The Badgers are riding high after pounding Bowling Green last week, but South Florida is coming off a big win of their own, despite an overall weak season so far.
In the Bulls’ first game of the season, they needed to come back against Western Carolina, then stop a subsequent Western Carolina comeback attempt, to win a close game 36-31. Western Carolina is by no means a powerhouse, showing South Florida can have defense issues. On the offensive side, freshman running back Marlon Mack racked up 275 yards and 4 touchdowns, so the running game is their strong suit.
USF lost in Week 2 against Maryland 17-14. Seven of their 14 points came off of a fumble returned for a touchdown. Freshman quarterback Mike White went down on the first play, with an arm injury, and backup Auggie Sanchez couldn’t get the offense going.
In a Week 3 49-17 loss to NC State, the passing game was the lone redeeming factor. White came back after his injury the previous week, and threw for USF’s first touchdown of the season. As well, the defense tacked on another defensive touchdown. So far this year, they’ve relied mostly on the defense to create scoring opportunities with the offense on the sidelines.
Last week, USF opened conference season with a bang by holding off a late UConn rally to win 17-14. The USF defense played well, holding UConn to only 132 yards on the game, and keeping them from grabbing the lead despite low offensive scoring.
The Bulls rank low in the FBS in most major offensive categories. Out of 124 teams, their passing yards per game rank 119th, their rushing yards per game rank 83rd, and their points per game comes in at 101st.
Their defense compares a bit more favorably against the rest of the country though. They rank 57th in rush yards allowed per game, 72nd in pass yards allowed per game, 93rd points allowed per game.
When it comes to the Badgers’ plan of attack, they will look to capitalize on USF’s poor play against big programs this year; USF has lost both of its games against opponents from Power Five conferences, which is an encouraging sign for Wisconsin.
USF teams generally aren’t known for being lead by flashy players, but running back Mack has been their most reliable offensive option, with 522 total yards, and five touchdowns on the year. The Bulls’ most nationally recognized player is senior kicker Marvin Kloss who was a 2013 Lou Groza Award finalist for best collegiate place-kicker, and is currently on the watch list for this year’s award.
Against the Badgers, look for USF to try to force turnovers for scores to stay in the game, while trying to force the ball down Wisconsin’s throat on offense.
