Dell:  Grothe's feet worry Heels

[Brad]

Grothe's feet worry Heels

Even with a sore ankle, South Florida quarterback has Carolina concerned.

BY ALAN DELL CORRESPONDENT

TAMPA -- North Carolina head football coach John Bunting calls South Florida's offense "hockey on grass."

"It's all over the place. They spread you out, make you defend and make you disciplined," Bunting said.

"And if you break down they will hurt you bad. This will be a very testy, edgy game."

USF quarterback Matt Grothe, who has been responsible for 74 percent of the Bulls offense, missed two days of practice this week because of a swollen right foot.

The quarterback said "it was swollen like a balloon," when he woke up Sunday, after the Bulls' win over Connecticut.

Grothe practiced Thursday and is expected to start today when the Bulls visit North Carolina for a noon game that will be broadcast on ESPNU.

"I am not going to hand the ball off more," Grothe said this week while limping around with his foot in a boot cast. "It (foot injury) didn't hold me back in the second half against Connecticut. Once my adrenalin gets going, I won't even be thinking about it."

Grothe, who was a dual-threat quarterback at Lake Gibson High, where he threw for 2,700 yards and ran for another 1,250 his senior year, said his body can take the pounding of getting hit 20 or more times in a game.

"I've had turf toe for a while, and I have broken some bones in my foot," he said.

"Nothing hurt as badly as it did on Sunday, but I've had treatment and the swelling has gone down."

Grothe has two players returning from six-game suspensions.

Running back Ricky Ponton and wide receiver Jackie Chambers should take some of the pressure off the Bulls' redshirt freshman quarterback.

Defensive end Josh Julmiste will also be returning from a similar suspension.

At 5-foot-10, 205 pounds, Ponton is significantly bigger than walk-on Ben Williams (5-7, 180), who has been called on to do most of the running thus far this season.

Ponton ran for 373 yards last year as a freshman backup to Big East Conference rushing leader Andre Hall.

"Ricky is a big guy who is fast and can break tackles," Grothe said. "Jackie is another addition to our receiving corps and has great hands. Josh will help on the defensive line."

Bunting doesn't expect Grothe to be slowed down.

"He is in the flow of every single play and throws well when he scrambles," Bunting said.

"This guy is making a lot of great decisions. He may be short in stature (barely 6 feet tall), but he's got a tremendous amount of heart."

This is the Bulls' (4-2, 2-1) final non-conference game. A loss to North Carolina (1-4) would be a severe blow to the Bulls' hopes of getting a quality bowl bid.

USF notebook

Four of the Bulls' final six games will be on the road, including the last two at Louisville and West Virginia. ... North Carolina's only win this year was a 45-42 victory over I-AA Furman. ... The Tar Heels played Rutgers close at home, losing 21-16, but have been pounded in three road games against Virginia Tech, Clemson and Miami. ... Ronnie McGill leads the Tar Heels rushers, averaging 55.6 yards per game. ... Grothe is second in the nation in rushing yards by a quarterback (422). ... The Big East is the only conference with three undefeated teams -- West Virginia, Louisville and Rutgers. ... Louisville No. 1 in scoring offense and total offense. ... USF coach Jim Leavitt said none of the team's three returning suspended players would start today. ... Williams' 108 yards rushing against Connecticut marked the first time in three years that a USF player other than Andre Hall cracked the century mark in rushing... The Bulls are listed as 31/2-point favorites over the Tar Heels.

Last modified: October 14. 2006 5:49AM

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[Matt]

i hope we run a lot of 5 wide, empty back field shotgun sets.

its pretty much a sure 7 or 8 yard play everytime   ;D

[E.T.]

USF coach Jim Leavitt said none of the team's three returning suspended players would start today.

First official word I heard.

[Matt]

it was pretty clear none would start but all will see significant action.  ponton will probably see more carries then williams.

[E.T.]

Ponton was my PreSeason MVP ... and he can start a push for that today !