What was USF like when you attended?

[WoolyBully]

I was so poor, the wife and I could only afford one European vacation per year and had to limit ourselves to one new car and one used car for my college tenure.  Brutal...simply brutal.

As for Ramen noodles: When I was in Korea, that was the official back-from-the-ville-really-drunk-midnite-snack.  I was surprised to find it here in the US.

[BULLO12]

Lots of tuna and mac & cheese....hence we do not eat tuna in my house AT ALL!!!

[BullDoug]

I did the plasma thing twice a week for gas money for about 18 mos.  For real.  No kidding.  It upsets my Mom to hear it.  And on average, I ate two whole chickens a week (4 dinners - half chicken ea.) for dinner and 5-6 cans of tuna a week for lunch.  Had to stock up when Kash n Karry had whole fryers on sale for $0.75/lb.  Breakfast was usually a bagel, bananna & a Diet Pepsi.  Campbells vegtable beef soup and clam chowder were also a staples.

[Guest BasketBull.]

You win, BullDoug... That be some poor living! Glad you made it through it all. Good for you. You're a Bull and a WINNER.

------

So, anyone got any more stories?

[Educabull]

I attended from '89 to '94. I did a turn at Beta Hall and the Village.  Aside from BBall, there wasn't much to do until I turned 21.  After that we spent a lot of time at the Coppertop Pub, the Greenery (I lived in the apts behind it, I think they were University Townhome Apts) the Irish Pub in Ybor, and A newer dive-bar called the House over across the tracks.  I worked so many hours, took so many classes and interned at ther same time that all I remember is being in one of the above places.  Honestly though, I had a great time in my later years.  I one thing I regret was not going to a football school.  But I live it vicariously now.  If I had the choice, I'd do it all over again.

[beastiebull]

1992-'97 -

Dorm life 92-94 - Eta/Iota/Zeta in that order.  Lived in Eta with a buddy from HS who went home to his girlfriend every weekend.  My suitemates were kind of lame, didn't do a whole lot either.  Had a crazy roommate in Iota who built a friggin rickety loft that I swore was gonna collapse so I moved into single occupancy in Zeta...best move of my life.  Can't complain about the food department - I was one of the "spoiled" meal plan kids - roll out of bed to the cafeteria, hook up an omellete, ham, bacon, cereal, coffee...then trudge off to class.  The food pretty much sucked but it was filling.   What a hard life!

Moved into UTA (University Townhouse Apartments) which at that time was a party (and roach) mecca.  I would get off of work valet parking at the Performing Arts Center, walk out my back patio and there would be a party with a keg on somebody else's patio every weekend.  During the day rode my bike to classes 2-3 days a week, hung out on campus most of the day, worked at the Career Resource Center some days and basically was a big slacker...That was the best year of college for me.

Made the mistake the next year of moving to "Orange Oaks" all the way down at Fowler and I-75.  Felt way out of touch and had a basically uneventful year, concentrating on school most of the time.  What a drag.

Moved back to 42nd street right next to UTA.  FOrget the name of the apt complex but they nicknamed it Melrose place because of all the Greeks living there.  It was overall cool and I returned to the party lifestyle, hitting the Greenery on a regular basis.  During one span there I counted 16 straight days that I sat there drinking pitchers.  Great times.

My Chucky story wasn't a huge deal but I will remember it forever.  I was playing against some stiff competition in the gym when Chuck walked in by himself, of course we picked him up.  The only difference here was that Chuck was playing HORRIBLY that game.  I don't think he shot 30% but he was a fierce hustler and talked some great trash.  The one thing I remember vividly was when I drove the lane and drew the defenders then dished the ball to Chuck for an easy lay-up.  He hollered at me "Good a-- pass!"  and gave me some dap!  I was more proud at that moment than on graduation day!

Overall I loved my time at USF and wouldn't trade it for anything.

[Jim Johnson]

Reading these stories makes me a proud USF alumn... Here's mine - for what it's worth.

Undergrad: 1990-1994 & 1997-1998 (U Stay Forever)...

