South Florida & Daniels get past UL late

2009 South Florida Bulls ... Head Coach: Jim Leavitt

2009 Schedule
CFN Prediction: 7-5
2009 Record: 7-3

9/5 Wofford W 40-7
9/12 at WKU W 35-13
9/19 Char Southern W 59-0
9/26 at Florida St W 17-7
10/3 at Syracuse W 34-20
10/10 OPEN DATE
10/15 Cincinnati L 34-17
10/24 at Pitt L 41-14
10/30 West Va W 30-19
11/7 OPEN DATE
11/12 at Rutgers L 31-0
11/21 Louisville W 34-22
11/28 Miami
12/5 at Connecticut

2008 Schedule
CFN Prediction: 7-5
2008 Record: 8-5

8/30 UT Martin W 56-7
9/5 at UCF W 31-24 OT
9/12 Kansas W 37-34
9/20 at FIU W 17-9
9/27 at NC St W 41-10
10/2 Pitt L 26-21
10/11 OPEN DATE
10/18 Syracuse W 45-13
10/25 at Louisville L 24-20
10/30 at Cincinnati L 24-10
11/8 OPEN DATE
11/15 Rutgers L 49-16
11/22 Connecticut W 17-13
11/29 OPEN DATE
12/6 at West Virginia L 13-7
St. Petersburg Bowl
12/20 Memphis W 41-14

South Florida Bulls

Nov. 21
at South Florida 34 … Louisville 22
B.J. Daniels dominated with a 16-yard touchdown pass to Dontavia Bogan to start the scoring on the way to a 14-0 USF lead, and he controlled the second half with a 20-yard touchdown run to start out the second half and put the game away with a one-yard touchdown run with just over five minutes to play. But Louisville didn’t go down quietly, scoring 16 points in the second quarter helped by a 20-yard Scott Long touchdown catch and a 60-yard Trent Guy punt return for a score. Darius Ashley ran for a 17-yard score in the fourth to pull the Cardinals within five, but that was it. USF outgained the Cardinals 538 yards to 313.
Player of the Game: South Florida QB B.J. Daniels completed 20-of-34 passes for 304 yards and a touchdown, and he ran 22 times for 141 yards and two scores.
Louisville: Passing: Adam Froman, 20-35, 232 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Darius Ashley, 10-42, 1 TD, Receiving: Scott Long, 6-96, 1 TD
South Florida: Passing: B.J. Daniel, 20-34, 304 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: B.J. Daniels, 20-34, 304 yds, 1 TD, Receiving: Jessie Hester, 5-43  i, USF will have to continue the offensive balance, and will need to do a better job defensively on third downs, to pull out the win.
What It All Means: The Cardinals stayed in the game for three quarters, but the defense didn’t come up with an answer for B.J. Daniels and the offense didn’t do enough to keep up the pace. The Bull offensive line continues to struggle, and that’s not a plus against an aggressive Rutgers defensive front in the season finale. The problem is that there isn’t a whole lot to build on. The young players getting time don’t appear to be world-beaters to get too fired up about, while the offense is having way too many problems putting points on the board. It’s not going to be much better next week.

Nov. 13
at Rutgers 31 … South Florida 0
Rutgers dominated from the start with Mohamed Sanu catching a 25-yard touchdown pass on the opening drive, Tim Brown making a 26-yard scoring grab in the third, and Joe Martinek putting the game well out of reach on a 37-yard run in the fourth. San San Te added three field goals including a 49-yarder in the fourth. South Florida gave up seven sacks and gained just 159 yards of total offense.
Player of the Game: Rutgers RB Joe Martinek ran 25 times for 128 yards and a score.
South Florida: Passing: B.J. Daniels, 7-17, 129 yds, 2 INT
Rushing: Mike Ford, 9-17, Receiving: A.J. Love, 4-80
Rutgers: Passing: Tom Savage, 15-30, 194 yd, 2 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Joe Martinek, 25-128, 1 TD, Receiving: Mohamed Sanu, 5-105, 1 TD 
What It All Means: Seven first downs, four turnovers, 159 yards of total offense … this was a total disaster in the team’s third loss in four weeks. The defense had its moments, Kion Wilson made 18 tackles and a tackle for loss, but with B.J. Daniels not getting any room to breathe against the Rutgers offensive front the attack didn’t go anywhere. With home games against Louisville and Miami coming up, there’s still time to turn things back around, but at this point, if the Bulls don’t beat the Cardinals, a bowl game isn’t a lock. The two games against Wofford and Charleston Southern means that USF needs to win seven games.

