USF, the next football superpower?

[Cubanbull]

This from CFN today, including a pic of Grothe to lead the column.

What would it take for a school like West Virginia, Louisville, Michigan State, or Purdue, to turn the corner and become an elite school like Michigan, Notre Dame, Ohio State, USC, or Oklahoma? Could it be done in ten years on the field? If a good school finished in top 5 for 10 years running, with 2 national championships, do they gain elite status like FSU did under Bowden?  What would it take? – DH

Who out there has the potential to be a new superpower like a Michigan or USC? Not LSU or someone who’s already great. I’m talking about a bit of a sleeper. Also, what’s makes a really, really good program and an elite one? - GL

A: What would it take to become a superpower? Oh, several decades of winning at a high level, and even that doesn’t assure anything. Just over forty years ago, Minnesota got the same respect Michigan or USC gets now, but it couldn’t stay at a high level going downhill after winning the 1962 Rose Bowl.

Being considered among the elite of the elite depends on the timing. Is Alabama still considered a superpower? It’s been to one BCS-level game since winning the 1992 national title, but it’s still had a ridiculous amount of success.

How about Wisconsin? Three Rose Bowls within the last 15 years, a boatload of other good bowl wins, and a ton of national exposure, but there hasn’t even been a sniff of a national title. Would UW then be considered a superpower if it won the national title this year? How about Kansas State when it was really rolling under Bill Snyder? Colorado, until recently, could’ve been put into the superpower category for year-in-and-year-out success. So could Washington. It takes something truly special to be Teflon and win, win, and win some more throughout the ages. Michigan football will never be truly awful for a long stretch. USC will never have more than a few losing seasons in a row. Ohio State won’t ever be a last place program. They’re just too big.

To be a Florida State and break into the old boys club, a program has to be in the national title hunt for about a decade, win at least one, and be really, really, really good for about 25 years. To get there, it needs a great recruiting base, a big enough school to eventually get the support for the facilities needed to compete at a top level, and a whole bunch of luck. Keeping a superstar head coach around for a generation, like at West Virginia if Rich Rodriguez decides to never leave, would also help.

My sleeper to eventually get to superpower status is South Florida. It has the most fertile recruiting base to work with, a coach in Jim Leavitt who loves to be there and appears to have no interest in any other gig, plays in a relatively big market (Tampa-St. Petersburg) at a school with a huge student population and alumni base, is in a good league, and appears to be just on the verge of turning a corner into conference championship status. Check back in 10-to-15 years and see how it all worked out.

[flsportsfan83]

I would agree, folks we are on to something huge.

[crambone]

w00t w00t I JUST saw this and went to post it here.

http://cfn.scout.com/

[ksquire]

Why do people continually list Notre Dame as elite status? They haven't been good since the late 80s. Stop riding the teams from the 30s and 40s, and realize that MANY other teams have not only caught up, but surpassed them.

Just needed tto get that off my chest.

[BULLfreak]

10-15 years........ I say 5-7 years

[Mama_Bull]

Love the article, but would prefer that we remain under the radar.

[BULLfreak]

You can only be under the radar for so long. If you stay under the radar too long then you become an under achiever

[Guest]

To be a Florida State and break into the old boys club, [highlight]a program has to be in the national title hunt for about a decade, win at least one, and be really, really, really good for about 25 years[/highlight]. To get there, it needs a great recruiting base, a big enough school to eventually get the [highlight]support for the facilities needed to compete at a top level[/highlight], and a whole bunch of luck. Keeping a superstar head coach around for a generation, like at West Virginia if Rich Rodriguez decides to never leave, would also help.

I like being picked... and agree USF will become a superpower... but there is something here that needs to be examined as well.

Not be in the Top 25 for a decade... BE IN THE NATIONAL TITLE HUNT for a DECADE...

not be good for 25 years.... but be REALLY, REALLY, REALLY GOOD... for TWENTY-FIVE YEARS!! (1/4th of a century!!)

oh, and throw in SUPPORT for the FACILITIES NEEDED...

So, make sure we keep our Green and Gold glasses with a little perspective.  USF WILL make it... and when my (as yet unborn) kids attend USF and I'm donating $25,000 per year... we can look back and enjoy the journey...

[bulls96go]

this is where we all dream to be and with hard work and a little luck we will get there

[Sunil]

I don't mind continually being picked as a "sleeper" and "under the radar"...but my one concern is that the more ppl say it...the more unrealistic the expectations of our own growing fan base. let's face facts...the folks on this board are the exception...die hard Bulls fans. Most of the folks in our own area, alumni, and student groups still have trouble recognizing that our school plays bigtime 1-A ball and figure they'll care once we start playing the likes of their beloved gators and noles. I'd hate for our die-hards to forget that this is still an infant program and become disinterested if we fail to make the "big splash" we all hope for in the next few years. There is some danger among our own fans, based on our own success. So while it is flattering to get some respect..let's keep the perspective.