The University of South Florida Bulls is looking to bounce back after an embarrassing loss, just the second in 11 meetings, the then-winless East Carolina Pirates. The loss to one of the least programs in the conference stings more because ECU ran up the score, and the Bulls just couldn’t stop them.

On Saturday, they will face another winless team in the Temple Owls. The Owls, who have played in just one game due to the pandemic, a 31-29 loss to Navy, are probably a bigger challenge than ECU. But, there is always a way to win and here’s how USF can do that against Temple.

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1. Stop the run.

There’s no way to sugar coat this, but USF has had one of the worst run defenses in the country for the past couple of years. Approaching the midway point of the 2020 season, they are in the bottom ten run defenses in the country for the third straight year. Three of the Bulls’ opponents this season have ran for 200 or more yards in the game.

2. Take the points.

USF has decided that Jordan McCloud will be the quarterback to lead the offense, going forward. Now that they have decided he’s their best option at that position, they need to find a way to score points, and that means taking what they can get. With 86 attempts, McCloud has thrown one touchdown and two interceptions. Last season, he threw 12 touchdowns and eight picks. In short, don’t pass up easy field goals.

3. Pick the pass.

The Owls’ senior quarterback, Anthony Russo, has racked up the yardage through his time in the role. He’s passed for more than 2,500 yards in the past two seasons and for 206 yards against Navy. His big flaw, however, is turnovers. Last year, he threw 12 interceptions and 21 touchdowns. His touchdown to turnover rating the year before was even worse, 14 of each. Against Navy, he threw one interception and one touchdown. This is should be low hanging fruit for the Bulls, who have four interceptions through four games. He’s not great protecting the ball and USF has the tools to make him pay.

4. Return the punt.

The Bulls’ defense has had an up and down season and hasn’t forced their opponents to punt very frequently. However, USF special teams have had the opportunity to return 14 punts this season and have attempted to return just two. Those two returns were against The Citadel. USF did not return a punt against Notre Dame, Cincinnati, or ECU, and their resulting field position on offense contributed to their inability to be dynamic or creative on that side of the ball.

5. Sack the quarterback.

Only one Bull, Antonio Grier, has registered a sack through four games. His three sacks has him tied for 15th in the nation. That’s a great start, but the team needs more, especially when facing a turnover prone quarterback. The defense needs to get creative and find ways to get into the backfield.