The USF Bulls dropped their third consecutive game on Saturday afternoon, falling to the Memphis Tigers 21-3. The Bulls are now 2-4 on the season and 0-2 in the conference.
It was a tough week for the Bulls, as USF moved the team to Orlando on Tuesday before Hurricane Milton arrived to prepare for the Memphis Tigers.
The game was initially scheduled for Friday Night in a nationally televised contest on ESPN before moving the game to Saturday afternoon.
With the Tampa market still reeling from Milton’s results, the decision was made to move the game to Camping World Stadium on Friday.
With this loss, the Bulls effectively eliminated themselves from title contention in the AAC, and any thought of competing in the College Football Playoffs is now gone.
The schedule does lighten up in the next two weeks, with games against UAB and FAU before a matchup with Navy at Raymond James Stadium.
Memphis Scores Quickly and Early
Once again, as was the case against Tulane, the Tigers built a quick 14-0 lead, and that was pretty much your ballgame, as the Bulls would manage just a 42-yard Nico Gramatica FG in the first half to make it 14-3.
The Tigers scored a touchdown in the second half, making the final margin 21-3.
Quarterback Byrum Brown missed the game as he was on the sidelines on crutches throughout the game due to his leg injury suffered in the Tulane game.
Without Byrum Brown on the field, the Bulls once again struggled to run the ball, gaining just 24 yards on 19 carries.
Bryce Archie made his first career start for USF, going 22/41 for 234 yards with one interception.
Wide receiver Sean Atkins had a rough day as he dropped three passes that would have kept the chains moving for the Bulls. Atkins ended up with five catches, tying him with Andre Davis for the most catches in program history with 153.
Good Defensive Effort
However, there were some bright spots along the way. Defensively, the Bulls played well against the high-powered Memphis offense, giving up 349 yards and 208 through the air, one of the lowest passing totals this season for Memphis.
Linebacker Mac Harris had his best game as a Bull with nine tackles and led a strong defensive effort. Tavin Ward had a highlight-reel interception, and Jhalyn Shuler, playing his first game back fully recovered from his injury, was the Bulls’ leading tackler with 10 tackles.
Alex Golesh was impressed with the defensive effort. “I told our whole team that, defensively how we played tonight, that is the standard. You run the ball, you hit, you’re violent at the point of attack, make plays when there’s balls in the air. Winning defense. That’s what defense at South Florida should be.”
No one knows what they will find when they return to their apartments and homes. Linebacker Mac Harris summed it up this way, “It was just tough. I’m trying to balance both of them, preparing to come out here and be the best team we could be, as well as dealing with adversity back at home.”
The Bulls will be home next week to take on UAB. Hopefully Raymond James Stadium will be ready to host the matchup.
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