PFF in 62 snaps, 66.6 passing grade but only a 60.4 NFL QBR
WR- Joshua Hardeman 57.5 PFF in 41 snaps
TE- Payten Singletary 56.9 PFF in 36 snaps
RB- Ta'ron Keith 56.8 PFF in 29 snaps, good pass blk grade 76.9
SLT- JeyQuan Smith 54.0 PFF in 11 snaps
RB- Kelley Joiner Jr. 53.9 PFF in 26 snaps
SLT- Joshua Porter 52.5 PFF in 33 snaps
WR- Keshaun Singleton 51.2 PFF in 28 snaps
TE- Gunnar Greenwald 47.1 PFF in 14 snaps
SLT- Sean Atkins 45.9 PFF in 53 snaps one of his worst games

Additional Snaps below 10
RB- Nay'Quan Wright 7
FB- Evan Dangler 2

Offensive Line grades
LG- Cole Best 71.5 PFF in 62 snaps, 83.0 pass blk, 69.6 run blk
RT- Derek Bowman 69.5 PFF in 62 snaps 75.7 pass blk, 63.2 run blk
LT- RJ Perry 67.9 PFF in 62 snaps, 85.8 pass blk, 54.0 run blk
C- Mike Lofton 67.4 PFF in 62 snaps 81.1 pass blk, 60.8 run blk
RG Jack Wilty 64.1 PFF in 43 snaps, 85.5 pass blk, 57.3 run blk
RG- Zane Herring 54.9 PFF in 19 snaps, 82.2 pass blk, 59.0 run blk

The run blocking remains an issue.

DEFENSIVE GRADES
LB- Jamie Pettway 74.2 PFF in 24 snaps
CB- De'Shwan Rucker 73.9 PFF in 63 snaps
S- Tavin Ward 73.8 PFF in 52 snaps
NB- Jarvis Lee 72.4 PFF in 24 snaps
S- Tawfiq Byard 69.8 PFF in 45 snaps
OLB- Rico Watson 67.7 PFF in 57 snaps
CB- Brent Austin 67.5 PFF in 58 snaps, knocked for tackling and run D
NB- Fred Gaskin 63.9 PFF in 14 snaps
LB- Jhalyn Shuler 63.8 PFF in 54 snaps
NB- Kajuan Banks 62.2 PFF in 42 snaps
DE- Decarius Hawthorne 61.2 PFF in 56 snaps
CB- James Chenault 60.9 PFF in 23 snaps
DE- Michael Williams II 59.9 PFF in 37 snaps
LB- DJ Gordon IV 58.9 PFF in 21 snaps
DT- Dinellson Exume 58.8 PFF in 26 snaps
LB- Mac Harris 58.4 PFF in 57 snaps
DT- Bernard Gooden 56.1 PFF in 49 snaps
CB- Ben Knox 52.4 PFF in 12 snaps
DT- Doug Blu Eli 52.1 PFF in 59 snaps
S- D'Marco Augustin 51.5 PFF in 32 snaps
OLB- D.J. Harris Jr. 48.6 PFF in 26 snaps
S- Caqavouis Berryhill 29.2 PFF in 13 snaps

Additional Snaps under 10
DT- Jahari Grant 8
OLB- Ira Singleton 6

I jumped on the zoom with Coach Amir and players Jayden Reid and Kasen Jennings.

Head coach Amir Abdur-Rahim

I really like this group and this group is about strength in numbers. It is not about repeating, yeah we want to win and have success, but it is about this group finding its own identity. It will be great to get Kasen Jennings back, as steady as they come and tough as they come. It was great to have him in practice at the end of last season, but he wanted to come and play and he had to call his mom to talk him about of playing.

Jamile Reynolds is great to have in the fold, local St. Pete guy.

If you got great players who work hard, people will come who represent the university in a great way. I love coaching this group and they are about working. To sell out this lower bowl already has really helped these guys.

