USF: Cradle of reality television and soap stars

Many USF alumni go on to bigger and better things - just ask Tony LaRussa and Gallagher.

TAMPA - You know the innovative mind behind the current box office release The Real Cancun, the reality movie about spring break? Well, he went to the University of South Florida.

And how about that guy who plays John Black, a man with many pasts, on Days of our Lives? Yes, Drake Hogestyn, whose real name is Donald, is a USF alumnus.

But he didn't study acting. The GQ-looking actor majored in biology and the natural sciences in the late 1970s, and once wanted to be a dentist.

Today, 3,280 students walk across the stage at the Sun Dome to collect their degrees. (Another 358 get theirs in St. Petersburg on Sunday.) Who knows what the future holds for them? Years ago, many of USF's more notable students were in their shoes.

H. Lee Moffitt, former speaker of the Florida House of Representatives, graduated with a political science degree from USF in 1964.

Tony LaRussa, manager of the St. Louis Cardinals, got a bachelor's degree in industrial management in 1969.

LaRussa didn't play baseball for the Bulls. But his career was well on its way during his college years. On the night he graduated from Tampa's Jefferson High School in 1962, LaRussa signed with the Kansas City Athletics. After LaRussa finished at USF, he went on to earn a law degree with honors from Florida State University. He coached in the minor leagues before joining the majors.

"I had a lot of doubt that I could ever make enough money that I'd be successful," LaRussa told the USF Alumni magazine in 1998.

Other famous USF alumni:

Soap star Mark Consuelos of ABC's All My Children. He married his on-screen sweetheart, Kelly Ripa - of Regis and Kelly fame.

William Esposito, class of 1970, climbed FBI ranks as a tracker of mob bosses.

Jim Marshall graduated in 1975 and worked his way up the ladder at Apple computer. He returned years later to the school to give away iBooks when they first came out.

Kerry Sanders, a 1982 graduate, made it to the national scene as an NBC news correspondent.

Nicole Johnson, who received her USF diploma in 1996, was Miss America 1999.

Comedian Leo Gallagher, known for the watermelon-bashing gag, went to USF in the 1960s. Reportedly, he was into pranks even then and once let pigs out in Marshall Center to protest the bad food.

Gallagher grew up in Tampa and graduated from Plant High School. At USF, he took classes in chemistry and English. He wasn't sure if he wanted to be a chemical engineer. He ended up with an English degree, graduating in 1970.

His Sledge-O-Matic was formed in Tampa. After seeing a commercial for the Veg-O-Matic, Gallagher began wielding the Sledge-O-Matic at Tampa bowling alleys and other venues until he appeared on the Mike Douglas Show, his big break.

A broad spectrum of local political and civic leaders also have USF degrees, including the new mayor of Tampa, Pam Iorio, who got a master's degree in history from USF.

Hillsborough County Commissioner Ronda Storms, Hillsborough Sheriff Cal Henderson and St. Petersburg Deputy Mayor Goliath Davis also graduated from USF.

So did Hillsborough school superintendent Earl Lennard, who has a bachelor's degree and a doctorate from the College of Education.

Rick de Oliveira, the director of The Real Cancun, went to USF because it was a short walk from home. Back then, he studied political science. After graduation in 1993, he moved to L.A. with $300 in his pocket and a dream of working in television. His creative ideas finally led him to MTV, where he helped produce the early birds of reality TV: The Real World and Road Rules.

Like many notable alumni, de Oliveira has been back to USF on occasion. Most recently, to host MTV discussions with students. Terilee Hebert, associate director of the USF Alumni Association, called him dedicated. "He flew in from L.A. for meetings," she said.

Tampa commencement, today at USF Sun Dome:

9:30 a.m. - College of Arts and Sciences

2 p.m. - Business, Visual and Performing Arts, Medicine, Nursing, Public Health

6 p.m. - Architecture, Education, Engineering, Inter-College, Marine Science

St. Petersburg commencement, 2 p.m. Sunday at Bayfront Center Mahaffey Theater

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