Bulls OT Popek ready to return

Sophomore OT Mark Popek, who has been recovering from a sprained MCL in his right knee suffered early in fall camp, is fully recovered and expected to play against No. 6 Florida on Saturday, South Florida coach Skip Holtz said after practice Wednesday.

"He's been good," Holtz said. "He's been really strong. He's done a nice job - hasn't had a lot of swelling and everything."

Popek, who started five of USF's last six games last season, was competing for a starting spot before the injury, and he will rotate in as the "third tackle" Saturday behind senior starters Jacob Sims and Jamar Bass, Holtz said.

"That's tough to not practice for four weeks or do anything really and just jump back in," Popek said. "I'm starting to get used to it again."

Holtz said redshirt sophomore Danous Estenor will rotate in as the "third guard" Saturday behind starters Jeremiah Warren and Chaz Hine.

BARRINGTON READY: Defensive coordinator Mark Snyder said, in hopes of finding the right personnel to match Florida's spread offense, sophomore Sam Barrington will get the nod to start at middle linebacker.

"Coach Snyder, he's a coach and I'm his player. Whatever he asks me to do - if he tells me he wants me to play one snap and sit out 10, that's what I'm going to do," Barrington said. "He's the coach and I trust my coaches and my teammates to put me where I need to be."

Sophomore Mike Lanaris started the first game against Stony Brook, which brought more of a downhill running approach.

"That's the good thing about us," Snyder said. "If we're playing spread 'em out tackle in space (offenses), Sam's going to play. If it's going to be a rock 'em sock 'em game, Mike's going to play."

NOT SO FAST: Even though senior WR Dontavia Bogan returned kicks Saturday, Holtz said he's not sure if he'll keep Bogan back there so he can keep him fresh as a receiver.

"They told me he was 9 yards away from the school record so I let him get a couple in the opening game, then took him out," Holtz said. "I'm still not sure if I'll put him back there or not. He's the only receiver we have with any experience, and I would hate to lose him right now because that would be a pretty big blow to what we're trying to do as an offense."

Sophomore Kayvon Webster, sophomore Lindsey Lamar and freshman Terrence Mitchell all worked returning kicks Wednesday.

BULL BITS: As for punt return duties, Holtz said Wednesday he's leaning towards Mitchell. ... A day after simulating crowd noise through speakers, the Bulls worked on simulating Florida's speed in practice Wednesday, with several scout-team players posing as Florida's main playmakers on offense:

"When you look at (junior RB Jeff) Demps (who ran a national-best 9.96 100-meter dash at the NCAA Track and Field Championships) and (junior WR Chris) Rainey, you have to get the speed on the perimeter, the speed in the backfield, and you have to turn and get the athletic quarterback."