Spring Rankings

[Bull Martin]

Something call "New Era Scouting" has USF 18th..

http://www.newerascouting.com/ncaa_hs/cfb_articles/618-college-football-top-25/

18. South Florida

The Bulls were ranked as high as No. 2 last year before losing three in a row and ultimately finishing 9-4. But nine starters return on offense, and if quarterback Matt Grothe can improve his decision-making, the Bulls will score a lot of points. All-American defensive end George Selvie returns, but South Florida needs to find replacements for linebacker Ben Moffitt and cornerbacks Mike Jenkins and Trae Williams.

Jim, can we make this into a sticky or a new post as a sticky once this post gets updated with all of the spring predictions/

It'd be cool to have a sticky with all the preseason rankings out there on it.  Just update them as more come.

[Who'sYourData?]

can't people google themselves?

I tried Googling myself before, I found I haven't done much in my life that is newsworthy.  :

[flsportsfan83]

We used Grothe too much, because the other players did not step up, and we had O Line issues (second half of season).   

With a healthy OL and some depth there, should give Grothe time to make the right decision. (though he seems to do better under pressure).

The question is who will step up on Offense to provide the weapons he needs?  Will we have decent WR's and RB's who we will be able to count on 4 of every 5 offensive plays, or will we have to count on Grothe 50% of the time like last season.

I like Grothe and think he is an awesome QB.   I was a Miami fan in the 70's and 80's and all I can think of is Marino.  He was an awesome QB but didn't ever have a great team around him.  A great QB cannot win a team without a decent OL and some playmakers. 

I hope Grothe gets that this year, and our D does what it is supposed to do.

WOW WOW WOW ..... Grothe could not carry Marino's jock.

[IncrediBULL]

We used Grothe too much, because the other players did not step up, and we had O Line issues (second half of season).   

With a healthy OL and some depth there, should give Grothe time to make the right decision. (though he seems to do better under pressure).

The question is who will step up on Offense to provide the weapons he needs?  Will we have decent WR's and RB's who we will be able to count on 4 of every 5 offensive plays, or will we have to count on Grothe 50% of the time like last season.

I like Grothe and think he is an awesome QB.   I was a Miami fan in the 70's and 80's and all I can think of is Marino.  He was an awesome QB but didn't ever have a great team around him.  A great QB cannot win a team without a decent OL and some playmakers. 

I hope Grothe gets that this year, and our D does what it is supposed to do.

WOW WOW WOW ..... Grothe could not carry Marino's jock.

Not saying Grothe is equal to Marino.  Just that he has carried the offiense in many games, and could have been better if more weapons had "stepped up" for him.  Just like Marino never winning the big game due to lack of having a "full" team to support him, our Offense was stunted last season by not having the appropriate players (and those of appropriate caliber) stepping up. 

Yes, I know, lots of reasons for this occuring, just saying I think Grothe is an above average player and took a lot on his shoulders without having other players stepping up and doing the same.    Specifically, key penalties and dropped passes, not to mention the weak running plays when Grothe wasn't the runner.  Marino suffered for years due to this in the NFL.  Grothe suffered last year. 

If other people step up on offense, then Grothe looks like a hero this year.

[Jihme]

i hope we live up to this hype.  we will if we continue to improve and stop committing the stupid mistakes we usually do.

[Ricky the Bull]

This, I would guess, is the project.  Let's do what we can to help, instead of being denigrating.

http://www.gousfbulls.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=7700&ATCLID=1472513

[IncrediBULL]

This, I would guess, is the project.  Let's do what we can to help, instead of being denigrating.

http://www.gousfbulls.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=7700&ATCLID=1472513

Pretty cool, I like it... 

[Da Bulls]

Yes, that was the project. Thanks to all who helped out, the different perspective was very helpful.

  Here are the rankings I have found.

USF Spring 2008 Rankings

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/columns/story?id=3388100

- ESPN- Mark Schlabach

-USF Not Ranked

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/writers/stewart_mandel/05/01/spring.rankings/index.html

-CNNSI- Stewart Mandel

-USF Not Ranked

http://www.sportsline.com/collegefootball/story/10813944

-CBS Sports- Dennis Dodd

-USF Ranked #19

        - 19. South Florida: Ranked No. 2 at one point, the Bulls slumped, finishing 5-4. If the Bulls make it to Dec. 6 in the Big East title hunt, it will be a good year.      The regular season ends that day at West Virginia. Most of the offense is back. The defense still has All-American defensive end George Selvie.