On putting together the non-conference slate, it was really difficult, when I sat down last March my phone was ringing off the hook last year, this year it wasn’t. When you have Jayden Reid and Kasen Jennings sitting next to him on our team, you don’t want to play us. Getting Florida on a neutral site and playing in South Carolina and playing at Utah State is big. We were 8-1 on the road last season and we have to create our identity on the road and remain a unit and together on the road. The familiarity with each other that is what it takes, Jayden ad Kasen seeing each other, these dudes will run through that wall just like I do. It’s about getting all 15 guys bought into that mindset.

On adding some size, I like the pieces we added, our Achilles heel was defending the 5-spot and (unsure) was a man in the AAC Tournament and we had to play without Corey Walker and then adding Reynolds who has won and he is a local guy and we want to keep adding that flavor, the Tampa Bay guys, Jamile is a mean dude.

On the freshmen, they are freshmen, every freshmen isn’t Jayden Reid, having Jose Placer and Selton Miguel next to him last year gave him confidence to be who he is and he made mistakes and played through them, CJ and Cam will have similar leeway, the best compliment, Jayden was coached harder than anyone on the team the first 2 ½ months of the season and if our young guys can have the same type of success. They are freshmen, We won’t too much on them, but they’ve got work to do, I’m excited about this group.

Jayden Reid

Having that early success you might get complacent, I was looking forward to the offseason because I knew there were so many areas I can get better at and I wanted to get into the weight room. I knew I had stuff to work on and I wanted to help make us be the best team we can be this year and not talk about last year.

The connection runs deeper than basketball, we are all here because of basketball, but it is a chance to built relationships with guys from all over the country, we have a calmness tighter when we are together and we can rely on each other on the court or when it is life or death.

Kasen Jennings

It somewhat feels like a homecoming, this group is built off family, having those guys around and coaches around it is definitely like a homecoming.

Connection is everything especially for our group, it will win us a lot of games and allow us to stay together in hostile environments and execute the game plan. We’ve been preaching it since the new guys got on campus this summer and they are all buying into it.

Army enters at #23 and Navy enters at #25. USF may have a chance to break its 17 games losing streak to Top 25 teams when Navy comes to RayJay on November 9th.

Alabama on major upset alert

40-28 Vandy

Tigers favored by 7 points with an over/under of 60.5. With Brown being "day to day" per Golesh then that likely make Brown questionable (leg), and if he does play he probably won't be as mobile.

Taking Memphis -7 before the line moves up.

From talking to people at Memphis and USF it seems like no one knows what will happen with the storm. Right now they are serious doubts about the game being played on Friday. The Bucs are in NOLA. The Bulls may not be able to practice much before the game due to the weather so it will be interesting to see what happens.

Ironically one of the best wins under Charlie Strong came under similar circumstances against Illinois in 2017 47-23 when the Bulls had basically just a walk-through before the game due to Hurricane Irma. UCF canceled their game against GT because of the pending storm (rumor was also they wanted to avoid Paul Johnson's option team as the storm did nothing in Orlando).

Everyone is hoping for the best and preparing for the worst. So far there has been no discussions I've heard of moving the game to Memphis or a different location, but stay tuned as you never know when that could change.

Memphis would normally fly in on Thursday afternoon for a Friday game, but that is dependent on both the Tampa airport being open again in time and the hotels being open and functioning along with anything else.

WEB LINK: https://gousfbulls.com/news/2024/10...location-of-usf-vs-memphis-football-game.aspx



Tickets remain valid for season ticket members who already purchased them.



TAMPA, Oct. 11, 2024— Season ticket members and single-game buyers who already purchased tickets for the South Florida and Memphis football game will have the opportunity to attend Saturday’s game in Orlando.



Season Ticket Members

Season ticket members will be contacted via email for additional details regarding their tickets for the game. Tickets remain valid for season ticket members who already purchased them for the USF and Memphis football game if they wish to attend. Those season ticket members who cannot attend Saturday will have the option to receive an account credit or donate their purchase to the Bulls Club Annual Fund, which supports student-athletes and USF Athletics. Account credits may be used toward another home game during the 2024-2025 season, including basketball games at the Yuengling Center, or applied to season ticket purchases for 2025-2026 renewals.



Single-Game Buyers

Single-game buyers will be contacted via email for additional details regarding their tickets for the game. Per their policies, single-game ticket purchases through Ticketmaster.com and Spinzo will be refunded in the coming days. Fans who have previously purchased a single-game ticket to the USF and Memphis game will be contacted about ways to attend the game in Orlando.



