Joey Johnston Athletics Senior Writer
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No longer an afterthought, the USF Bulls strode with purpose into Tuesday’s American Athletic Conference Football Kickoff 2024 event at the Loews Arlington in Texas, secure that last season provided the necessary foundation and confident that even brighter days are ahead.
“As a program, we are ready to make the next step,” head coach Alex Golesh said to the gathered media.
Media members agree with Golesh’s assessment. The Bulls were picked fourth in the AAC Preseason Media Poll (after being relegated to 13th last season), coming in behind front-running Memphis (23 first-place votes), UTSA (four) and Tulane (two). The other first-place vote went to AAC newcomer Army, which was voted fifth overall.
Notably, USF will get early opportunities to prove itself in the AAC race with its Sept. 28 league opener occurring at Tulane, followed by an ESPN Friday night home showdown against Memphis on Oct. 11. The Tigers claimed an offensive slugfest at Memphis last year, 59-50.
“I don’t know about expectations, but I know that all of what we do starts with accountability,” Golesh said. “The guys have bought into being accountable to each other. They bought into doing things the right way. They bought into living to a standard that’s different than the normal person.
“We expect elite effort. We expect elite results. And we certainly expect an elite process. Slowly but surely, the guys in our locker room have demanded that for themselves.”
Bulls quarterback Byrum Brown said he’s surrounded by a team of believers.
“We’re training each and every day to be the best in the country,” Brown said. “Not just win the AAC, but win the whole national title. That’s why we’re out there. We’re working hard each and every day, focusing on our process, focusing on ourselves in the inner circle and ready to keep proving ourselves — one day and one play at a time.
“Our coach (Golesh) preaches that and he has been the same guy every day. So, we believe in him and how he’s guiding us.”
During Tuesday’s introductions, first-year AAC commissioner Tim Pernetti said Golesh “really embodies the spirit of what we’re trying to accomplish as a conference.” Pernetti said Golesh’s journey, which included leaving Russia with his family for America and working his way up the coaching ladder, simulated “the inspiration behind the model in the American and the American way.”
Golesh admitted he felt “so much more confident walking in here” because he knows about the strength of USF’s team and what has been built.
“We have a chance to excel,” Golesh said. “You know where the holes are. You know how to cover them up. You know where we need to improve.
“But one of the biggest things moving forward is the commitment we have as a university. That commitment is real right now. We are pouring resources into our athletic department, certainly pouring them into football, and our administration has given us every imaginable opportunity to be successful. We will continue to be aggressive in how we schedule, how we recruit, how we retain our players and how we prepare our players to be the absolute best they can be.”
Golesh said Brown stands as the best example of how a USF player should look.
“He sets the tone for toughness, for attitude and for effort within our program — and our defensive players will tell you that we go as he goes as a football team,” Golesh said. “I think the future is bright with him in charge.”
Golesh also spotlighted cornerback Ben Knox, the other player he brought to the AAC Football Kickoff, as an example of persistence.
“He had won a starting job at corner last August, but then he got hurt,” Golesh said. “He’s a man of few words and would only speak when he needed to say something. But you knew he was the pulse of our defense. When he got hurt, it was like the wind got taken out of our team. So, we’re thrilled to have him back.”
At the same time, Golesh said Brown and Knox are among the USF team leaders — but not the only ones.
“The two guys we brought here, there are about 14 other dudes you would have felt comfortable bringing,” Golesh said. “That says a lot about where we’re going. We’re just more physically and mentally mature than we’ve ever been.
“As we go into August, the question is how will we handle adversity? We haven’t faced that as a team since the season ended. We haven’t had to overcome anything and that’s really going to define who we are. We have to continue to raise the standard in Tampa. But the fact is, I’m more energized than I’ve ever been and I feel like our program is more energized than it has ever been.”
The Bulls have their first full-squad workout next Wednesday as they begin preparations for the Aug. 31 home season-opener against Bethune-Cookman.
After that? It’s an ambitious non-conference slate, including a Sept. 7 trip to SEC powerhouse Alabama and a Sept. 21 home game against the Miami Hurricanes.
Golesh was asked how USF will react to that schedule.
“Yeah, (but remember that) Alabama and Miami have got to play South Florida,” said Golesh, turning the tables.
“I think it’s absolutely imperative for us to play the best teams we possibly can. I think playing Miami at home is an absolutely huge deal for us. Going to Alabama is absolutely huge for us. They came to our place (in 2023) and we had every opportunity to be successful in that game, but couldn’t finish it. Now we get to go redeem ourselves.
“Our guys will be more than ready to play in those games and that’s what we’re recruiting to — opportunities to go play big-time college football on national TV where we represent our conference and give ourselves a chance. You win this conference and you’re (likely) going to go play in the (12-team) playoff. We have a lot of exciting things to play for.”
Once, the Bulls had nowhere to go but up.
Now they are setting their own tempo.
“So much in college football these days, everybody’s trying to build teams,” Golesh said. “We have been adamant about laying the foundation for a program. We want something that’s sustainable, something that will last.
“I don’t know about expectations, but the one thing that has stayed the same since we got here is we want to get as good as we can, as fast as we can. The race has always been against ourselves.”
And as Tuesday’s AAC Football Kickoff clearly displayed, the Bulls are gaining ground.