Oct. 30
at USF 30 … West Virginia 19
B.J. Daniels controlled the game with a 49-yard touchdown pass to Carlton Mitchell and an 11-yard scoring play to A.J. Love for a 17-9 USF lead, and then his legs took over finishing with 104 rushing yards. West Virginia kept it close with two Jarrett Brown touchdown runs, but after pulling within one on an 11-yard Brown dash, it was all USF the rest of the way with a six-yard Sterling Daniels touchdown catch and a 44-yard Eric Schwartz field goal. Kion Wilson made 12 tackles, an interception, and 2.5 tackles for loss.
Player of the Game: South Florida QB B.J. Daniels completed 13-of-26 passes for 232 yards and three touchdowns, and ran 14 times for 104 yards.
West Virginia : Passing: Jarrett Brown, 19-32, 205 yds, 1 INT
Rushing: Noel Devine, 17-42, Receiving: Alric Arnett, 6-84
USF: Passing: B.J. Daniels, 13-26, 232 yds, 3 TD
Rushing: B.J. Daniels, 14-104, Receiving: Carlton Mitchell, 5-132, 1 TD 
What It All Means: After a few rough outings, B.J. Daniels showed that he’s not only a playmaker to count on for the rest of the season, but a player to build the offense around for the next few years. The defense did a fantastic job of bottling up Noel Devine and the West Virginia running game, and while there were a few problems on third downs, this was the type of win that should set the tone for the finishing kick. Now the team can’t blow the positive momentum by losing next week at Rutgers.

Oct. 24
at Pitt 41 … South Florida 14
Pitt scored on its first six possessions with Bill Stull connecting with Jonathan Baldwin for a 40-yard touchdown pass and with Mike Cruz for a two-yard score, and Dion Lewis ran for two one-yard scores on the way to a 41-7 lead. South Florida killed itself with several penalties and no offensive pop managing just 212 yards of total offense with a three-yard Mike Ford rushing touchdown before finally getting back on the board with a 20-yard Dontavia Bogan touchdown catch in the final ten seconds.
Player of the Game: Pitt QB Bill Stull completed 18-of-25 passes for 245 yards and two touchdowns with an interception.
South Florida: Passing: B.J. Daniels, 4-8, 54 yds, 2 INT
Rushing: B.J. Daniels, 15-50, Receiving: Sterling Griffin, 1-41
Pitt: Passing: Bill Stull, 18-25, 245 yds, 2 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Dion Lewis, 23-111, 2 TD, Receiving: Jonathan Baldwin, 6-144, 1 TD 
What It All Means: Oh you USF. This was the concern after the loss to Cincinnati that the team spent so much energy on. Was the team going to be able to bounce back and produce, or will it by flaky and play worse? Pitt had a lot to do with the loss, but USF killed itself with penalties and came up with a poor all-around game with a mere 212 yards of total offense and no defense on third downs. It’s not like the schedule eases up with West Virginia up next, and to have any chance, B.J. Daniels needs to throw better.

