GoUSFBulls.com Johnston's Keys To The Game: Bulls vs. 49ers

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Johnston's Keys To The Game: Bulls vs. 49ers

November 25, 2023

Joey Johnston   Athletics Senior Writer

USF (5-6; 3-4 American) vs CHARLOTTE (3-8; 2-5 American)
Saturday, Nov. 25 • 7:30 P.M. • Raymond James Stadium (65,000) • Tampa, Fla.
SURFACE: Natural Bermuda
TV: ESPNU: Drew Carter (P-by-P) & Dustin Fox (Analyst)
AUDIO: 102.5 FP & HD 2/ TuneIn - Bulls Unlimited
SERIES: First Meeting
IN TAMPA: NA
LAST TIME: NA
STREAK: NA
RAYMOND JAMES STADIUM RECORD: 99-60
USF IN 2023 VS FIRST TIME OPP's: 1-1
USF GAME NOTES

You never look ahead. In college football, that's a cardinal rule. It's always about the next game. If you talk about anything beyond that, it's tempting fate.

But back in July, as head coach Alex Golesh prepared for his first training camp with the USF Bulls, the program had to consider logistics. So provisional schedules were mapped out for December, just in case the Bulls qualified for a bowl game.

Truthfully, that's not looking ahead or being overconfident. That's like purchasing storm shutters when you live in a hurricane-prone area or making out a last will and testament for your family. That's proper preparation.

And now, for the much-improved Bulls, playing in a bowl game is one victory away from reality.

USF (5-6, 3-4 American) can qualify for postseason consideration for the first time since 2018 by defeating the Charlotte 49ers (3-8, 2-5 American) on Saturday night at Raymond James Stadium.

"It's a weird conversation,'' Golesh said. "Like, when we make it to a bowl game, we'll do this. There's a variety of bowl games, so the schedules are very different. Andrew Warsaw (USF's associate athletic director/chief of staff) has nine different calendars sitting on his desk that are all laid out. He has done a really good job of helping me with that.

"It's a good problem to have. You're balancing a lot of things like signing day with the freshman players, the transfer portal, evaluating your own players, all of that happening at the same time. And now the possibility of a bowl game. But we've got to play our best football on Saturday. The bottom line is we're playing to keep playing.''

And what if USF does keep playing?

According to the prognosticators who do this on a weekly basis — yes, there were full bowl projections before this season even began — the Bulls could be headed to the Dec. 22 Union Home Mortgage Gasparilla Bowl.

Or it could be the Dec. 28 Wasabi Fenway Bowl (the Green and Gold playing in the shadows of Fenway Park's Green Monster?).

Or maybe the Dec. 16 Avocados from Mexico Cure Bowl (which is actually not played in Mexico, but in Orlando.

Or perhaps the Dec. 18 Myrtle Beach Bowl, if not the Dec. 21 Boca Raton Bowl.

You get the picture.

Speculation is fun. But it means nothing until the Bulls win another game.

USF's defense (469.6 yards allowed per game) probably has the most to prove. But when it comes to consistency, Golesh said. USF's offense must also pick up the pace.

"There's a frustration to what it (offense) has looked like to this point,'' Golesh said. "You can see that when it's good, it's really, really fun and really, really good. When we're playing on tempo, we're in rhythm and playing penalty-free, we're really, really hard to stop.

"Our inconsistencies have been very much self-inflicted. We dropped six balls (against UTSA) and that's the most all year. How does that happen? When we pick up the (initial) first down, we've consistently put drives together, but we've struggled at times to do that. So, we've got to get better all around.''

Here are four keys to USF taking care of Charlotte and earning a bowl bid, which would represent a gigantic turnaround in Golesh's first season after a 1-11 finish in 2022:

Start Quickly

In the last two weeks, this has worked well with USF scoring touchdowns on the opening drives of those games, both in under three minutes.

Against Temple, it was a five-play, 65-yard drive, resulting in Byrum Brown's 7-yard run. At UTSA, it was an eight-play, 75-yard march, culminating with Nay'Quan Wright's 16-yard burst up the middle.

