Colleges

Spring game turnout nudges ticket sales

By GREG AUMAN
Published April 20, 2005

TAMPA - Call it a deceptively large crowd.

When the attendance for Saturday night's spring football game at Raymond James Stadium was announced as 3,800, that number was met with scrutiny in the press box, where the crowd had been estimated as significantly smaller.

As it turns out, the figure wasn't legitimate; there were more people in attendance. The actual number of tickets taken, according to the Tampa Sports Authority, was 4,241, making the crowd more than double last year's spring game.

"It started strong and it just kept coming," said Mickey Farrell, TSA's director of operations.

Primary sponsorship from Bright House Networks helped defray much of the $20,000 cost of leasing the stadium, and having the game at Ray-Jay will help crowds this fall grow as well. Jim Louk, USF's assistant athletic director for sales, said Tuesday that about 70 new season tickets - which start at $99 for end-zone seating - have been sold since Saturday's game.

USF's depth chart entering fall practice is heavy on underclassmen: there are 20 rising sophomores and 15 freshmen on the two-deep, as compared with just 11 juniors and 15 seniors. Those freshmen include three of the spring's surprise stars, all seeing their first significant practice time this spring: receiver Cedric Hill, defensive lineman Josh Julmiste and linebacker Brouce Mompremier.

AIMING HIGH: Coach Robert McCullum hopes to land two more players to fill out his incoming recruiting class, and the Bulls are impressively still in the mix for DeLand forward Keith Brumbaugh, who was named the state's Mr. Basketball after averaging 30.3 points and 12.0 rebounds as a senior.

Brumbaugh, who is strongly considering leaping directly to the NBA Draft, said Monday that if he doesn't go pro, he'll choose among USF, Florida and Southern Cal.

"I'm just waiting on a little feedback before I make a decision (about the NBA)," the 6-foot-8 Brumbaugh said. "But those are my three schools, and South Florida is definitely still in it. They've stayed on me throughout the recruiting process."

USF reportedly is lining up a campus visit with Dwight Burke, a 6-8 forward from St. Benedict's Prep in Newark, N.J. Burke signed with East Carolina in November but was released after the Pirates fired coach Bill Herrion. He's visiting Marquette and South Florida, according to the Newark Star-Ledger. Also due to visit Marquette is Jamil Lott, the North Dakota State College of Science forward who drew interest from USF last month. The Bulls are no longer pursuing Lott, NDSCS coach Craig Irwin said.

COACHING CAROUSEL: If Jim Leavitt goes outside his staff to find his new offensive coordinator, one name to remember is Dana Dimel, the former Wyoming and Houston coach who returned to Kansas State as a grad assistant in February. Dimel, 42, was on the same Bill Snyder staff as Leavitt at K-State from 1990-95 and the two have remained close friends.

If Leavitt were to promote running backs coach Carl Franks, another possibility to rejoin the Bulls staff would be Leroy Ryals, who coached USF's running backs from 2000-03. Ryals, who coached tight ends at LSU last season, was named Friday as the coach at Stuart Martin County High.

THIS AND THAT: USF plays host to the Big East tennis championships this week, and the Bulls hope to be hosting other spring tournaments in their new league. Included in commissioner Mike Tranghese's visit to Tampa last week was a tour of Legends Field, which could be home to future Big East baseball championships. That tournament's current home is Commerce Bank Ballpark in Bridgewater, N.J., where it drew 1,351 fans for its title game last spring. ... USF baseball, in fourth place in the Conference USA standings with a 9-5 league record, faces a crucial stretch ahead, with series against three of the top five teams in the standings. Two of those series are at home, with four games against Alabama-Birmingham this weekend and four against preseason No. 1 Tulane two weeks later.

- Times staff writer Greg Auman covers USF athletics. Reach him at 813 226-3346 or auman@sptimes.com

[Last modified July 4, 2005, 08:39:59]