The Good, Bad & Ugly from South Florida's win over Temple
TAMPA, Fla (Nov. 11, 2023) – Graduate wide receiver Sean Atkins caught nine passes to break the South Florida single-season receptions record and freshman quarterback Byrum Brown threw for 316 yards and a touchdown as USF took down Temple 27-23 in front of an announced crowd of 30,938 at Raymond James Stadium on Saturday.
A 25-yard catch a run late in the third quarter brought Atkins to eight catches on the day and 68 catches for the year, moving him past Rodney Adams for the most receptions for a season in program history. He would finish the game with nine catches for 169 yards, a new single game best for the standout receiver.
Atkins has flourished this season and is a steady presence for the Bulls, having at least four catches and 40 yards in each game in 2023.
Aamaris Brown-Bunkley had two interceptions for the Bulls.
Saturday’s win brings South Florida within one victory of becoming bowl eligible, for the first time since 2018, with two games remaining to secure their spot in bowl season.
THE GOOD: OFFENSE
This Bulls offensive attack had yet another stellar day against Temple, putting up 451 total yards and 27 points. Brown threw for over 300 yards for the fourth time this season and rushed for a touchdown.
While the Bulls were forced to come back from a deficit of multiple scores in their last five games, the offense flipped the script and got off to a quick start, although this unit slowed down considerably after their first quarter explosion.
Brown completed a 40-yard bomb on the first two drives of the game to put the Bulls up 10-0 midway through the first quarter, finishing the day with five passes of 20 or more yards.
“I thought how our guys started was incredible. I thought offensively to go down and punch it in relatively quickly, and then the defense to answer the bell, then score again. Now the next part of who we are has to be how do we keep the gas going,” said South Florida head coach Alex Golesh after the game.
Rushing the football was efficient as well for South Florida, with senior running backs Nay’Quan Wright, Kelley Joiner Jr. and Michael Dukes combining for 161 yards on the ground.
USF will have a good chance at punching their ticket to a bowl game if this offense can maintain this momentum.
THE BAD: SECOND HALF DEFENSE
After holding the Owls to 144 yards of offense and 10 points in the first half, the USF defense looked shaky in the final two quarters, giving up 245 yards while the Owls went 4-for-4 on fourth down in an attempt to pull off a comeback.
The Bulls struggled to get pressure home, recording just five tackles for loss, below average for a defense that averages eight a game, and zero sacks.
However, this unit stepped up in a big way Saturday, intercepting Temple quarterback E.J. Warner three times, returning one for a score, and recovering a fumble to put the game out of reach.
Although they gave up almost 400 yards of offense, this was one of the better games for the Bulls defense this season. The play of the game was senior defensive end Tramel Logan’s 22 yard pick-six late in the third quarter that gave the Bulls a 27-10 lead.
THE UGLY: BLOCKING/RED ZONE CONVERSIONS
Pass blocking has been a glaring issue for South Florida in 2023 as they have given up the 14th most sacks in the country coming into this game. Things didn’t get much better against the Owls, who registered six sacks and 13 tackles for loss. The offensive line was also called for five false starts which hampered the offense’s ability to find momentum.
The red zone difficulties continued as well for USF, going 1-for-4 inside the Owls’ 20 yard line.
“That’s the difference in the point where you feel like you semi-dominated the game up and down the field and had some critical stops in the red zone. Credit to Temple, they had a really good plan, we executed our plan really poorly down there,” said Golesh.
If the Bulls want to reach bowl eligibility, they will need to find a way to steady this offensive line and protect the quarterback, as well as find ways to take advantage of red zone possessions.