They've Arrived
September 9th 2010 13:57
If you were to ask every South Florida fan the one game that they were most excited to see, I’m sure most of them would give you the same answer. No, not a conference game, and no, not their opener, the first game under new coach Skip Holtz. They would all say this Saturday, when the Bulls play what will be their biggest game in program history against Florida.
Yes, the Bulls have already beaten Florida State last year and Auburn in 2007, a year in which Florida lost to the Tigers. But this is the biggest one for USF. They may not have the prestige, tradition, or trophies that the “Big 3" of the state do, but beating UF would be a huge step forward for their program. Florida, ranked 8th in the country after last week’s sloppy win, has always seemed to have superiority over USF in a way, while still respecting South Florida. The Bulls can change that with just one hot Florida afternoon.
Living close to Tampa, I’ve sort of taken in USF as my “other” team. What they’ve done in only 14 years is amazing. But as of recently, the growth in the program has stalled just a bit. Jim Leavitt had built that program from scratch, but then got to violent with a player and thought of himself as bigger than the program. Enter Skip Holtz, son of Lou, the new head-man for the Bulls. Will he be able to get the Bulls out of this recent sputter. Beating Florida would be a great start. With the Gators reeling a bit after the Miami of Ohio game, in which they looked atrocious, this could be a good sign for the Bulls. Only problem is, the Gators usually make sure it doesn’t happen again, and with USF in town, not wanting to go down the same path FSU went has them a little more focused. If they work out half of their problems, the Bulls are in trouble, but if they come out looking lost again, we might just see another SEC team upset in non-conference.
While walking through a local sports merchandise and memorabilia store, I passed shirts on the wall that said things like “Stampede The Swamp” and “Stomp The Chomp”. The fans are ready. They know this can happen. They’ve already taken out FSU last year. But they weren’t the team many thought they were at the start of the season. And besides, this is Florida. When the Bulls come through that tunnel, they’ll know they’ve arrived. Welcome to the big time South Florida, you’ve earned it. Just don’t get to comfortable.
Yes, the Bulls have already beaten Florida State last year and Auburn in 2007, a year in which Florida lost to the Tigers. But this is the biggest one for USF. They may not have the prestige, tradition, or trophies that the “Big 3" of the state do, but beating UF would be a huge step forward for their program. Florida, ranked 8th in the country after last week’s sloppy win, has always seemed to have superiority over USF in a way, while still respecting South Florida. The Bulls can change that with just one hot Florida afternoon.
Living close to Tampa, I’ve sort of taken in USF as my “other” team. What they’ve done in only 14 years is amazing. But as of recently, the growth in the program has stalled just a bit. Jim Leavitt had built that program from scratch, but then got to violent with a player and thought of himself as bigger than the program. Enter Skip Holtz, son of Lou, the new head-man for the Bulls. Will he be able to get the Bulls out of this recent sputter. Beating Florida would be a great start. With the Gators reeling a bit after the Miami of Ohio game, in which they looked atrocious, this could be a good sign for the Bulls. Only problem is, the Gators usually make sure it doesn’t happen again, and with USF in town, not wanting to go down the same path FSU went has them a little more focused. If they work out half of their problems, the Bulls are in trouble, but if they come out looking lost again, we might just see another SEC team upset in non-conference.
While walking through a local sports merchandise and memorabilia store, I passed shirts on the wall that said things like “Stampede The Swamp” and “Stomp The Chomp”. The fans are ready. They know this can happen. They’ve already taken out FSU last year. But they weren’t the team many thought they were at the start of the season. And besides, this is Florida. When the Bulls come through that tunnel, they’ll know they’ve arrived. Welcome to the big time South Florida, you’ve earned it. Just don’t get to comfortable.
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