The Bulls need to snuff out any hope of confidence from Charlotte, which has no postseason possibilities and is playing for pride. USF's formula is simple: Get on top … and stay there.

"The challenge to the Charlotte team (isn't) like you're actually playing for postseason play, but they're trying to figure out who the heck they're going to build this thing around,'' Golesh said. "Like I've always said, and like I said to our guys (Monday), the most dangerous man in the world is the one who has nothing to lose. So, we've got to be ready and be right ourselves.

"This is really us versus us in terms of can our process be so elite that you have every chance to win the game? It's not going to be easy. You've seen us be up and you've seen us be down. It has been a roller coaster.''

But starting the game quickly will put things on an upward trajectory for the Bulls.

 

Get Off The Field

USF's beleaguered defense, which surrendered a program-worst 643 yards at UTSA, is ranked 129th (out of 130 FBS programs).

But Charlotte's offense also has been problematic. The 49ers were limited to 158 total yards in last week's 28-7 loss against Rice. The 49ers have been held to less than 350 total yards in eight of their 11 games.

The Bulls must play well on first-down plays, apply pressure and execute their assignments — defensive tenants that haven't been seen nearly enough, but were hallmarks of USF's performances against Alabama, Navy, UConn and Temple.

The biggest factor might be the simplest one: The Bulls need to tackle well, especially when they are in prime position to make the play. Letting the ball-carrier wiggle free has been a killer.

 

Let Byrum Brown Cook

Byrum Brown, the redshirt freshman quarterback, is USF's best player. So, his skills should be showcased, whether it's in the passing game or with his legs.

"From the first day Byrum stepped on campus and every time on the field, he has been a complete pro,'' said offensive tackle Donovan Jennings, one of 15 players to be honored in pregame Senior Night ceremonies, who will play in his USF-record-tying 54th career game. "He's the definition of the quarterback and leader you want on your team. He does everything the right way and you never have to worry about him missing anything. It has been a blessing blocking for him. From the first day he came on campus, I knew he would be special.''

An effective finish to Brown's outstanding regular season could feature several exclamation marks:

* He has four 300-yard passing games to tie Quinton Flowers (2017) for the USF record.

* He has 2,825 passing yards and needs 87 to break USF's season mark (2,911 by Flowers and Matt Grothe) and 175 to become the program's first 3,000-yard passer in a season.

* He has completed 63.3 percent of his passes (the USF single-season record is 63.7 by Grothe).

* Meanwhile, Brown is among only two quarterbacks (along with LSU's Jayden Daniels, a Heisman Trophy favorite) to have at least 2,800 passing yards and 700 rushing yards. And he's only the third USF player to achieve those marks in the same season (along with Flowers and Grothe).

Brown's production has accounted for much of USF's success this season. Against Charlotte, it should be no different.

 

Create Some Takeaways

This category has been around so long, it only lacks a corporate sponsor. It has become THE most reliable indicator of a USF victory.

In USF's five wins, it has 14 takeaways.

In USF's six defeats, it has just three takeaways.

Charlotte quarterback Trexler Ivey, a walk-on, served up four interceptions on 25 pass attempts in the 49ers' overtime defeat against Memphis, so opportunities could abound.

The Bulls are coming off consecutive games against Seth Hennigan (Memphis), E.J. Warner (Temple) and Frank Harris (UTSA), three of the AAC's elite quarterbacks. Facing Ivey might seem like a much different task, but Golesh said the USF focus can't afford to waver.

"It has been a challenge for us in every imaginable way,'' Golesh said. "You could look statistically and say, 'Man, they (Charlotte) are not throwing the ball well,' but you've seen teams that haven't throw the ball well and they come in and throw it well.

"We've got to play tighter defense and create more of a pass rush up front to affect the quarterback. I've got all the faith in the world in our (defensive) crew getting it figured out. The thing I keep seeing is effort, effort and effort. We'll find a way.''

–#GoBulls–