Practice Report
Vinnie Portell
Bullock’s switch to D-end paying off early
After three seasons of minimal success as a linebacker, the USF coaching staff opted to move Zach Bullock to defensive end, where coach Willie Taggart thinks the senior will excel for the Bulls.
With the Bulls’ switch to a 4-2-5 defense, having a former linebacker on the line will help coach Tom Allen to further disguise defensive fronts.
“I told Zach yesterday this is his year,” coach Taggart said. “He had a great practice yesterday. He was flying around, everywhere I look was Zach, Zach, Zach. I told him this is his year, his time. You waited this long and you don’t have any time after this. I really think he’s going to have a break out year.”
Bullock, who said he added 10-12 pounds over the summer, isn’t worried about picking up a new position in his senior season.
“I’m willing to do anything, I just want to play,” Bullock said. “But yeah, I feel pretty comfortable. I played D-end in high school, so now that I’ve gotten back in the flow of things, I’m comfortable.”
But Taggart is convinced the senior is more than comfortable — he’s ready to finally make an impact.
“I can see it in his attitude, the way he’s carrying himself,” Taggart said. “It seems like the
has turned on for him and you hate it for guys like that because senior year then the comes on. But at least it came on.”
Next man up
Coach Taggart announced early Tuesday the team would be without both Nigel Harris and Tashon Whitehurst due to a two-game suspension for violating team rules in the spring, but the defense took another blow when Taggart revealed safety Hassan Childs will miss the season after tearing his ACL in practice.
As far as linebackers go, coach Raymond Woodie said Chris Garye is the guy who’s ready right now, but redshirt freshman Jimmy Bayes and freshman Danny Thomas aren’t far behind.
“You got Jimmy Bayes and Chris Garye,” Woodie said. “You talk about another kid who started out when I wasn’t here his true freshman year. Chris Garye is really looking good. If we had to start a game tomorrow, he’d be the guy.”
Thomas, being the youngest and least experienced, will likely see the least amount of playing time, but Woodie said the linebacker is playing better than expected.
“Danny Thomas has shown flashes of leadership, being able to run the defense,” Woodie said. “He’s a freshman, but he’s not playing like a freshman. That’s why we scrimmage and put these guys in hostile situations to see how they’ll respond and so far, he’s been responding well.”
Redshirt freshman Nick Holman remains sidelined with an ankle injury, but Woodie said he should be at full strength by Monday.
Taggart said he’s still looking for players to step up to fill the new void created by Childs, but he isn’t worried with the depth the team has.
“It’s great to have depth among the whole entire team so you don’t lose sleep,” Taggart said. “You hate it for the kid, but you gotta keep moving on.”
Odds and Ends
New practice schedule for game weeks with Saturday games: Sunday: Afternoon Monday: Academic Day Tuesday-Friday: Morning
Quote of the day: “I think we’re finally running something that fits our personnel, especially with Flowers in the backfield. It’s almost like having three running backs in the backfield. So you never know who’s getting the ball. It’s even confusing in practice and I see it every day, so I’m pretty excited to see how it works out in a game.” - Zach Bullock on the Bulls’ offense this season.
Vinnie Portell
Bullock’s switch to D-end paying off early
After three seasons of minimal success as a linebacker, the USF coaching staff opted to move Zach Bullock to defensive end, where coach Willie Taggart thinks the senior will excel for the Bulls.
With the Bulls’ switch to a 4-2-5 defense, having a former linebacker on the line will help coach Tom Allen to further disguise defensive fronts.
“I told Zach yesterday this is his year,” coach Taggart said. “He had a great practice yesterday. He was flying around, everywhere I look was Zach, Zach, Zach. I told him this is his year, his time. You waited this long and you don’t have any time after this. I really think he’s going to have a break out year.”
Bullock, who said he added 10-12 pounds over the summer, isn’t worried about picking up a new position in his senior season.
“I’m willing to do anything, I just want to play,” Bullock said. “But yeah, I feel pretty comfortable. I played D-end in high school, so now that I’ve gotten back in the flow of things, I’m comfortable.”
But Taggart is convinced the senior is more than comfortable — he’s ready to finally make an impact.
“I can see it in his attitude, the way he’s carrying himself,” Taggart said. “It seems like the
has turned on for him and you hate it for guys like that because senior year then the comes on. But at least it came on.”Next man up
Coach Taggart announced early Tuesday the team would be without both Nigel Harris and Tashon Whitehurst due to a two-game suspension for violating team rules in the spring, but the defense took another blow when Taggart revealed safety Hassan Childs will miss the season after tearing his ACL in practice.
As far as linebackers go, coach Raymond Woodie said Chris Garye is the guy who’s ready right now, but redshirt freshman Jimmy Bayes and freshman Danny Thomas aren’t far behind.
“You got Jimmy Bayes and Chris Garye,” Woodie said. “You talk about another kid who started out when I wasn’t here his true freshman year. Chris Garye is really looking good. If we had to start a game tomorrow, he’d be the guy.”
Thomas, being the youngest and least experienced, will likely see the least amount of playing time, but Woodie said the linebacker is playing better than expected.
“Danny Thomas has shown flashes of leadership, being able to run the defense,” Woodie said. “He’s a freshman, but he’s not playing like a freshman. That’s why we scrimmage and put these guys in hostile situations to see how they’ll respond and so far, he’s been responding well.”
Redshirt freshman Nick Holman remains sidelined with an ankle injury, but Woodie said he should be at full strength by Monday.
Taggart said he’s still looking for players to step up to fill the new void created by Childs, but he isn’t worried with the depth the team has.
“It’s great to have depth among the whole entire team so you don’t lose sleep,” Taggart said. “You hate it for the kid, but you gotta keep moving on.”
Odds and Ends
New practice schedule for game weeks with Saturday games: Sunday: Afternoon Monday: Academic Day Tuesday-Friday: Morning
Quote of the day: “I think we’re finally running something that fits our personnel, especially with Flowers in the backfield. It’s almost like having three running backs in the backfield. So you never know who’s getting the ball. It’s even confusing in practice and I see it every day, so I’m pretty excited to see how it works out in a game.” - Zach Bullock on the Bulls’ offense this season.
