Wanted: Respect (Miami Herald)

[E.T.]

Wanted: Respect

South Florida knows how much a victory over East Carolina in the PapaJohns.com bowl could mean to its up-and-coming program.

BY MIKE PHILLIPS

mphillips@MiamiHerald.com

They have a quarterback ranked in the top 10 in the nation in total yards, a kicker who owns a Big East record and a defense good enough to stop West Virginia's Steve Slaton in his tracks.

But South Florida still is trying to find its place in college football's national landscape.

''Why is it,'' coach Jim Leavitt said, ``that when people talked about the teams in the Big East this year, they talked about Rutgers, Louisville and West Virginia, but didn't include us in that group?''

That's Leavitt's dilemma. He heads a program that keeps soaring to new heights, going from obscurity into Division I-A and then into the Big East and the Bowl Championship Series in the past five years.

That's why a victory over East Carolina (7-5) on Saturday in the PapaJohns.com Bowl in Birmingham, Ala., means so much to the Bulls, who never have won a bowl game in their five-year Division I-A history.

''It's really big, because it's our next step,'' Leavitt said. ``We've never won a bowl game, so it's important to the program. We have a young team, and a win would show credibility for next year.''

'MILESTONE' VICTORY

South Florida (8-4) is coming off a momentum-building 24-19 victory Nov. 25 at then-No. 7 West Virginia, which hadn't lost at home in nine years. The Bulls held Slaton, who was the No. 2 rusher in the nation, to 43 yards -- 115 below his average.

Leavitt called it ''a milestone,'' and it impressed six voters in The Associated Press poll, which listed USF among those receiving votes.

''We obviously hope to build off that win over West Virginia,'' said freshman quarterback Matt Grothe, the Big East Rookie of the Year. Grothe was the top freshman in the nation in total offense (258.5 yards a game), passing for 2,495 yards and 14 touchdowns, and leading the Bulls in rushing (607 yards and nine touchdowns).

''Winning the bowl game is big, especially after beating West Virginia,'' Grothe said. ``That might possibly get us ranked in the Top 25. I think people look past us because we are such a young program. But if we keep winning, people will start to respect us.

``And if we end this season ranked in the Top 25, that could carry over to next year. We have almost everybody back, and we might start the season ranked. We definitely have a lot of talent. I think we surprised people game after game this year.''

The biggest surprise was Grothe, who was better than Leavitt expected. He set a school record for passing yards (364) in a 27-10 victory over Syracuse, and accounted for 419 of South Florida's 519 total yards. Delbert Alvarado also set a Big East record with a 56-yard field goal.

''We can play in the Big East,'' Leavitt said. ``People don't realize we have beaten Louisville two out of four, beaten Pitt two out of four, beaten Syracuse two out of two''

South Florida might have landed in the Top 25 if it had defeated then-unbeaten Rutgers on Sept. 29. The Bulls lost 22-20 when a dropped ball in the end zone cost them a two-point conversion at the end of the game. Leavitt envisions a future that includes a Big East title and a spot in a BCS game, and a future in which his team plays Miami every year.

LOOKING GOOD FOR '07

Leavitt will lose just five players after this season, and South Florida will be a contender for the Big East title in 2007. And even though his team is playing in the PapaJohns.com bowl this year, a victory will mean a lot to his young players.

''Winning a bowl game is something people judge a program by,'' Leavitt said. ``I really want to win a bowl game.''

South Florida lost in its first bowl appearance last season, 14-0 to North Carolina State in the Meineke Car Care Bowl.

''It would be awesome to be the first team to win a bowl game,'' said senior linebacker Patrick St. Louis of Miami Booker T. Washington. ``And if we ended up ranked in the Top 25, it would show how far the program has come. Next year's team can build off that.

``That's why I came here, to make a mark and to be part of history.''

http://origin.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/sports/16286743.htm?source=rss&channel=miamiherald_sports

Just love the way this article ended ... and great to have this press in Miami!

[BullsFanInTX]

I liked this paragraph:

"Leavitt envisions a future that includes a Big East title and a spot in a BCS game, and a future in which his team plays Miami every year."

If we start being a regular top 25, I think you will see a continuation of our series with Miami into a full time series.

[bulls96go]

sweet  

[Grateful Dad]

I don't know why everyone isn't a BULL!!