College football fans will never forget the five overtime thriller they witnessed.
USF traveled to Honolulu to take on San Jose State in the Hawai’i Bowl on Christmas Eve. This marked the Bulls’ second straight bowl appearance under second year head coach Alex Golesh.
Each offense quickly traded punts to start the game. Then, SJSU methodically worked their way down the field and into the USF 10-yard line. The Bulls were able to bend but not break defensively as wide receiver TreyShun Hurry turned a drag route upfield and towards the end zone before USF nickelback Jarvis Lee was able to force a last second fumble at the goal line that rolled off the pylon and resulted in a touchback.
Bryce Archie started his eighth straight game at quarterback to end the season for the Bulls. They made quick work of their turnover as Archie found senior wide receiver Sean Atkins deep down the sideline for a 42-yard gain to set the offense up in deep SJSU territory. USF became the first team to find the end zone in the contest as running back Nay’Quan Wright rumbled his way towards the goal line for a 3-yard touchdown run to start the scoring at 7-0.
Each team traded punts again before the South Florida defense made another huge play. SJSU quarterback Walker Eget tried to fit in a pass outside the numbers on second and long that got tipped in the air and right into the hands of a waiting USF defensive back Tavin Ward. With blocks set up ahead of him, Ward returned the ball all the way into the opposing red zone to give the Bulls great starting field position. Running back Kelley Joiner Jr capitalized off the turnover by bouncing off defenders for a touchdown to put the Bulls up by two scores midway through the second quarter at 14-0.
San Jose State responded by making up for their turnover as they made their way down the field over the next five minutes of game-time in nine plays capped off by a 3-yard touchdown run up the middle by running back Floyd Chalk IV. The score cut the USF lead in half at 14-7.
It did not take the Bulls long to make up the touchdown as the special teams dialed up a fake reverse on the kickoff return which gave running back Ta’Ron Keith the room to pound up the middle of the field and race defenders as he dove for the goal line. The electric kickoff return touchdown reestablished the two score lead at 21-7 just seconds later.
With under two minutes to go in the first half, the Spartans rushed down the field to set up a successful 42-yard field goal as time expired to send USF into the locker room with a 21-10 lead.
SJSU started the second half with a slow, yet effective drive that took them all the way down inside the opposing 5-yard line. With their backs against the wall, South Florida’s defense came in clutch again as they forced three straight incompletions to force the Spartans into another field goal situation. The defensive stand kept the Bulls ahead at 21-13.
The USF offense stalled on their ensuing drive which set up another opportunity for San Jose State following a punt. A deep catch over the middle of the field by TreyShun Hurry gave the Spartans an easy path to the end zone via a 5-yard check-down pass to tight end Jackson Canaan. The touchdown brought the game much closer at 21-20 with SJSU finding a groove in the third quarter.
The Bulls mixed inside runs by Kelley Joiner Jr with outside looks to Sean Atkins to work the offense into the red zone. On third and short, Bryce Archie faced immediate pressure which resulted in a sack and forced South Florida to settle for a 33-yard field goal from kicker John Cannon. The field goal gave USF slight breathing room at a score of 24-20.
A defensive stand on the next drive by USF gave them an opportunity to expand the fourth quarter lead before Bryce Archie made a poor decision to try and hit his receiver over the middle of the field and got intercepted by SJSU linebacker Noah McNeal-Franklin who returned the ball to the opposing 2-yard line. The costly turnover set up a one-play drive for the Spartans as running back Lamar Radcliffe easily ran up the middle of the Bulls defense for a touchdown. The scoring drive gave San Jose St their first lead of the game at 27-24 with eleven minutes of game time remaining.
Archie’s woes continued on the following drive as an incompletion, negative rush, and sack resulted in a three and out that sorely hampered South Florida’s chance to come back in the contest. The USF defense stood tall again as they forced another punt. However, the second half collapse was evident when the offense fell victim to another three and out possession.
Though SJSU was able to take off an ample amount of game time, the defense of USF was able to provide a crucial stand that gave the Bulls a chance beginning at their own 10-yard line. The offense was unable to exhibit any sort of passing attack as a fourth and long forced Alex Golesh to decide to punt the ball and rely on his timeouts to give the offense one final opportunity.
The defense did as they were required and stopped the SJSU offense and gave the Bulls offense 43 seconds starting from their own 48-yard line. Archie was finally able to get the offense going for the first time in the second half as an incredible leaping effort from wide receiver Keshaun Singleton set USF up in field goal range to tie the game at the end of the fourth quarter. From 41-yards out, John Cannon hit the ball off the inside of the the right upright to send the game to overtime by a matter of inches.
USF began overtime with possession and capitalized as USF executed an incredible fake end around bootleg which allowed Bryce Archie to find tight end Payten Singletary down the sideline to the 1-yard line. They finished off the possession with a two-yard run that Ta’Ron Keith bounced into the end zone to put the Bulls up 34-27.
The South Florida defense gave a great effort to force SJSU to fourth down twice but ultimately faltered. On fourth and goal from the 4-yard line Walker Eget threw a back shoulder fade to wide receiver Matthew Coleman, who made an incredible contorting catch and reached across the goal line to send the game to a second overtime at 34-34.
The Bulls defense forced a stop on the next Spartans possession and forced them to settle for a field goal on fourth down to give SJSU a 37-34 lead. Then, a quick three and out from the USF offense brought John Cannon out to attempt a 36-yard field goal. This time, he drilled it down the middle to tie the game at 37-37 and set up a third overtime.
The Bulls had the first two-point attempt for the third overtime and ran a fake rollout to the left which Bryce Archie pulled back and shoveled to Payten Singletary to make the score 39-37. SJSU dialed up a back corner fade on a rollout which was grabbed by Matthew Coleman to tie the game once again at 39-39.
To begin the fourth overtime, the Spartans called another back corner fade, this time to the other side of the end zone and to wide receiver Justin Lockhart, who was unable to haul in the conversion. Then, USF threw a backwards pass to Sean Atkins who attempted to throw to wide receiver Michael Brown-Stephens but ended up barely out of bounds to send the game to its fifth overtime.
In the fifth overtime, Bryce Archie fired a bullet over the middle of the end zone that Keshaun Singleton climbed the ladder to put the ball in San Jose State’s court at 41-39. Then, the Bulls defense forced Eget out of the pocket towards his left as he chucked a floater to the end zone that was knocked out of the air. The defensive stand gave USF a thrilling overtime victory to cap off their season.
The walk-off five overtime victory marked USF’s second straight bowl victory. The Bulls beat Syracuse 45-0 in the Boca Raton Bowl last year. The game was a complete performance from both the offense and defense, especially with their stellar overtime performance. Sean Atkins stood out as the most impactful player for the Bulls as he hauled in 11 receptions for 104 yards. In the process, Atkins became South Florida’s all-time leading receiver as he finished with 2,159 total career yards in the ultimate game of his walk-on to superstar collegiate journey.
The Bulls will look to ride high on their Hawai’i Bowl win during the upcoming offseason and will begin their 2025 campaign when they host Boise State in August.