Bulls wild win over ACC foe Georgia Tech will get some attention

After a string of nine lead changes, the USF Bulls came out victorious over their first “Power 5” opponent of the year in Georgia Tech. USF fought back from a ten-point deficit midway through the fourth quarter to regain the lead and hold on for the victory.

Led by transfer quarterback Blake Barnett, the Bulls offense put together three consecutive touchdown drives in the final 12 minutes of the fourth quarter to pull away with the 49-38 victory. Barnett finished the game passing for 202 yards and tossing two touchdowns with only one interception.

He also led the team in rushing with 16 carries for 91 yards and two touchdowns, both of which were scored in the fourth quarter as part of the comeback effort.

Duran Bell Jr. and Tyrie McCants were also bright spots on the USF offense. Bell Jr. carried the ball 12 times for 69 yards and scoring a touchdown on a 14 yard run in the third quarter to put USF ahead 28-24 at the time. McCants led a receiving corp that saw six different Bulls catch a pass against the Yellow Jackets. McCants caught 10 passes for 99 yards with his longest being a 24 yard reception.

As expected, the USF defense had difficulty stopping the running game of Georgia Tech. The Yellow Jackets rushed for 419 yards behind the efforts of quarterback TaQuon Marshall. Marshall accumulated nearly 300 yards of total offense, as well as throwing for one touchdown and rushing for one. Tobias Oliver carried the red zone offense for Georgia Tech, scoring three times from inside the five yard line. Oliver finished the game with 97 yards on 18 carries.

The special teams play proved to be a huge momentum spark for USF early in the game. Terrence Horne ran not one, but two kick returns for touchdowns, the first being 98 yards and the second 97 yards.

THAT. MAN. DID. IT. AGAIN!!!
TERRENCE HORNE TO THE HOUSE!!
97-yards this time..tied for 4th longest in #USF history. pic.twitter.com/NXpc9pnCen

— USF Football (@USFFootball) September 8, 2018

South Florida now holds a 2-0 record under new head coach Charlie Strong. The Bulls will travel to Illinois next week for their first road test of the season.