Oct. 15
Cincinnati 34 … at South Florida 17
Cincinnati overcame the loss of QB Tony Pike by getting a 75-yard touchdown run from backup Zach Collaros in the third quarter and a three-yard scoring run in the fourth. Pike connected with Armon Binns for two short touchdown passes in the second quarter for a 17-7 UC lead, but the Bulls battled back with a one-yard B.J. Daniels touchdown run and a 50-yard Eric Schwartz field goal. USF suffered from misfires, dropped passes and penalties, and wasn't able to come back in the fourth quarter. 
Player of the Game: Cincinnati QB Zach Collaros completed 4-of-7 passes for 72 yards with an interception, and he ran ten times for 132 yards and two touchdowns.
Cincinnati: Passing: Tony Pike, 12-25, 140 yds, 2 TD
Rushing: Zach Collaros, 10-132, 2 TD, Receiving: Mardy Gilyard, 5-75
South Florida: Passing: B.J. Daniels, 15-32, 208 yds, 1 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: B.J. Daniels, 16-74, 1 TD, Receiving: Pat Richardson, 4-36
What It All Means: After a sloppy performance against Syracuse, the Bulls needed to be razor-sharp against the Bearcats, and they weren't. The 12 penalties were killers, the dropped passes were demoralizing, the B.J. Daniels misfires hurt, and the inability to handle Zach Collaros running the ball proved costly. The key will be to not go into the tank. Usually, USF suffers a big loss and then struggles, and with a road trip to Pitt up next followed up by a date with West Virginia, the chance is there to go on an ugly run..
 
Oct. 3
South Florida 34 … at Syracuse 20
After a crazy start with five turnovers in the first five minutes, South Florida took control with a 26-yard Mike Ford touchdown run and a 33-yard Carlton Mitchell scoring grab. Syracuse, who got 186 receiving yards and two touchdowns from Mike Williams, fought back to pull within one, but it was all USF in the third quarter with a 20-point run highlighted by an 85-yard touchdown catch from Mitchell and an 18-yard interception return for a touchdown from Jason Pierre-Paul. SU turned it over seven times with five interceptions thrown by Greg Paulus.
Player of the Game: South Florida DB Nate Allen made eight tackles with two interceptions
Syracuse: Passing: Greg Paulus, 25-46, 269 yds, 2 TD, 5 INTX
Rushing: Delone Carter, 13-43, Receiving: Mike Williams, 13-186, 2 TD
South Florida: Passing: B.J. Daniels, 12-20, 208 yds, 2 TD
Rushing: Mike Ford, 13-68, 2 TD, Receiving: Carlton Mitchell, 6-139, 2 TD 
What It All Means: It wasn’t a perfect performance against Syracuse, but the defense came up with the big plays it needed to make it a blowout in the second half. Once again, B.J. Daniels had a very nice day in place of Matt Grothe, and while he didn’t run all that well, he didn’t throw any interceptions. Now at 5-0, the real work begins with Cincinnati, Pitt, and West Virginia up next. If the Bulls can at least win two of the three, they’ll be in the hunt for the Big East title up until the end.

Sept. 26
South Florida 17 … at Florida State 7
B.J. Daniels threw a 73-yard touchdown pass to Sterling Griffin and an eight-yarder to Ben Busbee in the second quarter for all the points USF would need in the stunning upset. The Bull defense dominated the Noles forcing four turnovers and just 288 yards of total offense, allowing only a three-yard Ty Jones touchdown run in the fourth. The Bulls were able to put the game away on a 27-yard Eric Schwartz field goal late in the fourth.
Player of the Game: USF QB B.J. Daniels completed 8-of-21 passes for 215 yards and two touchdowns with two interceptions, and he ran 23 times for 126 yards.
South Florida: Passing: B.J. Daniels, 8-21, 215 yds, 2 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: B.J. Daniels, 23-126, Receiving: Dontavious Bogan, 2-18
Florida State: Passing: Christian Ponder, 25-47, 269 yds
Rushing: Ty Jones, 12-21, 1 TD, Receiving: Bert Reed, 9-114
What It All Means: What do you do when you lose your all-star starting quarterback? You get a great game out of your backup and you get a swarming, dominant day from you defense. The USF defensive front wouldn’t let the Seminole backfield breathe with 12 tackles for loss and five sacks. This was the game the program has been waiting for, and this was the performance that shows that USF really can play with the in-state big boys. Now it’s about consistency. Yeah, the Bulls played great this week, but will they show up against Syracuse?

