SOUTH FLORIDA BULLS NOTES:
USF DRIVE STARTERS
Bulls making 11th bowl appearance, first since 2018.
Bulls 5-win improvement over 2022 ranks second in FBS and is a program-best year-over-year improvement.
USF is second in nation in attendance increase in 2023.
SR LT Jennings’ 54 games played ties program record, started in 2018 bowl appearance, lone Bull to have played in the game.
Brown posts first-ever 3,000-yard passing season in program history, 64.1% completion is ahead of program season record.
Brown No. 7 FBS/No. 1 AAC in total offense (318), his 3,823 yards are 3rd-best in program history, 177 shy of 2nd 4,000-yard season.
Atkins posts at least 7 catches in each of last 7 games, owns USF season receptions (86) and receiving yards (961) records, 39 yards shy of program’s first-ever 1,000-yard receiving season.
$340 million, 35,000-seat on-campus stadium slated for 2027.
$25 million gift to name TGH Center for Athletic Excellence (football/lacrosse operations) set to open in 2026.
BULLS RIDE TURNAROUND TO 11TH BOWL GAME APPEARANCE
USF posted victory No. 100 in Raymond James Stadium on Senior Night to post the Bulls’ 18th winning record at home in 27 seasons and earn the 11th bowl bid in program history, first since a 2018 appearance in the Gasparilla Bowl. It will mark the Bulls’ fourth Bowl appearance in the state of Florida, adding the Boca Raton Bowl to Gasparilla (2018), Miami Beach (2015) and St. Petersburg (2008) bowl appearances.
I REMEMBER YOU: USF and Syracuse were both members of the BIG EAST Conference from 2005-2012, meeting every season during that span with USF posting a 6-2 mark in conference play. The teams rekindled the series in 2015 and 2016, with USF claiming victories in the home-and-home and the Bulls’ 45-24 victory in 2015 serving as a major turning point for the program, beginning a run of four-straight bowl games and propelling USF to 11-2 (2016) and 10-2 (2017) records in the following seasons, the best in program history.
WHAT A TURNAROUND: USF’s 5-win improvement over 2022 (6-6 from 1-11) is the second-best in the nation among 130 FBS teams behind only Northwestern (+6, 7-5 from 1-11) and the largest in program history, eclipsing a 4-win improvement from 2014 to 2015.
RECORD SETTING OFFENSE: Alex Golesh’s offense enters the bowl game having posted: 1) the program’s first 3,000-yard passer, 2) the individual record for season receptions, 3) the record for season receiving yards, 4) the team season passing yardage record, and 5) the sixth 5,000-yard team total offense season, while looking to post: 1) the second individual 4,000-yard total offense season in program history, 2) the best individual season pass completion percentage, 3) the program’s first 1,000-yard receiver in a season and 4) third 6,000-yard season.
ATKINS DIET: Sean Atkins has set program records for receptions and receiving yards while injecting reliability and explosiveness into the Bulls’ offensive diet. Atkins has seven or more receptions in each of the last SEVEN games, as he is shattering USF’s season receptions record (67) with 86 catches and USF’s season receiving yards mark (879), now with 961, just 39 shy of the first 1,000-yard receiving season at USF.
NOTING THE OPPONENT: SYRACUSE
Syracuse is coming off a 35-31 victory over Wake Forest in their final regular season game. The Orange posted 468 yards of offense – 224 passing and 244 rushing – as LeQuint Allen Jr. ran for a career-best 145 yards. Garrett Shrader threw for 173 yards and three touchdowns, alongside one rushing touchdown and Damien Alford had four catches for 126 yards and a career-best two touchdowns. The Orange won two of their last three games, also beating Pittsburgh (28-13), to earn bowl eligibility. Syracuse fired head coach Dino Babers with one regular season game remaining and recently hired Georgia defensive backs coach Fran Brown to lead the program. Tight ends coach Nunzio Campanile will serve as interim head coach for the bowl game and led the Orange vs. Wake Forest. Syracuse will be making its 28th bowl appearance (16-10-1). The Orange began playing football in 1889 and have a 743-575-449 record in 135 seasons. Running back Ernie Davis won the 1961 Heisman Trophy for Syracuse. Syracuse will be making its second-straight bowl appearance – falling to Minnesota (28-20) in the 2022 Pinstripe Bowl – and third in the last 10 years. Syracuse also has victories over Colgate (65-0), Western Michigan (48-7), Purdue (35-20) and Army (29-16) and started 4-0 on the season. Syracuse ranks 85th nationally posting 358.7 yards per game and 79th averaging 25.5 points per game. The Orange defense stands 65th giving up 378.3 yards per game and 49th giving up 23.8 points. Veteran quarterback Garrett Shrader passed for 1,686 yards and 13 touchdowns while completing 63 percent of his passes and running for 469 yards and eight touchdowns. Second Team All-ACC running back LeQuint Allen Jr. has run for 1,062 yards and nine touchdowns and ranks third in the ACC in rushing. He has a team-best 36 receptions and a team-best 10 total touchdowns. Wide receiver Damien Alford has 29 catches for 527 yards and three touchdowns. Linebacker Marlowe Wax earned Second Team All-ACC and leads the team with 101 tackles and has forced four fumbles. His 35.5 career tackles for loss are seventh all-time at Syracuse.