All seats will be general admission.



Parking outside the stadium is $20 and is cashless. Fans can park in lots D, E, 6, and 7 and should enter the stadium through gates D and F. Parking passes for Raymond James Stadium will not be valid at Camping World Stadium.


USF faces Memphis on Saturday, Oct. 12, at 3:30 p.m. ET/2:30 p.m. CT at Camping World Stadium in Orlando. For more information about Camping World Stadium, please visit campingworldstadium.com.



The USF and Memphis football game will be available on ESPN+. It can also be heard live on 102.5 FM and Bulls Unlimited digital radio on the USF Bulls app and TuneIn.

Don't look now, but we have another Hurricane (Milton) heading our way, Tuesday night/Wednesday morning.

Not great locally, but will likely impact our game on Friday.

Plan accordingly/Stay Safe

Time to go secure Research buildings....AGAIN! #@&$

BURNED REDSHIRT
DB- James Chenault 5 gms
DT- Dinellson Exume 5 gms
DB- Fred Gaskin 5 gms
LB- Rodney Hill 5 gms
WR- Joshua Porter 5 gms
DE- Ira Singleton 5 gms


EXPECTED TO BURN REDSHIRT
DE- Ashton Mosley 4 gms

ON THE FENCE
DT- Jahari Grant 2 gms (Cheney's departure could impact him)
OL- Tyreek Major 3 gms
DB- Deylen Platt 2 gms
DE- Levi Smiley 2 gms

LIKELY TO REDSHIRT
DB- Camren Campbell 1 gm
DB- Jermaine Dalias 1 gm
RB Nykahi Davenport 1 gm
TE- Jonathan Echols 1 gm
DT- Chenellson Exume 1 gm
LB- Zavier Hamilton 1 gm
RB- Alvon Isaac 1 gm
DE- Ryan Jenkins 1 gm
WR- Brandon Winton 1 gm


HAVEN'T PLAY AND NOT GOING TO BURN REDSHIRT
LB- Devon Byrd 0 gms
OL- Braden Carter 0 gms
DE- Damien Gill 0 gms
OL- Teriyan Morman 0 gms
WR- Arkese Parks 0 gms
QB- Marcelis Tate 0 gms

Starts around 25:30

Login to view embedded media

11/4 vs Florida in Jacksonville
11/8 at College of Charleston
11/12 vs Arkansas-Pine Bluff
11/15 vs West Georgia
11/21 vs Portland in Conway, SC (Myrtle Beach Invitational)
11/22 TBA in Conway, SC (Myrtle Beach Invitational)
11/24 TBA in Conway, SC (Myrtle Beach Invitational)
12/3 vs Stetson
12/7 at Loyola Chicago
12/14 at Utah State
12/18 vs Bethune-Cookman
12/21 vs Texas A&M-Commerce
12/28 vs Webber International
AAC play
12/31 vs East Carolina
1/6 at Wichita State
1/11 at Tulane
1/15 vs UAB
1/18 vs Tulsa
1/22 at Charlotte
1/25 at East Carolina
1/28 vs Rice
2/2 at FAU
2/6 vs Temple
2/9 vs Wichita State
2/13 vs Memphis
2/16 at UAB
2/19 at UTSA
2/23 vs North Texas
2/26 at Temple
3/2 vs FAU
3/7 at Memphis

The Oct. 19 homecoming game against UAB will kick off at 3:30 and be broadcast on ESPN+

Smart move. Just Golesh

Lower-level season tickets and premium seating have been sold out for the first time ever



TAMPA, Fla. (October 3, 2024) – University of South Florida Athletics announced Wednesday a sellout of lower level and premium seating in the Yuengling Center for the 2024-25 USF Men’s Basketball Season presented by Tampa General Hospital. It marked the first time in program history that the lower level and premium seating have sold out.



