Boyles Bringing It While Sands Finally Gets to Shine

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BYU (2-3, independent) at USF (2-3, 1-1 in AAC)Saturday/3:30 p.m.Raymond James Stadium, TampaCBS Sports Network/USF Radio Network:WDAE 95.3 FM/620 AM &First meeting. Next meeting Sept. 25, 2021 in Provo, Utahis doing a little bit of everything as a versatile linebacker for the Bulls' defense that's bringing pressure on the regular.Against UConn last Saturday, the starting sophomore set a career high with 3.0 tackles for loss, including one of USF's five sacks, and tied for the team lead with eight tackles on the way to earning a spot on The American's weekly honor roll.With 14 tackles in his past two games, the high-motor player from Miami is now tied for second on the team with 28 total stops this season."Boyles has been coming on," head coachsaid.Boyles has been heating up since Week 2 when he started a string of four straight games with a tackle for loss while playing a unique role for the Bulls."He's kind of that hybrid player," Strong said. "In our nickel package, he plays backer for us. Then in our base package, he's on the line of scrimmage."Whatever the task entails, Boyles loves what he's doing in coordinator's aggressive defense. Heading into Saturday's homecoming game against BYU, USF ranks third nationally in turnovers forced (14), second in fumbles recovered (8), 16in interceptions (6) and fourth in tackles for loss per game (9.8).Boyles is tied for second on the squad with 6.0 TFLs and can't wait for his next trip to an opponent's backfield."It's my first time playing both roles, rushing while playing linebacker and dropping back like a DB," he said. "It's really fun. I've really learned a lot from doing it."2018 was a prime time for Boyles to pick up football knowledge, especially playing style tips from former USF linebacker/safety, who consistently dished out huge hits."He really taught me a lot last year about the physical aspect of college football, about the way you think on the field," Boyles said.Boyles saw 12 games of action as a true freshman and started twice at weakside linebacker before truly getting ready to be a high-impact Bull. After playing at 210 pounds last year, Boyles said he bulked up to 235 pounds this offseason before trimming down to his current weight of 225. Learn more about Boyles' productive spring and summer HERE "I put in extra work after the workouts. I'd do more sets of bench, more sets of curls, more sets of squats," said Boyles, who can now put up 16 reps of 225 on the bench. "Even during spring after practice, I'd go in the weight room and put in that work."Boyles' season preparation has certainly paid off, especially against the Huskies. Now, the former Miami Central High School standout with 23.5 sacks in his final two prep seasons is ready to prove he's a Bull who can keep bringing the noise."I felt like I showed what I can do every game," said Boyles of his UConn performance. "I want to progress after this game."busted out for a season-high 148 rushing yards at UConn, butalso played an important role in USF's 313-yard output on the ground.The senior back from Miami used his all-out style to run through defenders and reach a new career high of 64 rushing yards on seven attempts (9.1 ypc)."Blocking, running, anything, I'm gonna give you my all," he said. "That's just me."Primarily a key player on special teams during his USF career, Sands seized his opportunity to shine early in last Saturday's road game. Following a 5-yard carry, Sands bounced off a defender and busted loose for a career long 23-yard gain on the first scoring drive of USF's 48-22 victory USF's next sequence on offense presented Sands with the chance he's been talking about since his freshman year in 2016."Every game I go in, I'm like, 'I'm gonna get a touchdown.' Every time I touch the ball, I'm like, "I'm gonna score," he said.Sands did just that by pushing a defender down while rumbling 5 yards into the end zone to help spot the Bulls a 14-0 advantage in the second quarter. The highlight-reel play allowed Sands to follow through on his promise of blowing kisses to his family in the stands."I knew I was gonna score that game," he said. "I wanted it bad enough."Finally scoring as a senior taught Sands about patience, but he didn't have to wait long to get some love from a Bull who frequented the end zone a total of 33 times while wearing the green and gold. Now a star back for the Indianapolis Colts, Marlon Mack jumped on Twitter to congratulate his former teammate in a humorous manner."We talk often. We're in group chats. Marlon is my guy," Sands said. "I looked up to him my freshman year when he was with me. The running back connection is always gonna be there."Having completed just its 22season of football, and 19at the FBS level, the USF football program has earned 10 bowl appearances, including a current run of four straight, and owns a record of 6-3 in bowl games. The Bulls have appeared in the national top 25 rankings in each of the past three seasons, including a program record run of 20 straight weeks in the top 25, and in 2018 reached the program's 150win faster than any FBS program in state of Florida history. USF has posted a pair of 10-plus win seasons in the last three years, including a program-record 11 wins (11-2) in 2016, and logged 15 winning seasons overall. Since first taking the field in 1997, the USF program has reached as high as No. 2 in the national rankings (2007), seen 30 players selected in the NFL Draft, 14 named All-American and 29 earn first-team all-conference selection.Follow @USFFootball on twitter for all the latest information concerning the USF Football program.