Apparently, the USF Bulls Were Just Happy to Be Bowl Eligible

Talk about a tale of two seasons.

In one season, yet.

There USF coach Charlie Strong was, fresh off a 10-2 record in his first season leading the Bulls, putting respectable crowds into Raymond James seats, and jetting them to a 7-0 start this year.

 

And then, whoa ...

 

The rest of the season. That's what.

Fresh off gaining bowl eligibility in mid-October, USF got an early start on Halloween horror by being blitzed in Houston, 57-36.

The Bulls would never score that many points in another game. Worse, most of their opponents would. The two that didn't -- Cincinnati and Temple -- beat them, anyway.

 

 

Clearly, this was a hairy situation for USF.

One moment, they were riding high, ready to stake a claim as another Other Five program ready to taunt the CFP, and then, dudes found out the hard way they weren't who they thought they were.

 

But they still had a bowl game.

In their own house, as it turned out, which in their case, isn't exactly a buzzkill.

The Bad Boy Mowers Gasparilla Bowl could be the funnest week between Mardi Gras and Spring Break.

At least, the Marshall Thundering Herd thought so, to the tune of a 38-20 beatdown:

 

Kinda took a lotta the Gas outta the parilla for the homeboys.

Now, USF's 2019 season has morphed into a horse of a different color. Among other things:

• The Bulls were expecting to make a bigger statement with Wisconsin, Georgia Tech, and BYU on their schedule, and
• Their financial commitment to Strong doubles.

One of those factors is carved in stone. The other isn't. The pressure's on. Again.