SYRACUSE ORANGE NOTES:
OPENING DRIVE
ORANGE FACE SOUTH FLORIDA IN ROOFCLAIM.COM BOCA RATON BOWL
• Syracuse makes its second-straight bowl game appearance when it takes on South Florida in the RoofClaim.com Boca Raton Bowl on Dec. 21 in FAU Stadium. • The Orange are one of 11 ACC teams that qualified for a bowl game in 2023, posting a 6-6 record. • The game will air on ESPN, with Matt Barrie (PxP), Dan Mullen (analyst) and Harry Lyles Jr. (reporter) on the call. • A win would give the Orange a winning record in back-to-back seasons for the first time since 2012-13.
GOING BOWLING
• The 2023 RoofClaim.com Boca Raton Bowl marks Syracuse’s 28th bowl game appearance. The Orange have won four of their last five bowl games and have an all-Ɵ me record of 16-10-1. • Syracuse’s .611 bowl winning percentage ranks eighth all-Ɵ me among teams with 15 appearances and is the highest for an ACC school. • From 1989-96, the Orange won seven-straight bowl games. The streak is the seventh-longest in college football postseason history. Florida State owns the record with 11-consecutive bowl-game victories from 1985-96.
BACK-TO-BACK BOWLS
• Syracuse will play in back-to-back bowl games for the first time since the 2012-13 campaigns. • The Orange are 1-of-32 Power 5 Conference schools to go bowling in back-to-back seasons.
BROWN TO LEAD ORANGE FOOTBALL
• Fran Brown was named the 31st head coach of Syracuse Football on November 28. • He takes over the helm of the Orange program after spending the last two seasons at Georgia where he helped the Bulldogs to back-to-back undefeated regular seasons and the 2022 National Championship. • According to 247Sports, Brown is the No. 1 recruiter in the nation for the 2024 recruiting class and played a critical role in bringing top talent to Georgia.
ALLEN JOINS RARE COMPANY
• RB LeQuint Allen Jr. is the 13th player in program history to rush for 1,000 yards in a season. • He joined the elite group with a career-high 144 yards against Wake Forest, increasing his season total to 1,062. That total ranks 12th on Syracuse’s single-season record list. • It marks the 20th 1,000-yard rushing season in program history and the third-straight season ‘Cuse has a back reach the 1,000 yard mark after Sean Tucker did so in 2021 and 2022. It’s the fourth Ɵ me in program history that Syracuse has seen a player reach 1,000 yards in three-straight seasons.
SERIES HISTORY
• Syracuse and South Florida have met 10 times on the gridiron. The Bulls own an 8-2 advantage in the all-Ɵ me series. • The squads met every year from 2005-12 when both were members of The BIG EAST Conference. • Both of the Orange’s wins over the Bulls came on South Florida’s home field.
LAST TIME VS. SOUTH FLORIDA
• Syracuse scored the first three times it had the ball to take an early lead, but South Florida rallied for a 45-20 victory. • QB Eric Dungey was 32-of-48 passing for 350 yards and two touchdowns. • WR Ervin Phillips had 10 receptions for 95 yards and a touchdown, while WR Amba Eta-Tawo recorded his third-straight 100-yard receiving game with eight catches for 123 yards. • RB Dontae Strickland carried the ball 30 times for 127 yards. • DB Daivon Ellison led the ‘Cuse defense with 11 tackles and one forced fumble. • The Bulls rushed for 239 yards on 35 attempts and three touchdowns.