Sept. 19
at South Florida 59 … Charleston Southern 0
South Florida won the battle but might have lost the war. The offense rolled up 547 yards with Matt Grothe throwing two touchdown passes including a 50-yarder to Carlton Mitchell, and Nate Allen returned a blocked kick for a touchdown for a 21-0 first quarter lead. But Grothe was lost with a knee injury. B.J. Daniels stepped in and produced with two third quarter rushing scores and a 50-yard touchdown pass to Dontavia Bogan. Charleston Southern managed just 188 yards of total offense.
Player of the Game: South Florida QB B.J. Daniels completed 10-of-13 passes for 149 yards and a touchdown and ran eight times for 105 yards and two touchdowns.
Charleston Southern: Passing: A.J. Toscano, 13-24, 127 yds
Rushing: Antwan Ivey, 8-20, Receiving: Antwan Ivey, 6-34
South Florida: Passing: Matt Grothe, 11-14, 149 yds, 2 TD & B.J. Daniels, 10-13, 149 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: B.J. Daniels, 8-105, 2 TD, Receiving: Carlton Mitchell, 4-63, 1 TD
What It All Means: B.J. Daniels, welcome to the party. Matt Grothe, the Big East’s all-time leader in total yards, is gone for the year with a knee injury. The only positive is that it happened relatively early in the game so Daniels saw some live action before having to deal with the speed of Florida State and before the Big East season kicks in. The defense has played great against the garbage schedule, but now the secondary has to ramp up the production against the Nole passing attack, and Daniels has to be prepared to be as mistake-free as possible. Everyone needs to step up their game now without Grothe.

Sept. 12
South Florida 35 ... at Western Kentucky 13
USF QB Matt Grothe became the Big East's all-time total offense leader, but he and the Bulls took a while to put the game away. Grothe connected with Theo Wilson for a 14-yard touchdown and Moise Plancher scored from one and 20 yards out, but it wasn't until a 17-yard Ben Busbee touchdown catch in the fourth quarter before the Bulls could breathe easily. WKU's Marell Booker ran for a 15-yard touchdown in the third to pull within eight, but the O never got closer. The two teams combined for 22 penalties.
Player of the Game: South Florida RB Moise Plancher ran 18 times for 115 yards and two scores.
South Florida Passing: Matt Grothe, 13-22, 208 yds, 2 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Moise Plancher, 18-115, 2 TD, Receiving: Carlton Mitchell, 4-130
Western Kentucky: Passing: Brandon Smith, 13-26, 84 yds, 1 INT
Rushing: Brandon Smith, 21-105, Receiving: Jack Doyle, 4-20
What It All Means: The Bulls were fine against Western Kentucky, and came through when needed to put the game away, but it's time to start dominating more. The embarrassing non-conference slate continues with Charleston Southern up next before Florida State, and everything needs to be humming. DE George Selvie has to show up, Matt Grothe has to be more consistent, and a blowout win is a must to be prepared for the trip to Tallahassee. However, this is when the young team is supposed to grow up, and it's doing it.

Sept. 5
at South Florida 40 ... Wofford 7
It took a half for South Florida to get rolling, and after a two-yard Eric Breitenstein touchdown run to give Wofford a 7-7 tie, it was all the Bulls the rest of the way with 33 unanswered points. Moise Plancher ran for a nine-yard score and Matt Grothe connected with Theo Wilson for a six-yard touchdown to all but put the game away. The Bull defense put the clamps down allowing just 34 passing yards for the game and 211 yards of total offense.
Player of the Game: South Florida QB Matt Grothe completed 19-of-23 passes for 155 yards and a score, and he ran seven times for 44 yards.
Wofford: Passing: Mitch Allen, 3-9, 27 yds
Rushing: Eric Breitenstein, 13-121, 1 TD, Receiving: Brenton Bersin, 2-17
South Florida: Passing: Matt Grothe, 19-23, 155 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Moise Plancher, 12-78, 2 TD, Receiving: Carlton Mitchell, 6-37
What It All Means: Matt Grothe was razor sharp, but he didn't push the ball deep keeping everything short and underneath. It's not like the Bulls took a slew of big chances, they didn't need to against Wofford, but they were able to execute efficiently while also getting the reserves plenty of work. It's not like there's anything to play for over the next two weeks against Western Kentucky and Charleston Southern, so this is the time to experiment. This is the time to see more of backup QB B.J. Daniels, and this is the time to be rock-solid with the execution before the showdown at Florida State.