The Test Was Great, The Victory Was Bittersweet

[E.T.]

Published Sunday, December 24, 2006

ANOTHER VIEW

The Test Was Great, The Victory Was Bittersweet

By JOHN ROMANO

BIRMINGHAM, Ala.

A program grew up a little on Saturday afternoon. Most conspicuously on the scoreboard. More impressively in its character.

Yes, the University of South Florida has arrived as a college football notable. The Bulls beat East Carolina in the Papajohns.com Bowl and positioned themselves as full-fledged contenders in the Big East Conference next season.

But there was more to the afternoon than the yards gained and the milestones set. There was also the sense of a team trusting in its emotional compass.

Before the sun had risen, and before the players had gathered, word arrived that the mother of defensive coordinator Wally Burnham had died.

"It was crushing news," linebacker Patrick St. Louis said. "Coach Burnham is like a father to us. Literally, like a father. We're around him every day, so we were all hurting for him when we heard about it."

There would be no dramatic locker-room speech. No false rallying cry. Cora Burnham was 83 and in failing health, so the news was not entirely unexpected.

Wally Burnham had returned to Tampa on Friday when his mother's situation grew dire. Her death meant that instead of catching a last-minute flight back to Birmingham, he would spend Saturday making funeral arrangements.

And the linebackers he helped groom into one of the nation's top units would play their final game together without him.

So St. Louis wrote Burnham's initials on the tape that was wrapped around his legs. Others put Burnham's name on their wrist pads or shoes. All of them, it seemed, kept thoughts of him in their hearts.

"Not having Wally here was tough," said safety Danny Verpaele. "He's the brains behind the whole operation, and him not being here didn't feel right."

They have little in common, these players and their coach. Burnham was nearly 20 years into his coaching career when most of them were born. They came into Saturday looking to make their mark in college football, while Burnham already has a national championship ring from his days as a Florida State assistant.

Yet their bond never seemed greater than on the day they were forced apart.

Coach Jim Leavitt had his three defensive assistants split the play-calling duty with Rich Rachel and Troy Douglas in the press box and Bernard Clark on the sideline. And he let his linebackers handle the team on the field.

"This is as good a linebacker group as I've ever been around, and I've been around a while," Leavitt said. "I've been part of the No. 1 defense in the nation (at Kansas State), and I've never been around a group better."

The spotlight at USF has never drifted far from quarterback Matt Grothe this season. He was the revelation. He was in the middle of all the dramatic finishes.

But for all the attention devoted to the freshman quarterback, this program revolves around defense. And the defense is built around the linebackers.

John Romano is a writer for The St. Petersburg Times.

[E.T.]

South Florida Linebackers Help Win One For Wally

By MARTIN FENNELLY

Published: Dec 24, 2006

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - They did it for themselves. And for that logo on their helmets. They did it for their teammates and coaches.

It always comes down to people.

After they'd beaten East Carolina 24-7 in the Papajohns.com Bowl, South Florida players gathered around head coach Jim Leavitt as he held the trophy that said that the Bulls had won their first bowl game.

"It is big," Leavitt said.

There are bigger things. Leavitt knew it as his shirt dried from a Gatorade bath. His players knew it even as they celebrated, three of them in particular.

Their names were Ben Moffitt, Stephen Nicholas and Pat St. Louis, and they're the best trio of linebackers South Florida has ever had, maybe as good as any unit in the country.

They brought it on Saturday as they had all season. In their last game together, they overwhelmed the other side. Then they thanked their defensive coordinator and linebackers coach. They thanked Wally.

"He taught us well," Moffitt said.

Teachers And Leaders

There are bigger things.

Like life and death.

That's why Wally Burnham was hundreds of miles from where everyone had hoped he'd be when USF made history like this.

Wally, good old Wally, 35 years a coach, the last seven with USF, the linebacking sage, wasn't in Birmingham.

Burnham flew back to Tampa on Friday to be with his mother, Cora, who had fought for so long, with Wally at her side as much as he could be. Cora passed early Saturday.

Leavitt got the call at around 6 a.m.

"This was for Coach Burnham," Nicholas said.

Before the game, Leavitt mentioned Wally and his mom. He told his players, "You already had a cause. Now you have a huge cause."

The Bulls coaches banded together to do Wally's job. Cornerbacks coach Rich Rachel and safeties coach Troy Douglas made the calls from upstairs. Defensive line coach Bernard Clark handled downstairs. Leavitt had the headphones on, ready to help. He didn't have to. Wally had left things in good hands.

"If there was going to be one position you were going to leave, it would be the linebackers," Leavitt said.

Nicholas and St. Louis, the senior leaders, took over. So did Moffitt, the throwback-tough junior, who never stopped coming at East Carolina.

You would have never known that Bulls freshman quarterback Matt Grothe had been knocked out with a broken right leg with the Bulls up 17, because the lead stayed 17. The defense, the same defense that stuffed West Virginia, never broke. Those linebackers wouldn't let it.

Nicholas, the star, had two sacks to make him USF's all-time leader. He'll probably be in the NFL next season. Moffitt, the team's leading tackler this season, also added a sack. They led and led.

And St. Louis?

"I could not believe the courage of Pat St. Louis," Leavitt said.

St. Louis has been playing on a bad ankle, through terrible pain. He managed one tackle Saturday, but just being out there was an inspiration. That's what leaders do. You can't teach that. Well, maybe Wally helped a little.

People Are What Matter

Bernard Clark talked with Wally Burnham by phone at halftime. Clark wanted to know how Wally was and if they were doing all right.

"You're all doing great," Wally said.

When it was over, Nicholas and St. Louis had their arms around each other. They couldn't stop smiling.

"We left with the first bowl win," St. Louis said.

They left these Bulls with nine wins, including the closing flourish at West Virginia and here in Birmingham. Jim Leavitt might have 17 starters back next season. Seniors like Nicholas and St. Louis have, well, taught them well. Expect big things.

But there are bigger things.

If only Wally had been at the game.

"He was," Pat St. Louis said.

It's as sure as that trophy.

And it'll live on.

[E.T.]

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great story