Good Luck and Best Regards

[upperdeck]

Dad...Answer a question for me if you can....Why is USF having such trouble with fan support....I was supprised by what seems to me somewhat low attendance figures for a Metro area.  BTW....I spent a week at the Hilton/Clearwater on vacation with the wife a couple of years ago.. The Tampa area was nice....We really enjoyed the trip...My wife keeps raving about the hospitality we recieved.

[Grateful Dad]

Dad...Answer a question for me if you can....Why is USF having such trouble with fan support....I was supprised by what seems to me somewhat low attendance figures for a Metro area.  BTW....I spent a week at the Hilton/Clearwater on vacation with the wife a couple of years ago.. The Tampa area was nice....We really enjoyed the trip...My wife keeps raving about the hospitality we recieved.

Yeah, well, I would trade weather with you anyday.  Too freakin' hot here for me.

Anyway -- my theory is that we are too young and the university is in the middle of morphing.  We used to be worthy of the commuter school label and it takes time for people to change.  We have built a lot of on campus dorms and the university is getting well known for its research and grad programs.  So that impression will take time to die away.

In fact, I figure that a whole generation has to go by until people have grown up with Bulls football.  Most people grew up choosing sides -- gators or seminoles.  After a generation of Bulls graduates who have always had Bull's football in their lifetime, it will be different.  It is a strange thing, this rapid success.  People remark how phenomenal the rise has been, yet they demand that we pay the dues and come up the hard way before they will reluctantly give us respect.  It bothers some, but not me.  I know what this university, program, and coach will do.  It is just a matter of time.  Another byproduct of the rapid rise is that we fans get so freakin' spoiled with the success that we forget that we are only ten years old.  So we expect to be like the Big Boys and crash hard when we play like a ten year old team.  Heck, unless I miss the mark, this year we still had players who were recruited before we were 1A.

Anyway, it will come.  With no smack to it, I expect to be ranked in the top 20 next year and go up from there in the succeeding years.  If we get a running game to match our QB and WR's there will be no stopping us.  The defense speaks for itself.

I hadn't allowed myself to follow closely USF football in the early years since I was (am) in school and tried to maintain my focus.  But I was at a conference out of town once years ago and was at a bar.  I looked up and saw that there was a football game on so I started watching it.  Unless I am mistaken it was an ECU game in which they were beating Miami.  I remember thinking, "who the heck is ECU?  They must be pretty good is they can beat a team like that".  I know it was your team and I think it was Miami, but I may be wrong on your opponent.  Anyway, I remember being impressed.

[Kyle]

Chill out man. Youre just on the wrong board. The students mostly use university-exclusive website message boards like at partyecu.com...

It's off topic, but I'd like to point out that they guy who wrote that site left ECU for USF.

[upperdeck]

Thanks for the insight....Our problem here is we are the redheaded stepchild in NC...I know you guys get sick of hearing about UM,UF,FSU and Its the same with us...We do have the respect of our state brethern in football, but I get so sick of NC basketball that I could puke.   We really have had to fight UNC(the real enemy) for everything we have ever accomplished as a university....They hold the pursestrings and power over the other 15 schools in the UNC system.  Hell we had to threaten legal action against UNC to get them to even play us again in football...I still cant believe that they caved in and let us back in....anyway...thanks for the info and good luck in the bowl....Im going down with my 77 year old dad(ECTC 56) to see us probably get another arse whipping by you guys....GGGOOOPIRATES

[dabull80]

I remember that issue with NC & NCST not wanting to play ECU.  Are either one of them going to be on your schedule in the future ?

[upperdeck]

Yes....In fact we got both at home 07 to start the season and series thru 1012 or so...Its been fun for everyone...we will have additional seating in the endzone next year to handle some 50K+ crowds

[BiggTipp]

didnt we both finish as the second best teams in our respective states

1. UF

2. USF

3. FSU

4. UM

5. FAU

6. UCF

7. FIU

1. WAKE

2. ECU

3. NCST

4. UNC

5. DUKE

unless I missed some

[upperdeck]

yeah...but there is still 1 left...APP.ST...going for its 2nd straight D2 national championship....The Mountianeers are really tough...expecially in Boone,NC where it snows for about 1/3 of the games.....I am really proud of WAkE...It goes to show that with a great coach and smart players who buy into his system...YOU CAN WIN..even with less than great talent....Jim Grobe is the BEST coach in the US.

[Radiohead]

Anyway -- my theory is that we are too young and the university is in the middle of morphing.  We used to be worthy of the commuter school label and it takes time for people to change.  We have built a lot of on campus dorms and the university is getting well known for its research and grad programs.  So that impression will take time to die away.

In fact, I figure that a whole generation has to go by until people have grown up with Bulls football.  Most people grew up choosing sides -- gators or seminoles.  After a generation of Bulls graduates who have always had Bull's football in their lifetime, it will be different.

I second that

[HaulingBull Sucks]

didnt we both finish as the second best teams in our respective states

1. UF

2. USF

3. FSU

4. UM

5. FAU

6. UCF

7. FIU

1. WAKE

2. ECU

3. NCST

4. UNC

5. DUKE

unless I missed some

How could you overlook mighty ELON!