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Colleges

Bulls stay stuck at almost-but-not-quite level

By JOHN ROMANO
Published September 4, 2005

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. - They have been here before, these USF Bulls.

Maybe not in this part of Pennsylvania and not in this particular stadium. And, okay, not across the field from an icon in a windbreaker.

But they have been to places where reputations are made. Where fame is a video clip away and legacies can be purchased for the price of an upset.

And, once again, the Bulls left no trace of their stay.

Yup, it was another not-quite memorable Saturday for USF. Another nevermind kind of pronouncement.

The Bulls threw another scare into another storied program, and what, precisely, did they gain from it?

"Nothing," said defensive end Terrence Royal. "We ain't satisfied with no loss, no matter who we're playing."

They said the same thing in 2002 after playing Oklahoma tougher than expected. And again in 2003 when they wasted a 10-point lead at Alabama.

This time, it was Penn State. And if you watched the game's final three quarters, you would have thought South Florida was the team with the tradition, the national titles, the cranky old man on the sideline.

The Bulls held the ball longer. They converted more third downs. They forced more turnovers. They got more sacks. They made you wonder how the heck they lost five games in Conference USA last season.

Yet when it was over, nothing had changed.

They had come up short in another defining game.

"I know people didn't expect us to beat them. They'll see the score and think we played a pretty good game," said cornerback Trae Williams. "But we could have done better. I think we can beat that team."

You might say that is debateable. It is true the Bulls were a two-point conversion from adding several years to Joe Paterno's birth certificate. And USF had a 13-6 advantage during 44 of the game's 60 minutes.

Still, it hardly seemed as if Penn State was in real danger. The Bulls only threatened when trailing by two touchdowns or more. And each time the Nittany Lions were in trouble, they came up with a clutch play. A 70-yard run. Or a big defensive stop. Essentially, whatever it took to stay in control.

There are a world of teams that can play just well enough to lose. There are plenty of programs that hang around the fringe of respectability.

From a big-picture standpoint, the Bulls have come further than anyone had a right to expect in a short period of time. But the current reality is that their progress has stalled, and they need some way to revive momentum.

"We ain't over that hump yet," Royal said.

When it was over, when they were coming off the field to polite applause from Penn State fans in the north corner of the stadium, running back Andre Hall shouted to his teammates to hold their heads high.

As frustrated as coach Jim Leavitt was afterward, Hall had the right idea. The Bulls may have signed their own death certificate with a horrendous first quarter, but they showed impressive poise in refusing to collapse.

"South Florida has come a long way in a short time, but nobody thinks we can play at this level," said guard Chris Carothers. "We know better. When you line up against these guys, you realize they're no better than you.

"It isn't about tradition, and it isn't about having 110,000 people in the stands. It's 11 guys going against 11 other guys, and whoever makes fewer mistakes is going to win on that day. Give them credit, they won today. But we can play with these guys. I know we can."

The Bulls, undoubtedly, are a better defensive team than they were a year ago. And quarterback Pat Julmiste played well enough to make Leavitt regret his decision to give Courtney Denson his first NCAA start in Beaver Stadium.

But it is impossible to predict the rest of the season off one sort-of impressive effort against Penn State. There are still too many questions. Questions about USF's consistency. Questions about its offensive firepower.

Maybe you believe the Nittany Lions are still wallowing in their five-year slide toward mediocrity. Or maybe you think USF proved it's not far away.

"Nobody will know how good Penn State and South Florida are until we start playing other people," Leavitt said. "The key is who is going to get better. Is South Florida going to improve from this point on? If we do, we have a chance to be a pretty good team."

They have been to Norman, Okla. They have been to Birmingham, Ala. Now, they have been to Penn State's Happy Valley.

Each visit has given them reason for hope.

But that hope comes at a cost.

The cost of knowing what might have been.

[Last modified September 4, 2005, 12:45:38]