The Bulls return to the court in November following a historic first season under head coach Amir Abdur-Rahim in which the Bulls posted a school-record 25 wins and won their first conference regular season title in program history. USF’s 25-8 record in 2023-24 was an 11-win improvement from the 2022-23 season and tied for the seventh-best improvement nationally in the 2023-24 season. The Bulls posted just the sixth 20-win season in program history and earned the program’s first-ever Top 25 ranking, reaching as high as No. 24 in the Associated Press and USA Today Coaches Polls. The Bulls' 16 wins in conference play marked the most in program history and USF held the longest win streak in the nation, posting 15 straight victories in conference play to register the program's longest-ever win streak.



The Bulls ended the regular season with three straight sellouts at the Yuengling Center and look to continue that streak to open the 2024-25 season. On the year, South Florida played in front of 93,642 fans inside the Yuengling Center, the most since 97,007 in 2012-13. The 93,642 fans are the fourth-most in program history for a single season and just the sixth home season attendance total over 90,000.



The Bulls open the 2024-25 season taking on the University of Florida in Jacksonville on Nov. 4. The first of 15 USF home games tips off on Tuesday, Nov. 12 with the Bulls facing Arkansas-Pine Bluff. The Bulls will play nine American Athletic Conference home games, including dates with UAB (Jan.15), Tulsa (Jan. 18), Wichita State (Feb. 9), Memphis (Feb. 13), North Texas (Feb. 23), and Florida Atlantic (March 2).



Group seating and fan experiences are on sale now. For more details on group tickets, click here. For more information on tickets, contact 1800-GoBulls or visit ticketmaster.com.

Updated through the yesterday's (10/5) games. There is a scenario, unlikely as it is, where Army and Navy could play in the AAC Championship Game, with the winner making then CFP playoff only to then play each other again in their annual match up on December 14th.

G5 Representative Contender

1. Boise State (4-1) - only G5 team likely to be ranked this week and the 3-point loss at Oregon keeps looking better every week; projected finish (11-1)

2. Army (5-0) - likely to be 9-0 heading into Yankee Stadium against Notre Dame; projected finish (11-1)

Needs Help

3. Tulane (4-2) - controls its own destiny to AAC Championship game with wins at Tulane and at home against Memphis; projected finish (10-2)

4. Navy (5-0) - could have a clean path to the AAC Championship with a win at home against Tulane; projected finish (10-2)

5. Memphis (4-1) - will need to win at Tulane and hope for a Navy and Army conference losses; projected finish (10-2)

Need Chaos

6. James Madison (4-1) - loss at Louisiana-Monroe put the Dukes in the conference basement and may be too much to overcome; projected finish (11-1)

7. Liberty (4-0) - Flames unlikely to be able reschedule replacement for cancelled Appalachian State game; projected finish (11-1)

8. Sam Houston State (5-1) - home finale against Liberty looms large if the above teams falter; projected finish (10-2)

Login to view embedded media
Let's start with the biggest fish on the offensive side. CJ Jenkins much like some of the current and former UCF players hasn't been thrilled with how things are going in Orlando and he reopened his recruitment. I checked with a source who told me they think that Locklan Hewlett is still pushing USF hard and that they have not heard of any other P4 standouts at the moment. It could be that Jenkins is doing a hard reset which is possible or USF is in a good spot. I'm still digging for more info on this.

Login to view embedded media The OL commit was flirting pretty hard with FSU and then the Noles' season imploded and they are a hot mess in recruiting. NC State tried to jump in as well with an offer a few weeks ago. The fact he hasn't reopened I will take as a good sign for now. My GT photographer is also the team photographer at Riverwood HS so when he gets back from a trip to Maine for vacation, I should be able to shed some light on what is going on with Poret. Poret has remained pretty quiet about everything.

Login to view embedded media
This Toledo commit from Indiana has an OV set for later this month for the Bulls' second bye week. If that goes well I expect him to flip.

Login to view embedded media
USF made the final three for Whitaker along with K-State and Wazzu, I haven't been able to find out a ton about him yet, still digging.

Login to view embedded media
The Bulls still like their chances to flip back Young before NSD. With Lane Kiffin to Florida rumors heating up, that could muddy the water more here, but they've stayed on him this whole time.

