https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sports-related_curses
It's not uncommon for down-trodden fanbases to blame a curse on their lack of success. In the 5 years leading up to 2011/2012 USF was on fire. The football team was consistently ranked and beating big programs. The basketball team while not great still won 20 games twice in a loaded big east, won 2 NCAA tourney games, and had a 1st round pick.
Since then USF has been irrelevant in the sports that matter. Outside of the Quinton Flowers years we have been downright embarrassing. Even in those years, how do you have a transcendent QB surrounded by NFL talent for 3 years in a G5 conference and your best win might be the Birmingham bowl against a .500 P5 team?
Three ideas and how we'd solve each:
Falling out with Jim Leavitt - lot of people point to this as the beginning of the end, the program lost its fiery leader and their identity along with it. To solve this we need to mend that relationship. Name the field at the OCS after him, put him in a ring of honor, etc. Something to pay tribute to the man who gave us these expectations in the first place.
Judy Genshaft blocking UCF to the Big East - UCF fans love to bring this up. Would think if this cursed us UCF being in a P5 conference next season and us not being in one would free us from this curse.
The Daily Stampede blog starting - wasn't this around 10-12 years ago at that same time? The blog has some takes that are polarizing to the fanbase. Doubt this is it, but maybe they should not post anything for an entire week before a non-Temple FBS opponent just to check...