I knew no one when I came to campus in 1990.  My first meal was a medium Gumby's pizza & a two liter of coke.  The fall of 1990, I lived in Beta 2 East... our hall had the distinct honor of having the most complaints to campus police than any other hall on campus.  The older guys had formed a fake fraternity - Chi Omega Delta - the Chodes.  And we had a pretty decent flag football team.

Basketball was amazing then.  And football was barely a dream in our eyes.   The Sun Dome rockets... Louisville sold out - almost 11,000 people at the game - and Denny Crum called it "the worst place to play a game in all of college basketball"... (meaning the fans were terrible).  The Sun Domw is the reason why the NCAA changed the rules to prevent students from sitting so close to the visitors bench -- visiting teams routinely had to take time outs in the middle of the court.

Watching the Bulls make the NCAA was great -- they played Georgetown @ Boise Idaho and were spanked... but life was fun.  Springtime Homecoming was a blast as well.

My friends and I went to Tracks on Thursdays... it was a gay bar, but Thursdays attracted a "straight" crowd... this was when the places to hang out for college students were limited to Patricks on Bearss, Skippers Smokehouse, and a place on Fowler (can't remember the name - began with a K, I think)...  DNA was an alternative, when we wanted to go gothic...  Masqeurade was one of the few clubs inb Ybor that I can recall - went there on Saturdays - $5 sink or swim.

Campus began to change slowly as Ybor grew... I went to a 10-keg frat party (before I joined one) at the old Village apartments (across from the on-campus Village)... there must have been 400-500 people there.

I joined Student Government in 1992... that fall we held a pro-football pep rally -- complete with a bon fire... we even made "dream season" T-shirts!!

The Empty Keg was empty because the university wouldn't do beer specials -- a pitcher was $7... but they had the BEST greasy pizzas... The Andros Sports bar was a great place to watch sports... and the Sunday brunches were the BEST at the Andros cafeteria...

My USF Credit Union number is 28### because they only recently decided to allow students to join when I signed up in August of 1990...

As the years went on... I took some time off, but came back in 1997 ... I was at the Old Sombrero for 80-3... went to every game when I was a student (missed a few as an alum)... went to most basketball games... enjoyed the NIT game (Coppin State)...

Campus is growing... it looks better now, but it has lost some character...

Looking forward to seeing what happens next year -- 2006 will be USF 50th Anniversary!!

[BullGrad95]

Fall 90 - Spring 95 (includes a GTEDS internship - in accounting, not MIS by the way)

Moved into Beta 2 West with a guy I knew from high school.  Had a few other friends from high school that lived in the dorms also.  My roomie never stayed the weekends, so I was solo.  After fall semester I got into a fraternity, but also made a bunch of friends in the Beta dungeon.  

Like many others, I remember that B-Ball was in full stride back then.  The dome did rock.  We would love to go to the games and sit right under the baskets.  Watching Ro fire up the 3's all day long.  My funny story is that I Gary Alexander and I end up standing in front of a stamp vending machine.  I ended up getting the last book of stamps and he's looking pissed.  I offer him whatever he needs, and I end up chatting with him for a few minutes, talking about the game where he slamed one home in the closing seconds to beat UF somewhere around Thanksgiving weekend of 1990.  He's a real nice guy.  

After two years of dorm living moved into many different apartments up and down 42nd and 46th streets.  Too many parties, too many intramural games, too many adventures to recall.  Although I did love the 1/2 sandwich and bowl of chili combo at the Greenery on Sunday nights after the fraternity meetings.  I wouldn't trade my USF experience for anything.  

PS - I also met Mrs. BullGrad while at school.  We never dated while in school, but reconnected a few years later, and the rest is history.

[Bulls 1]

1976 -1980 No football, no sundolls, I think we had three women in the civil engineering program and about 10 in the entire college.  Half of them were... should I say - let me be kind - unattractive.  Plenty of beer drinking at the empty keg and at Schlitz brewery (I think it was called the brown bottle)

[BULLO12]

Does anybody remember a little pub just off campus called "The Rose" or something like that?  It was on Fletcher I recall.

Is it still there?