        Pre-spring: 19

http://www.sportingnews.com/yourturn/viewtopic.php?t=403529

-Sporting News- Matt Hayes

-USF Not Ranked

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/columns/story?columnist=maisel_ivan&id=2449900

-ESPN- Ivan Maisel

-USF Not Ranked

http://www.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/stories/050908aac.html

-CSTV- Adam Caparell

-USF Ranked #17

-17. USF - With the offense basically returning everyone, USF isn't just going to be a threat in the Big East. A nice early season showdown with Kansas looms the third weekend of the season and could be a springboard to big things. Previous: 18

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/22997-Post-Spring-College-Football-Top-25-Dawgs-and-Trojans-Top-Rankings

-Bleacher Report- Justin Hokanson

- USF Ranked #23

-23. South Florida- Matt Grothe returns as the Bulls QB and he should have a more experience team this time around. Losing Mike Jenkins will hurt at corner, but defensive end sack artist George Selvie will lead the defense.

http://www.southernpigskin.com/page.cfm?story=11160&cat=exclusives

-Southern Pigskin-

-USF Not Ranked

http://www.athlonsports.com/college-football/13502/no-20-south-florida

-Athlon Sports

-USF Ranked #20

-  No. 20 South Florida Bulls

USF began playing intercollegiate football in 1997. It joined Division I-A (now FBS) in 2001, and by the seventh game of the 2007 season, the Bulls were the No. 2-ranked team in the country. The school’s entire meteoric rise has been overseen by coach Jim Leavitt, who was hired as head coach on Dec. 12, 1995, before the program even existed. Of course, as the No. 2 team in the country, the Bulls lost. Their six-game winning streak to start the season ended with a 30–27 loss at Rutgers, but their 9–4 record in 2007 and the return of most of last year’s cast point to more success in ’08. The main weapon in Leavitt’s arsenal is quarterback Matt Grothe, who paced the team in both passing and rushing last fall. He ran for 872 yards and 10 touchdowns, and completed 59 percent of his passes for 2,670 yards and 14 more scores. Grothe shared ball-carrying responsibilities with Mike Ford, who ran for 645 yards and 12 touchdowns as a true freshman last year. Ford, a former five-star recruit from Sarasota, should begin to shoulder more of the rushing load now that he has a year’s experience under his belt. He was named Big East Offensive Player of the Week following his 140-yard, two-touchdown game against Louisville. The top four receivers are back to help Grothe become an even more proficient passer. Wide receivers Carlton Mitchell, Jessie Hester Jr. and Taurus Johnson teamed up for 106 receptions last fall and had four touchdown catches apiece. In the offensive line, only one starter needs to be replaced. Linebacker Tyron McKenzie, the leading tackler on last year’s team, leads seven returning defensive starters. End George Selvie, who can usually be found wreaking havoc in the opponent’s backfield, is the centerpiece of the unit. Nate Allen returns at safety after picking off four passes last year and returning one for a score.

The Bulls will host resurgent Kansas in a Sept. 12 matchup. Pitt and Rutgers also must visit Raymond James Stadium in 2008. The regular-season finale is a trip to Morgantown.

Ball hawks USF tied for first in the nation (with Cincinnati) in takeaways last season with 42.

        Behind the lines Selvie led the nation in 2007 with 31.5 tackles for a loss, and finished second in sacks with 14.5.

Efficient The 2007 Bulls ranked eighth in the nation in pass efficiency defense.

South Florida superlatives:

DE George Selvie is named First-Team All-America and First-Team All Big East.

LB Tyrone McKenzie and S Nate Allen are named First-Team All-Big East

QB Matt Grothe, RB Mike Ford, OL Ryan Schmidt, KR Jerome Murphy and PR Marcus Edwards are named Second-Team All-Big East.

WR Carlton Mitchell, LB Brouce Mompremier and S Carlton Williams join the All-Big East Third-Team.

http://www.lindyssports.com/

-Lindy’s Sports

-USF Not Ranked

http://www.nfldraftdog.com/NCAA_2007/ncaa_football_top_20.htm

-NFL Draft Dog

-USF Ranked #19

-19. South Florida 

DE George Selvie (JR), QB Matt Grothe (SR), S Nate Allen (JR)

http://www.statfox.com/statfoxnews/news~articleid~3379~h~CFB-Lookahead:-2008-Pre-Preseason-Top-25.htm

-Stat Fox

-USF Ranked #16

-The team from Tampa was all over the map in 2007 as one of the many clubs that was ranked No. 2 at one time, only to fall completely out of the rankings. The Bulls looked bad against Oregon in the Sun Bowl, but they're still the team that knocked off West Virginia in September and are very capable offensively, led by quarterback Matt Grothe. West Viginia's coaching turnover gives USF further opportunity to challenge for the Big East title, with Cincinnati weakened by the loss of its quarterback.

http://collegefootball.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=759223#top25

-Rivals

-USF Ranked #22

-22. South Florida (9-4)

The offense should be better than this season's, but the Bulls will have a tough time replacing cornerbacks Mike Jenkins and Trae Williams.

[Mama_Bull]

Lindy's mag is out and it has USF #18. Other ranked BE teams WVU #9 and Pitt #23.

I got that from a RU fan on their board.

http://rutgers.rivals.com/showmsg.asp?fid=642&tid=113223221&mid=113223221&sid=988&style=2

[Sitting_BULL]

can't people google themselves?

I did, but my mommy walked in and caught me.  :-[