TAMPA-



The University of South Florida Bulls win big over the Elon Phoenix, 34-14. The Bulls have from quarterback questions to full confirmation in a week’s time. Blake Barnett, who was announced as the starter late last week, took full control of the USF offense this evening. In just the second collegiate start of his career and the first with the Bulls, Barnett racked up 305 yards passing, 31 yards rushing and four total touchdowns to secure the win for the USF.

The Phoenix had early success on their first drive of the game, moving the ball fairly easily into Bulls’ territory. A 22 yard run by Malcom Summers helped set up 1st and 10 on the USF 29 yard line. After run plays failed on first and second downs, Elon quarterback, Davis Cheek attempted to pass on third down. His pass was deflected by a teammate’s helmet and into the hands of USF defensive end, Vincent Jackson.

Jackson’s six yard return gave the Bulls the ball on the Elon 36 yard line. Recently named starter at quarterback for USF, Blake Barnett, connected with Randall St. Felix for a 40 yard touchdown with 8:33 on the first quarter clock. That play was set up in part by a 14 yard run by Trevon Sands from the USF 42. Just like that, a little over a minute consumed on the drive, and the Bulls were up, 7-0.

Neither team would score again until the second quarter, when Elon forced the Bulls into a field goal from the Phoenix 16. USF had started the drive on their own 16, but a 52 yard Barnett pass to St. Felix got them quickly into Elon territory. The drive stalled after a pair of incomplete passes to Tyre McCants and Elijah Mack. Jake Vivonetto nailed the 33 yard field goal, giving USF a 10-0 lead with 12:16 remaining in the first half.

The next possession for the Phoenix began on their own 25 yard line after a touchback. Cheek ran for four yards on first down and De’Sean McNair lost three on second down. That brought up a third and nine, a typical passing situation. Cheek did pass on that play, but the ball was tipped up by the intended receiver and caught by USF’s Mike Hampton. Hampton returned the ball 15 yards to the Elon 25 yard line.

With first and ten on the Elon 25, Barnett carried the ball for nine yards to set up second and one from the Elon 16. On second down, Barnett hooked up with McCants for a 16 yard touchdown. With 10:25 left in the second quarter, the Bulls led 17-0.

The Phoenix would go three-and-out on their next possession, but a strong punt turned the ball over to the Bulls on their own 20 yard line. Three plays later, Darnel Salomon caught a 50 yard pass from Barnett, to set up first down on the Elon 20. A wide open Mitchell Wilcox was the recipient of a 14 yard touchdown pass, two plays later, giving the Bulls a 24-0 lead with 5:35 remaining in the half.

While the first half of the football game was action packed and full of Bulls’ offense, the second was a completely different thing. USF scored on their first drive of the half, a two yard touchdown run by Barnett, to go up 31-0, but would not score again until late in the fourth quarter. During that scoring drought, the Phoenix found the end zone twice. On their second possession of the third quarter, Jaylan Thomas rushed for 19, 15, and 12 yards, with the final being the first of two Elon touchdowns. The Bulls had them held to a third and 11 on the USF 42, but a pass interference call reset the downs and improved the Phoenix field position. With just over a minute left in the third quarter, the Bulls led 31-7.

Brett Kean came into the game at quarterback for the next possession, only to leave three snaps later, having not converted a first down. Elon got the ball back to start the fourth quarter and used that bit of momentum to score their second and final touchdown on the next drive. They would begin at their own 48 yard line, the result of a bad punt from USF. Thomas, who was unstoppable on the previous Elon drive, ran for 11 yards on second down and 25 yards on the following play. Three plays later, Brelynd Cyphers would carry the ball two yards for a Phoenix touchdown.

The final score of the game came via the foot of Jake Vivonetto. With Kean at the helm, the Bulls drove the field from their own 34 to the Elon 24, where a pair of incomplete passes stalled the drive. Vivonetto was good for the 41 yard attempt, setting the final score of 34-14.

After the game, USF head coach Charlie Strong had praise for Barnett, but noted he has only practiced with the team this fall.

“The way he performed tonight, he wasn’t even here in the spring,” said Strong. “We’re talking about fall camp is when we got him. He’s what 20 practices into fall camp, you can see, you know he has the ability because he never would have been who he was, being an elite quarterback and everything.”

Strong also talked about Barnett’s journey, from Alabama to Arizona State to USF. And in particular, what it means to finally start and to have the success an elite quarterback recruit is supposed to have. “But, to watch him come out tonight and play well, its good for his confidence,” said Strong. “And its good for the whole team.”

When Barnett was asked what the game meant to him, he replied, “it meant a lot. It has been a long time coming. I noted the journey. It has been a long journey. It has been a process.”

As it relates to his journey, he was asked if he thought he has found a home. “Absolutely,” he said. “Absolutely.”

The big story of the game is certainly going to be Barnett’s debut. A lot of credit also goes to his favorite target of the night, St. Felix. St. Felix caught seven passes for 143 yards. That’s an average reception of more than 20 yards. His longest catch of the night was 52 yards.

There are more questions than answers in the running game after this win. As a team, the Bulls ran for just 148 total yards, with 35 coming from the quarterback. The leading running back was Johnny Ford, who rushed for just 43 yards. This may be a moot point after this week, with both Jordan Cronkrite and Duran Bell Jr. expected to return for Saturday’s game.

Asked if Cronkrite and Bell Jr. would return next week, Strong said, “Yeah you’ll get them back. Cronkrite, uh, he went down in practice the other day. He probably could have played tonight. But, I need him more next week, and I told him that.”

Elon moves to 0-1 and will host Furman in their next game on Saturday, September 8th. The stat sheet isn’t very impressive for them in this matchup against the Bulls. However, the runs by Thomas late in the third and fourth quarters enabled the Phoenix to score their two touchdowns and make the final score look more competitive than the game actually was.

The Bulls are 1-0 on the young season and look forward to hosting Georgia Tech on Saturday. The game is set for a noon kickoff and will be broadcast on ABC and ESPN2.