FSU QBs: Time for a real change

A new offensive coordinator, new assistant coaches and what’s changed at Florida State?

Xavier Lee is out at quarterback, and Drew Weatherford is in. And this just weeks after Weatherford was out and Lee was in.

Didn’t we see this last year? Isn’t that why Jeff Bowden was paid to leave and Jimbo Fisher was paid to replace Bowden as offensive coordinator?

Is it possible the quarterbacks have more to do with the FSU offense than the coaches? Weatherford doesn’t look any better than he did as a freshman, and Lee, the Alabama game aside, never looks ready.

It’s time for Plan C, and that would be freshman D’Vontrey Richardson.

The Seminoles aren’t going anywhere this season unless you consider a lower-tier bowl some place.

They play Duke on Saturday night. Perfect.

Let’s see what Richardson can do. He can’t be any less effective than the other two, and maybe standing around all game watching a freshman play might be what finally lights the fire under Weatherford or Lee.

Nothing else seems to work.

Now comes the hurt

Well, South Florida Bulls fans have now experienced another emotion that comes with big-time college football – disappointment.

Let’s count the emotions.

There was shock, from the surprise of winning at Auburn in overtime.

There was joy, from the elation of being nationally ranked for the first time in school history.
Then exhilaration, from the excitement of beating West Virginia in what was then the biggest game in school history.

Up next was giddiness, from the tingling sensation you get when you see your team ranked No. 2 in the polls.

That was followed by anticipation, from the expectation of Thursday’s nationally televised game against Rutgers on ESPN and from the expectation that comes with dreaming of a possible trip to the national title game.

Now, it’s disappointment, the frustration from seeing all those hopes and dreams dashed by the 30-27 loss to unranked Rutgers.

Oh well, it was fun.

Now comes a pair of litmus tests for the program.

Can the Bulls bounce back from the tough loss and continue to chase the big East championship? A trip to the Orange Bowl is not a bad way to end the season, you know.

More importantly, how many fans are still on the USF bandwagon?

Interest in the Bulls, not to mention fans attending home games, swelled as the team climbed up the polls.

Can USF fans sustain that enthusiasm? Or were the Bulls nothing more than a college frat party?

This is how we will know this program has arrived:

The Bulls will remain a fixture in the polls and their fans will remain at Raymond James Stadium even when the future isn’t as bright as it was earlier this week.

Gruden bullish on the Bulls

Count Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Jon Gruden among the legion of fans the USF Bulls are gathering this fall.

Gruden showed more emotion during his Monday morning press conference while answering a question about the Bulls than he did talking about his team’s 4-2 start. He especially liked the trombone section of the university’s band, which played the National Anthem before Sunday’s 13-10 win against Tennessee at Raymond James Stadium.

Take it away coach:

“No. 2 in the nation. That is unbelievable. I say it every week, just unbelievable. Coach (Jim) Leavitt and their organization, their athletic department, their coaching staff, support staff. I had the band right in front of me playing the National Anthem, the trombone players, even they’re great, so they got it going on. I’m really fired up and I can’t wait till the next game.”

A look at No. 2

Just a quick history lesson here.

It took the USF Bulls seven seasons of Division I-A football to rise to No. 2 in the AP poll.
It took the Florida Gators 49 years.

The AP started ranking teams in 1936. Florida, which earned its first top-10 ranking in 1964, moved up to No. 2 on Oct. 26, 1985. The Gators beat Auburn that week to move up to No. 1. Then they lost to Georgia the following week.

USF has been ranked in the top-5 for the last two polls.

Florida State has been ranked in the top-5 a total of 204 times.

Miami has appeared in the top-5 in 201 polls.

Bucs can't run from this

Yes, they were playing the Indianapolis Colts, and yes they fell behind early and yes they had to throw the ball to play catch-up, but isn’t it alarming the Tampa Bay Buccaneers gained only 17 rushing yards in Sunday’s loss?

And that’s with the Colts playing without safety Bob Sanders, their best run-stopper. Ball control is a must when trying to stop Colts quarterback Peyton Manning.

Your best defense is an offense that can keep him off the field with long drives. Three-and-outs is only going to allow Manning to find a rhythm while your defense runs ragged trying to chase his receivers up and down the field.

The Bucs' running game was nonexistent even before Michael Pittman was lost in the second quarter with an ankle injury.

It doesn’t appear things will get better quickly for the Bucs, and not because Earnest Graham will be the starting tailback against the Tennessee Titans on Sunday.

No, the key to beating the Titans will be to keep quarterback Vince Young off the field with long drives. Problem is, the Titans defense is fifth overall in the NFL, including third against the run.

Welcome to the top-five

If you are a fan of the UCF Knights then you have to like your chances against USF on Saturday simply because USF is now a top-5 team.

The South Florida Bulls moved up a spot in the AP polled released Sunday to five, which, naturally, is the highest ranking in school history.

But being a highly ranked team – or ranked, period – is turning into a curse this season.

Led by then-No. 2 USC, 11 ranked teams, including four in the top-10, went down Saturday, and that came just a week after five top-10 teams and nine ranked teams overall lost.

USF even had a scare against FAU in Fort Lauderdale on Saturday before pulling away late in the fourth quarter.

All these upsets have given the AP top-5 a strange look.

At No. 2 is Cal, which hasn’t been ranked that high since it was No. 1 in 1951.

At No. 4 is Boston College. The last time the Eagles were No. 4 was in 1984.

Fifth is USF, and we know all about the Bulls.

It’s refreshing to see the new faces.

Nothing against the Oklahomas, Floridas, Michigans and Notre Dames, but the new faces will make things more interesting the rest of the way.

Big-time in a small way

Turns out the view from No. 6 wasn’t all that stunning.

The University of South Florida football team ended its first week as the sixth-best team in the AP poll by playing in one of the smallest venues in Division I-A football – Lockhart Stadium in Fort Lauderdale.

The home of the FAU Owls is also the home of several Broward County high school teams.

The 20,000-seat stadium can’t even be seen from nearby Interstate-95.

It has one scoreboard and no replay screen.

It’s a glorified high school stadium.

And it’s pretty neat to see a I-A game played in such a setting.

There are only 30 rows of seats, so no matter where you sit you’re close to the action.

Think a Major League Baseball game played in a spring training park.

Cozy, quaint and cool.

Caddie a big loss too

There is a feeling among Tampa Bay Buccaneers fans that losing running back Cadillac Williams for the season is not as bad as losing left tackle Luke Petitgout.

Not quite.

While every team needs a strong left tackle to protect the quarterback’s blindside, and while Petitgout was doing a terrific job of that before suffering a season-ending knee injury last Sunday at Carolina, don’t be quick to dismiss the loss of Williams, who also suffered a season-ending knee injury.

Williams will be replaced by Michael Pittman and Earnest Graham for now and maybe Kenneth Darby later.

Pittman did enjoy success as the Bucs tailback during the 2002 Super Bowl season and the years before Cadillac’s arrival. But the Bucs still drafted Williams in the first round.

As for Graham, he was an undrafted free agent who has played well on special teams. Maybe more carries might jump-start his career as a running back, but, again, he was undrafted. That tells you something.

Williams struggled last year and wasn’t setting the league on its ear before being hurt this season. He found the end zone, yes, but he also continued to fumble.

Still, he had value as a blocker and the team saw improvement in that skill.

Unless Donald Penn explodes in a big way this season, the Bucs will miss Petitgout. That’s without a doubt.

But check back after the season. I think we’ll find the Bucs will miss Cadillac, too.