Tampa, FL – The game wasn’t pretty in the first half but the USF Bulls extended their win streak to 3-0. Quinton Flowers had a record setting night and the defense performed well for most of the game.
QUARTERBACK: A
Where do we start. Quinton Flowers finished the game 15 of 27 passing for 280 yards, 4 passing TDs, 1 INT 184.1 QB rating, 106 rushing yards and 1 rushing TD.
+ Flowers became the Bulls career rushing TD leader (33) surpassing Marlon Mack (32)
+ Flowers moved up to the second spot on the Bulls career passing TD list (54). Passing BJ Daniels and Matt Grothe (52)
+ Flowers moved up to the second spot on the American Athletic Conference career rushing TD list (33). 6 behind the leader, Former Houston QB Greg Ward Jr. (39).
RUNNING BACKS: A
2nd time in history USF had three 100 yard rushers in the same game. Just going to hit you with the final stat line and you will see why “The Stable” graded out so high.
+ FLOWERS, Quinton 25 att 106 yards 1 TD 4.2 apr
+ TICE, Darius 12 att 105 yards 1 TD 8.8 apr
+ JOHNSON, D’Ernest 17 att 101 yards 0 TD 5.9 ypr
Bulls rushed for 398 yards on the night.
RECEIVERS: B-
Marquez Valdes-Scantling (St. Petersburg) had four catches for a career-high 96 yards, including a 17-yard touchdown reception. Deangelo Antoine (Orlando) set a career high with 93 receiving yards, including his first-career TD catch from 39 yards out. Seven different receivers caught passes last night totaling 304 yards and 4 TDs. But several dropped passes and lack of yards after catch dropped their grade.
OFFENSIVE LINE A
Handled the the Illinois front four and second level defenders helping to produce 398 yards on the ground and 304 yards of total offense. Eric MAYES, Jeremi HALL, Cameron RUFF, Marcus NORMAN and Billy ATTERBURY did a outstanding job up front.
DEFENSIVE LINE: A
Put it this way, Illinois produced just one rush inside the hashes for more than 10 yards. The defensive line pushed the line of scrimmage back for the majority of the game and sacked the opponents quarterback twice. Greg Reaves and Bruce Hector both had once sack each.
LINE BACKERS: A-
Default A for the Line Backers. Light night. Defensive line bottled up the run so much the LBs couldn’t help but have a good night. LB Keirston Johnson grabbed an interception in the final minutes of the game. Much help from the pressure of defensive end Vincent Jackson.
DEFENSIVE BACKS: C
For the most part, the backs tackled really well along with 5 pass break ups. But a handful of plays slices through the secondary including a Mike Epstein 45 yd TD RUSH in the 2nd quarter and a 4th quarter Epstein 21 yd TD PASS from Jeff George, Jr. George, Jr. entered the game in the second half and completed 12 of 22 passes for 211 yards and 1 TD. The secondary neutralized starting Illinois QB Chayce Crouch (8-18-1, 76) but struggled with Jeff George Jr.
SPECIAL TEAMS: C
The Bulls are having some trouble with the punt and place kicking units. Each game this season the Bulls have had either a punt block or place kicked blocked. Two times resulting in scores for the opponents. Emilio Nadelman approach on field goals and extra points are concerning. Extremely slow.
Notables
· USF racked up 680 yards of offense, its most against an FBS opponent, good for second in the school’s single-game history chart.
· Quinton Flowers tied his career high with four touchdown passes and rushed for a touchdown to tie Marlon Mack’s USF career record of 32.
· USF Athletics provided free admission to all Florida high school football teams and their coaches. A total of 87 teams (3,427 players) were in attendance on #BayMade Youth Football Night.
· USF distributed 2,154 complimentary tickets to first responders and their families.
· USF gave away #FloridaStrong T-shirts to the first 4,000 students in attendance. The specially created T-shirt is a show of unity among all Florida residents following Hurricane Irma.
Up Next
The Bulls are back at home for their conference opener against Temple on Thursday, Sept. 21 at 7:30 p.m. (TV: ESPN). Reserve your seats at USFBullsTix.com.