ORLANDO, Fla. (Nov. 26, 2021) – South Florida got one of its better defensive efforts of the season but lost to in-state rival UCF 13-17 in an excruciating fashion Friday at the Bounce House in Orlando.

USF (2-10; 1-7 American) has now lost five straight to UCF (8-4; 5-3 American), trails the all-time series 6-7 and has now lost nine consecutive road American Athletic Conference games.

Quarterback Timmy McClain completed 18-of-29 passes for 222 yards, Jaren Mangham rushed for 93 yards on 21 carries and Xavier Weaver caught four passes for 75 yards for the Bulls in the loss.

BullsInsider.com covered the game and here is our Instant Analysis:

IT WAS OVER WHEN: Timmy McClain was sacked for a loss of six yards at the UCF nine yard line. There were eight seconds on the clock when McClain’s knee touched the ground and the Bulls had zero timeouts to stop the clock.

HE STOLE THE SHOW: Tatum Bethune was all over the field tonight and recorded 18 tackles (8 solo) and earned one quarterback hurry.

THE STAT DOESN’T LIE: USF had -6 yards rushing in the fourth quarter.

WHAT A PLAY: On the final drive, facing second and 15, Xavier Weaver’s leaping catch of a 35 yard Timmy McClain pass was beautiful. Weaver caught the pass at the UCF 19 and advanced the ball to the UCF 17.

THE BOTTOM LINE: The 2021 football season is over for South Florida. The final play of the game was somewhat emblematic of this season. Although tonight’s defensive performance might give fans a glimmer of optimism heading into the offseason, this was a long and frustrating season of USF football for everyone with any level of connection to the program.