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The University of South Florida Bulls took care of business in their season opener against The Citadel Bulldogs on Saturday night by a score of 27-6. The Bulldogs presented a big challenge for the Bulls with their rarely seen triple option offense and the short timeframe that USF had to prepare for it. It wasn't always pretty, but the Jeff Scott era has begun with a win.

IT WAS OVER WHEN

With less than three minutes remaining in the first half, Noah Johnson, who came in at quarterback to relieve starter, Jordan McCloud, ran nine yards for the third USF touchdown of the game. While theoretically just a two touchdown lead, the Bulldogs’ offense hadn’t shown the ability to get into the end zone in the first half, which held true throughout the game.

THE STAR OF THE GAME

As a team, the Bulls rushed for 302 total yards. Ten players contributed towards that total, but not more than Kelley Joiner. Joiner finished with 87 yards and a touchdown.

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING

Punt for -10 yards to the Citadel 0, return of 0 to the Citadel 0, touchdown. A statistic you will likely never see again, the result of a failed punt attempt by Matt Cambell, midway through the first quarter. It was caught by Omarion Dollison for the second USF touchdown of the game.

WHAT A PLAY

Late in the first half, the Bulldogs were forced to punt, which was fair caught by K.J. Sails at the USF 25 yard line. A kick catcher interference call gave USF the ball at their 43 yard line. On the second play of the drive, Johnny Ford ran 43 yards to the Citadel 14, setting up Johnson’s touchdown, that essentially sealed the win.

THE BOTTOM LINE

The Bulls and their new coaching staff have to be happy with the win. However, most of the games they play this season will not be over once they’ve scored 20 points. As a team, they rushed for over 300 yards, but it took a team effort to do that. Also a concern, they passed for just over 100 yards with three quarterbacks. Since they played with the lead for most of the game, this can be explained away as them not needing to throw. The team looks better than they have, but there is also more improvements to come before they hit the road to South Bend in one week.