Hello lucky readers!  Since I’ll be in Scotland with Mrs. Visor the first week of September, it’s BOGO time – 2 game reviews in the same week.

After going through the motions in essentially a preseason game last week, Florida steps up in competition Saturday against South Florida.  As usual in an in-state matchup, the underdog Bulls will be hungry to “shock the world”, and I expect to see everything from their playbook and a chippy game from start to finish.  I’ll give USF credit – their schedule is legit to begin the season, with home games against Boise St. and Miami sandwiched around their visit to Gainesville.  Alex Golesh has done a very good job in rebuilding the mess he inherited in 2023, finishing with a 7-6 record each of his first two seasons.

USF returns two experienced players at QB in Byrum Brown, who started in 2024 before missing the last half of the season with an injury, and Bryce Archie, who replaced Brown and surprised with his effective play.  Both are mobile, and led a rushing attack that averaged over 200 yards per game.  The passing attack was inefficient and often ineffective, however, and has to improve significantly to compete against Top 40 opponents.  USF lost it’s top 3 RBs and top 2 WRs in terms of production, and have had to go the portal route to try and reload at those positions.  Keshaun Singleton is by far the leading returning WR, and has big-play potential and must be defended closely.  They do have an experienced O-line returning, which should help with all of the roster turnover at the skill positions.  One thing to watch is how their hyper-speed tempo is countered by Florida’s defense.  Few chances for substitutions will be available, so communication between the Gator defenders is a must.  DC Ron Roberts will have to be mindful of his personnel packages for each separate USF possession.  This will be a good barometer of Florida’s speed on defense, and also their fitness against a fast team in humid conditions.

The Bulls defense struggled in 2024.  While playing decently against the run, they were poor against the pass, and overaggression led to a multitude of big plays allowed all season.  They do have many starters returning and 12 incoming transfers that are juniors and seniors, so the hope is more experience leads to less explosive plays allowed.  Mac Harris and Rico Watson III are excellent LBs, and will be looked to for leadership.  I expect Florida to rely (as usual) on it’s running game first, both to control time of possession and keep it’s defense fresh, as well as in preparation for the 4 tough games to follow.  Yes, the hope is DJ Lagway will be OK to play and actually get some live reps with his WR corps.  Given USF’s tendency for aggressiveness on defense, big plays could come easily.  Ultimately, this game is about surviving in a healthy state, getting a (hopefully) comfortable win, and then going into an incredibly challenging stretch of opponents.

I can easily see this game being close into the 3rd quarter, as USF will be hyped for this game.  But I expect Florida’s superior talent and depth to take over in the second half, and the Gators to pull away for the victory.

Prediction:

Florida 38

USF 13