Login to view embedded media
USF sent Core a written offer and Auburn is also a hot mess like UCF right now and Hugh Freeze is in at least simmering water despite the fact they have paid out almost $40 million in buyout money in like a 5-year window to Gus and Harsin. They'd owe Hugh $20+ if they fire him so I think he has one more year at least, but this is a name to file away for later.

Login to view embedded media
I've been trying forever to get in touch with Neptune, the Bulls love him, I think he ends up at USF, I just have struggled to connect with him.

Login to view embedded media
I'm hoping to see him play next week, stay tuned there, I have a free night in that area that should overlap with a game either next week or at the end of October.

Updated through yesterday's games. An AAC team is likely, at best, 5th in line for the CFP AQ bid behind Boise State, James Madison, UNLV and Liberty. The bottom half of the league is atrocious.

AAC affiliated bowls this season include:

• Fenway Bowl vs. ACC (Boston, MA)
• Military Bowl vs. ACC (Annapolis, MD)
• Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl (Ft. Worth, TX) OR Hawaii Bowl (Honolulu, HI)

Up to 4 additional AAC schools will land in one of these bowls:

• Birmingham Bowl vs. SEC (Birmingham, AL)
• Boca Raton Bowl vs G5 (Boca Raton, FL)
• Cure Bowl vs. G5 (Whorelando, FL)
• Frisco Bowl vs. G5 (Frisco, TX)
• New Mexico Bowl vs. Mountain West (Albuquerque, NM)
• Myrtle Beach Bowl vs. G5 (Conway, SC)
• SERVPRO First Responder Bowl vs. ACC or Big 12 (Dallas, TX)
• Union Home Mortgage Gasparilla Bowl vs. ACC or SEC (Tampa, FL)

College Football Playoff Contender

None

Conference Championship Contender

1. Tulane (3-2, 1-0) - will need to run the table and have lots of chaos to get back into CFP playoff picture; projected finish (10-2, 8-0)

2. Memphis (4-1, 0-1) - like the Green Wave will need to run the table and hope for chaos; projected finish (10-2, 6-2)

3. Army (4-0, 3-0) - thanks to a weak conference schedule, could be playing in the AAC Championship Game against the Memphis/Tulane winner; projected finish (10-2, 7-1)

Bowl Bound

4. Navy (4-0, 3-0) - no team has improved their outlook more over the last week than the Midshipmen; projected finish (9-3, 6-2)

5. North Texas (4-1, 1-0) - could play spoiler during three-game stretch at Memphis then at home against Tulane and Army; projected finish (9-3, 6-2)

6. East Carolina (3-2, 1-0) - single digit losses to Appalachian State and Liberty are keeping the Pirates from being 5-0; projected finish (7-5, 4-4)

7. South Florida (2-3, 1-0) - while allot hinges on the Byrum Brown injury, the back half of the schedule has enough winnable games to get the Bulls bowl eligible; projected finish (7-5, 5-3)

On The Bubble

8. UTSA (2-3, 0-1) - couldn't hold onto halftime lead at East Carolina; projected finish (6-6, 4-4)

9. Florida Atlantic (2-3, 0-1) - needs to be at least 3-6 before heading into final 3 games stretch at Temple, home to Charlotte and at Tulsa; projected finish (5-7, 3-5)

10. UAB (1-3, 0-1) - games at home against Tulsa and Rice, and a road game at Charlotte could push the Blazers onto the bubble; projected finish (5-7, 4-4)

Staying Home

11. Tulsa (2-3, 0-1) - winnable games down the stretch could get Golden Hurricane on the bubble; projected finish (3-9, 2-8)

12. Charlotte (2-3, 1-0) - this may be the end for the Fightin' Biffs; projected finish (2-10, 1-9)

13. Temple (1-4, 0-2) - 16 point home win against Utah State keeps the Owls out of the basement and from being winless; projected finish (1-11, 0-8)

14. Rice (1-4, 0-2) - blew two leads at home against Charlotte in their 21-20 home loss; projected finish (1-11, 0-8)

You can view on read only on your phone

Hey Everyone!

Check out my new article where I highlight the 5 best current commits in the AAC, including 2 USF Commits!

https://n.rivals.com/news/group-of-five-spotlight-ranking-the-best-aac-commits