Bulls still a work in progress

Jim Leavitt hasn't uttered that famous quote former Bucs coach Jon Gruden once used - "The future is so bright around here I've got to wear shades" - but Leavitt clearly has grand visions for his University of South Florida football program.

From listening to Leavitt talk, you get the idea that his work won't be finished until the Bulls reside in the same stratosphere as Florida, Florida State and Miami on the national radar. They clearly aren't there yet, but a victory at FSU in late September raised expectations to an unprecedented level, particularly with freshman quarterback B.J. Daniels shining in his first career start.

USF's historic win at FSU turned out to be somewhat of a blessing and a curse. Yes, it was a milestone victory in the program's young history, but it wasn't the watershed moment it was perceived to be at the time.

The Bulls won the next week at Syracuse to become the only BCS program to start 5-0 the last three seasons, but a 2-5 record in the final seven games put a damper on USF's quick start.

A 31-10 loss to Miami on Nov. 28 provided the harshest reality check.

"Our guys, their eyes were opened a little bit realizing where we've got to go," Leavitt said.

The Bulls' roller-coaster ride of a season remained that way until the final seconds ticked off the clock in Saturday's 29-27 loss at Connecticut. They'll regroup later this week and start practicing for the International Bowl on Jan. 2.

After facing Northern Illinois in Toronto, Leavitt and his staff will turn their attention to National Signing Day, hoping for their first victory of 2010 with a strong recruiting class. Once the class is signed, it will be back to work on the field.

Leavitt said the Bulls need to get more physical on the line of scrimmage on offense and defense - that was the great lesson from the Miami game - and must use the experience of this season to build for next season.

The Bulls return the core of their offense, but they will lose defensive starters George Selvie, Chris Robinson, Kion Wilson, Nate Allen and Jerome Murphy.

"We don't have a team that's losing 18 or 19 starters," Leavitt said. "This is a young football team. We like what we've got, but we've got work to do."

Daniels offers the greatest reason for optimism. A redshirt freshman, Daniels started nine games after senior Matt Grothe suffered a season-ending knee injury in the third game. Daniels made such an immediate impact that many forgot he was a freshman. Suddenly, students started recognizing him on campus and he became the new face of the program almost instantly, a role he remains uncomfortable with.

"My senior year in high school, I didn't interview or do anything like that," Daniels said. "I stayed away from all aspects of the media. It's just not something I'm accustomed to."

"He's learned not to read papers anymore," offensive coordinator Mike Canales said. "It's good when it's good and it's bad when it's bad. That's part of the position. He is learning that as he goes."

The quicker Daniels learns, the better the Bulls should be in 2010.

He'll have as much say as anyone in whether the Bulls reach those lofty goals Leavitt has set for the program.