TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

14 Seniors Unbeaten In Series

ADVERTISEMENT

By BRETT McMURPHY

The Tampa Tribune

Published: September 3, 2008

TAMPA - When they came to the University of South Florida, the Bulls had not played Central Florida. Now five years later, 14 USF seniors hope to walk off the Bright House Networks Stadium field in Orlando having not lost to UCF.

The Bulls go for a fourth consecutive victory against the Knights on Saturday. The teams won't play anytime in the near future, because in a nutshell, USF doesn't want to continue the series.

"It would be a great accomplishment, since this is the last year of the series," senior LB Brouce Mompremier said. "No one wants to be in the group that loses to them. It's not because we're better than them, it's because it's a rivalry and no one wants to lose."

Besides Mompremier, the other USF seniors who are 3-0 against UCF: DE Jarriett Buie, OT Marc Dile, WR Marcus Edwards, SS Louis Gachette, C Jake Griffin, TE Cedric Hill, OG Matt Huners, WR Taurus Johnson, CB Tyller Roberts, K Justin Teachey, FS Danny Verpaele, RB Ben Williams and SS Carlton Williams.

Roberts, who is from Orlando, said a 4-0 sweep of UCF would be "huge for the program."

"We take the game very personal," he said. "We read all this stuff in the media, all the trash-talking, we can't do anything about that on Saturday. We talk with our pads. That's the only revenge we can get back. We refuse to respond to any of the ignorance. We're going to do the best we can on Saturday and see what the outcome is."

The only other time USF defeated a non-conference opponent four consecutive seasons was Division I-AA Liberty from 1998 to 2001.

And what happened after USF went 4-0 against Liberty? The Bulls discontinued the series. It seems Liberty just wasn't competitive enough.

PICKING THE NEXT COMMISH: USF President Judy Genshaft is part of a six-person committee in charge of naming a replacement for outgoing Big East commissioner Mike Tranghese next year. Genshaft is joined on the committee by presidents from Pittsburgh, Georgetown, Notre Dame, Rutgers and Marquette.

"It's an important search for an important BCS league - especially since Mike Tranghese has been there so long," Genshaft said.

"It takes a strong individual to negotiate with the NCAA, television, the presidents, the other leagues, and so much more. We need a strong, committed leader with the finesse and knowledge to represent the Big East with vigor."

ODDS AND ENDS: USF is favored by 14 Saturday, marking the 10th consecutive game the Bulls have been favored against a Division I-A opponent. That's the nation's fifth-longest current streak as a favorite. Despite being favored in its previous nine I-A games, USF only won five of those. ... There are about 1,000 tickets remaining for Saturday's game, UCF associate AD Joe Hornstein said. USF expects to sell all of 4,700 allotment and has not returned any tickets, USF executive AD Bill McGillis said. ... Billy Casper Golf agreed to a multiyear deal to operate and direct all aspects of the USF golf course.

USF SHORTS

HONOR ROLL: Junior OH Marcela Gurgel was named the Big East's volleyball player of the week.

SOUNDBITE CENTRAL: "I got on Facebook on Monday and had one poke and I was thinking to myself, 'It begins.' Maybe they're trying a new strategy, since I got poked so many times last year and we scored a lot of points." - USF QB Matt Grothe about not receiving as many "Poke the Opposing Quarterback" hits on Facebook.com this year.

QUESTION OF THE WEEK: What are your thoughts on the USF-UCF series ending? To vote and monitor results, visit TBO.com, Keyword: Bulls.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT