Know the Foe: USF

After the open date, Memphis returns to action on Thursday for a road game against South Florida. The Tigers have won five straight against the Bulls, and they will look to improve the all-time series to 11-4.

Like Memphis, USF lost its head coach to the SEC in the offseason, and it brought in Brian Hartline as the seventh head coach in program history. It’s Hartline’s first year as a head coach after he spent nine years on staff at Ohio State, where he spent the last three seasons as the offensive coordinator and receivers coach.

Hartline brought in the top transfer portal in the American and the No. 58 portal class in the country, according to 247Sports, but the season hasn’t been what some of the expectations were before the season. After a 4-0 start, the Bulls lost back-to-back games against Temple and UTSA, and they’re coming off a third loss against East Carolina. 

While it has three losses in conference, it hasn’t been fault to the defense. USF’s defense leads the conference in scoring defense and fumbles recovered, and it’s second in the conference in total yards allowed, rushing defense and passing defense.T

The unit is allowing only 15.1 points per game and 312.7 yards of total offense per game, and they’ve only allowed more than 20 points twice this season.

Senior defensive back Ayden Jackson leads the team with 50 tackles and four pass deflections, while safety Tavin Ward has added 48 tackles and an interception.

While the defense has played well, the offense hasn’t been able to get much going, and the Bulls rank No. 8 in the conference in scoring and last in yards per game, averaging 316.2 yards per game.

LSU transfer Michael Van Buren Jr. started the season as USF’s starting quarterback, but he missed the last game with an injury. He has thrown for 1,273 yards, six touchdowns and no interceptions, but it’s unclear if he will be available on Thursday. 

Mississippi State transfer Luke Kromenhoek started the last game against East Carolina, and he threw for 179 yards and a touchdown. On the season, he has thrown for 239 yards and a touchdown with a 74.3 percent completion percentage.

Ohio State transfer Bryson Rodgers has been the go-to receiver this year, and he has recorded 395 yards and three touchdowns on 38 receptions.

On the ground, USF has rushed for 1,334 yards, and it has two running backs with more than 200 yards on the season. Dartmouth transfer D.J. Crowther leads the team with 689 yards and seven touchdowns on 138 carries, while Morgan State transfer Jason Collins Jr. has added 264 yards and three touchdowns on 57 attempts.