by Carter Brantley
In what might be the biggest win in the history of their relatively young program, the University of South Florida Bulls took down the mighty Florida Gators on a walk-off kick by Nico Gramatica.
While the final score and dramatic finale certainly tell the tale of how tension-filled this game ended up being, even that might not capture just how important and program-altering this win might be for USF.
Remember when the Bulls took down Auburn in that magical ’08 season that had USF reach number 2 in the nation?
Well, it might be even bigger than that victory.
UF has been seen as one of the kings of Florida football for, well, forever, and the Bulls have always been seen as a cute little team in Tampa.
While that still might be the case, as the Gators’ pool of resources from their ultra rich donors and the intense emphasis placed on their athletic department being successful gives them quite an edge, USF did a whole lot to reduce that gap in perception Saturday night.
The stars of the game were not on the offensive side of the ball, although they did a marvelous job of making sure to not lose this game by allowing any momentum-shifting turnovers.
It was the defense and special teams, as Nico managed to nail 3 out of his 4 attempted kicks, and the group took advantage of UF’s seemingly nervous disposition, with the Gators’ punt team screwing up a snap badly enough to give up a safety in the 3rd quarter.
Gators star quarterback DJ Lagway threw an interception to cornerback James Chenault in that fateful third quarter that turned this game from “Hey, USF’s hanging in there” into a “Is UF really going to lose?”
The Bulls also limited what seemed like should’ve been a potent Gators rushing attack with the seemingly wide gap in talent in the trenches, as UF only had 4.3 yards per carry, a respectable number versus a big-time program but an embarrassment against an American Conference opponent.
While neither team played a very clean game, the Gators managed to commit 11 penalties and lose 103 yards in the process.
Byrum Brown managed to get star receiver Keshaun Singleton involved with an impressively acrobatic TD catch, the 2nd for the receiver in as many games to start the year.
Alex Golesh continues to make a serious case to be hired at an elite program.
While the former Volunteers coach has made no indications of his thoughts on this, it’s hard to ignore the impressive resume he’s building for himself in Tampa.
Obviously it’s hopeful he sticks around as long as possible, and for now it’s important to embrace such a monumental occurrence for the Bulls.
Forget all the stats and all the specifics; the USF Bulls took down those mighty Florida Gators.
The Miami Hurricanes can wait, it’s time to celebrate.
