USF football’s hurry-up rebuild vs. the Florida Gators’ deliberate plan
TAMPA — The Florida Gators and USF Bulls have the same 3-2 record but very different vibes about their rebuilding process. USF appears ahead of schedule under first-year coach Alex Golesh. Florida looks behind through Billy Napier’s first 18 games.
Regardless of where they end up at the end of this season and beyond, their trajectories are the product of what each coach said on Day 1.
Golesh said his Bulls are “in a race against ourselves to be as good as we can as fast as we can.” They’ve attacked their overhaul accordingly.
Napier said some people “are probably going to get frustrated with me” because Florida would be “very patient and calculated about everything that we do.” All parts of that have proven correct, too.
Their different philosophies showed up in how they approached the transfer portal during the spring window.
Golesh vowed after the spring game that his Bulls would be “very” active in the portal. They had to “put a team together that’s going to win as fast as we can.”
USF added five transfers from that window that have already started at least once: guard Zane Herring (Florida State), receiver Michael Brown-Stephens (Minnesota), defensive lineman Doug Blue-Eli (TCU), cornerback Braxton Clark (Nebraska) and linebacker Andrew Mata’afa (Utah).
“I think without those guys, it would be really hard to continue to progress as the season’s gone on,” Golesh said Tuesday. “Some of those guys have been critical for us.”
They were critical, in part, because they filled glaring holes on the roster. You can’t win immediately without immediate contributors. The Bulls were borderline desperate at cornerback and along the lines, which explains why Golesh still gushes about additions like Herring.
“Holy smokes,” Golesh said, “I thank God every day that Zane is here.”
The Gators were much quieter during the spring —somewhat by design. Napier’s calculated approach includes a detailed evaluation for every prospect, hitting everything from talent and transcripts to character and injuries. Sometimes, he acknowledged in the spring, his system won’t move fast enough to fit a player’s timeline.
“We’re not going to speed through that process,” Napier said then.
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That process still nabbed two contributing transfers: Michigan’s R.J. Moten and Florida International’s Lyndell Hudson of Brooksville’s Central High. But there were missed opportunities.
The Gators lost out on San Diego State left tackle Josh Simmons and Rhode Island defensive back Antonio Carter; Simmons starts for No. 4 Ohio State, and Carter is a co-starter at No. 10 Notre Dame. Spring transfers Bear Alexander and Keon Coleman boosted the College Football Playoff odds for USC and Florida State.
Napier’s patient approach to the portal is similar to the deliberate approach he took with his first early signing period. Florida signed only nine recruits in his first few weeks. Golesh signed 16, including Naiem Simmons, who had a school-record 272 receiving yards against Rice.
Both coaches understand the downside of speed recruiting. A tighter evaluation window increases the likelihood of adding a prospect who doesn’t fit as a player or person.
Napier preferred not to rush into a mistake — part of his calculated procedures that, as promised, frustrated some fans. Golesh knew the pitfalls well from his background in recruiting junior college prospects (who often became available in the spring). But he also knew that to make his team as good as he could as fast as he could, he had to revamp the roster immediately. Golesh trusted his staff to weed out potential issues because the risk was worth the reward.
“We’re not perfect — like, at all,” Golesh said. “But we found a bunch of guys that were running to something rather than running away from something.”
As a result, the Bulls are running in their rebuilding process as the Gators look a step behind.
