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South Florida continues its climb to the big time with games against Florida in 2008 and 2009 in Gainesville.
By ANTONYA ENGLISH and PETE YOUNG
© St. Petersburg Times, published October 2, 2002
South Florida's quest to become a football superpower on par with Florida State, Miami and Florida took another step forward Tuesday with the scheduling of a two-game series with the Gators in 2008 and 2009.
Both games will be played in Gainesville.
"We've been talking to South Florida for a year or so, maybe longer," Florida athletic director Jeremy Foley said. "The contract came back in late last week. We're excited about playing."
The announcement comes after the two highest-profile games in USF's six-year history, losses Sept. 14 at Arkansas and Saturday at No. 3-ranked Oklahoma, which aired on TBS and was the Bulls' first nationally televised game.
"We've been aggressive from the very start with our football program," USF athletic director Lee Roy Selmon said. "In the course of our first 59 games since starting football in 1997, we've already played Oklahoma, Arkansas and Kentucky (in 2000), and we have a win over Pittsburgh (in 2001). That's rapid growth.
"Now, scheduling one of the state's 'Big Three' speaks volumes for where our program is headed."
South Florida will receive about $500,000 for each game, to be played on Sept. 13, 2008, and Sept. 5, 2009. It received about $400,000 for the trip to Arkansas and $450,000 from Oklahoma.
That figure could increase by the time the games are played.
"The base guarantee is $500,000, but as we get closer to the game we've agreed to see what the market is at that point and time," Foley said. "I think it's only fair to them that we look at that since we're talking about 2008, 2009."
Like in the 2002 and 2003 seasons, college teams are permitted to schedule 12 regular-season games in 2008, which helped facilitate the UF-USF arrangement. In other seasons teams play 11-game schedules.
Florida used its 12th-game option this season and next to resume its rivalry with Miami. Before Sept. 7, the teams hadn't played a regular-season game since 1987.
But the same problem that has kept the Hurricanes and Gators from meeting annually is the reason the Gators won't be playing in Raymond James Stadium either year: Florida can't afford to schedule a home-and-away series.
"We can't take a game off this campus," Foley said. "It's the same reason we don't play Miami every year, same reason we don't play any non-conference games on the road except for Florida State -- because we need that sixth home game (financially). Obviously it (Raymond James) is a beautiful stadium, and we have a lot of alumni in the Tampa area, but we're committed to playing six games in Gainesville."
South Florida is in its second Division I-A season.
The Bulls join Conference USA next season and will play eight league games against the likes of Louisville, Memphis, Southern Miss and East Carolina. Its non-conference schedule in 2003 includes games at Alabama and Eastern Michigan and home games against Baylor and a yet-to-be-determined opponent.
In early September, USF deputy athletic director Corey Johnson, who assists Selmon with the football schedule, told the Times he was pursuing games against the Big Three and was optimistic about making arrangements with Florida or Miami. Johnson said Florida State told him its schedule was booked through 2012, so the Seminoles would have to drop a game in order to add the Bulls.
Other non-conference games on the USF schedule are home against Pittsburgh and at Bowling Green in 2004, home against Bowling Green in 2006 and at Bowling Green in 2007.
Foley said the agreement is part of Florida's commitment to playing in-state teams. The Gators also will play Central Florida on Sept. 9, 2006, and in 2007. Florida A&M is on the schedule Sept. 13, 2003.
"(South Florida) has done a great job down there with their football program, and I think it's another good game for the state of Florida," Foley said.
"We're going to play Central Florida down the road and we wanted to play South Florida down the road."