Look Out for the Bulls

In 1995, Jim Leavitt went to work for the University of South Florida as the school's first ever football coach.  His teams rose to the BCS level quickly, and the school joined the Big East Conference in 2005.   Leavitt's teams have recently enjoyed ranked status, getting as high as #2 nationally during the 2007 season.  During a game this past season against Louisville on the 21st of November, Coach Leavitt apparently roughed up one of his players at halftime.  The school investigated the incident, Leavitt didn't exactly come clean, and the coach and his 95-57 lifetime won/lost record were sent packing on January 8th.  Leavitt was two years through a $12.6 million dollar, seven year contract.

Six days later, Skip Holtz was hired as the second-ever head coach of the South Florida Bulls football team.

Holtz left behind the head coaching position at the University of East Carolina, where his teams were 38-27 over five seasons.  At USF, he has the opportunity to transform a strong program into a mega-program.  So what are his credentials?

He spent two years at a junior college before transferring to Notre Dame, where he played little.  Bobby Bowden gave Holtz his first job as a graduate assistant in 1987.  Two years later, Skip became the receivers coach at Colorado State, leaving after just a year to coach the receivers at Notre Dame, working for his father.  He coached the receivers for two years, then became the offensive coordinator for three years. 

From 1994 through 1998, Skip Holtz was the head coach for then Division I-AA University of Connecticut. His teams were 34-23 during those five years.  He left to become the Offensive Coordinator at the University of South Carolina for 1999, once again working for his father.  Father and son were successful once again, but things fell apart in 2004.  Lou retired and Skip was not retained.  He landed pretty well, that being the East Carolina job that he's just abdicated.

Holtz is taking over the top job at what might be the biggest sleeper (if you can call it that) in big time football.  USF is a huge school in a big market that sits in the midst of a geographic area that churns out football players.  Look at the USF roster from 2009 and you'll find three players out of 80 or so who are NOT from the state of Florida. 

It's not all roses: USF football has been academically challenged, though the situation improved in 2009 (they're still in lowest 20% of college football programs). On the field over the last few years, the teams have been successful against weak non-conference opponents but have been less than spectacular in the Big East.  Still, they have gone bowling every year, though last year it was the International Bowl in Toronto, a game that's not much to get excited about.

This could be the marriage that unlocks the potential of the school and the coach.  This coming season will be very revealing.