By Erik Slaby
This Saturday, 12:00 p.m. ET, the University of South Florida Bulls (4-1), coming off a win against the University of Cincinnati Bearcats on the road, return to Tampa to face the East Carolina University Pirates (2-3), led by first-year head coach Scottie Montgomery.
Last week, USF defeated inter-conference opponent Cincinnati in a 45-20 win. This win gives USF a 1-0 record in their conference so far this season. By halftime, it was a close game, with USF leading Cincinnati 24-20. In the second half, though, the USF defense stepped up and shut out Cincinnati. The defense forced four turnovers with three interceptions and one fumble recovery. The USF offense also scored 21 points in the second half. USF head coach Willie Taggart spoke about the defense’s performance after the win.
“I was really excited about our defense. That’s the defense that we all like to see. Guys are going out and getting turnovers. I was really impressed with the adjustments we made at halftime and the way our guys tackled in the second half.”
Running back Marlon Mack led USF offensively with 20 carries for 118 yard and two touchdowns. After this game, he moved to first on USF’s career rushing yards list with 2,755 yards in 28 career games. "The record feels great.” Mack stated, “I thank my O-Line for the last three years. It is a good feeling.” USF quarterback Quinton Flowers completed 16 of 26 passes for 196 yards. He also had 13 carries for 74 yards and two touchdowns.
Against East Carolina, USF will have to keep an eye out for defensive back Terrell Richardson and linebacker Jordan Williams, who lead the team in tackles with 31 and 29, respectively. Defensive back Colby Gore is also one player to watch as he is tied for the team lead in pass breakups with three and interceptions with one. While East Carolina has not been great defensively this season, they have been able to play tough against teams.
East Carolina is coming off a 47- 29 loss to UCF filled with turnovers. It was a tough, physical game, much closer than what the final score indicated. There were seven total turnovers with East Carolina committing five of them. At the end of the third quarter, UCF led East Carolina 23-21 and it looked like the game would continue to be close but East Carolina was outscored 24-8 in the fourth quarter.
Offensively, East Carolina was led by quarterback Phillip Nelson who completed 26 of 43 passes for 296 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception. After Nelson was knocked out of the game late in the third quarter, backup quarterback Gardner Minshew came in and completed 12 of 27 passes for 192 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions. Coach Montgomery spoke about the overall offensive performance after the loss.
“As I looked at the numbers after the game, I was frustrated and disappointed in a lot of the things that went on because I had not seen the tape yet. The numbers that jumped off the stat sheet at me was the reason why the game was not won and that was five turnovers.” He also added, “the people that have turned it over are young players or players that are (playing for) the first time at their position. We knew that we would have some growing pains, but we didn’t think the growing pains would last this long or that there would be this many.”
Even though East Carolina struggled with turnovers last week, they still have a very potent offense. They are ranked 12th nationally in total offense and they average 523 yards a game. The USF defense has shown a propensity to allow tremendous amounts of yardage so far this season but they have also 12 takeaways. East Carolina will have to keep an eye on USF linebacker Auggie Sanchez as he leads the team in tackles with 48, as well as sacks with four.
“He knows how to get the defense set,” said East Carolina head coach Montgomery in talking about Sanchez. “Not only does he get the defense set, but he also plays fast from side to side. I know why he is the type of player he is because he’s going against all that tempo.”
In the series between these two teams, USF leads it all-time 5-1. This should be an offensive shootout as both teams have high powered offenses. The difference may be the turnover battle. It will be interesting to see if USF can continue on the great start they’ve had to the season so far, as well as how East Carolina responds after their tough loss last week. In the end, this should be an exciting offensive game, where the winner will most likely be whomever win's the turnover battle.
Last week, USF defeated inter-conference opponent Cincinnati in a 45-20 win. This win gives USF a 1-0 record in their conference so far this season. By halftime, it was a close game, with USF leading Cincinnati 24-20. In the second half, though, the USF defense stepped up and shut out Cincinnati. The defense forced four turnovers with three interceptions and one fumble recovery. The USF offense also scored 21 points in the second half. USF head coach Willie Taggart spoke about the defense’s performance after the win.
“I was really excited about our defense. That’s the defense that we all like to see. Guys are going out and getting turnovers. I was really impressed with the adjustments we made at halftime and the way our guys tackled in the second half.”
Running back Marlon Mack led USF offensively with 20 carries for 118 yard and two touchdowns. After this game, he moved to first on USF’s career rushing yards list with 2,755 yards in 28 career games. "The record feels great.” Mack stated, “I thank my O-Line for the last three years. It is a good feeling.” USF quarterback Quinton Flowers completed 16 of 26 passes for 196 yards. He also had 13 carries for 74 yards and two touchdowns.
Against East Carolina, USF will have to keep an eye out for defensive back Terrell Richardson and linebacker Jordan Williams, who lead the team in tackles with 31 and 29, respectively. Defensive back Colby Gore is also one player to watch as he is tied for the team lead in pass breakups with three and interceptions with one. While East Carolina has not been great defensively this season, they have been able to play tough against teams.
East Carolina is coming off a 47- 29 loss to UCF filled with turnovers. It was a tough, physical game, much closer than what the final score indicated. There were seven total turnovers with East Carolina committing five of them. At the end of the third quarter, UCF led East Carolina 23-21 and it looked like the game would continue to be close but East Carolina was outscored 24-8 in the fourth quarter.
Offensively, East Carolina was led by quarterback Phillip Nelson who completed 26 of 43 passes for 296 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception. After Nelson was knocked out of the game late in the third quarter, backup quarterback Gardner Minshew came in and completed 12 of 27 passes for 192 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions. Coach Montgomery spoke about the overall offensive performance after the loss.
“As I looked at the numbers after the game, I was frustrated and disappointed in a lot of the things that went on because I had not seen the tape yet. The numbers that jumped off the stat sheet at me was the reason why the game was not won and that was five turnovers.” He also added, “the people that have turned it over are young players or players that are (playing for) the first time at their position. We knew that we would have some growing pains, but we didn’t think the growing pains would last this long or that there would be this many.”
Even though East Carolina struggled with turnovers last week, they still have a very potent offense. They are ranked 12th nationally in total offense and they average 523 yards a game. The USF defense has shown a propensity to allow tremendous amounts of yardage so far this season but they have also 12 takeaways. East Carolina will have to keep an eye on USF linebacker Auggie Sanchez as he leads the team in tackles with 48, as well as sacks with four.
“He knows how to get the defense set,” said East Carolina head coach Montgomery in talking about Sanchez. “Not only does he get the defense set, but he also plays fast from side to side. I know why he is the type of player he is because he’s going against all that tempo.”
In the series between these two teams, USF leads it all-time 5-1. This should be an offensive shootout as both teams have high powered offenses. The difference may be the turnover battle. It will be interesting to see if USF can continue on the great start they’ve had to the season so far, as well as how East Carolina responds after their tough loss last week. In the end, this should be an exciting offensive game, where the winner will most likely be whomever win's the turnover battle.