Conference season opens at defending East Division champ Cincinnati;
Eight bowl teams and five that won 10 or more games fill schedule
TAMPA, FEB. 18, 2020 – USF’s first season under head coach Jeff Scott will open with a bang as the Bulls begin the 2020 campaign at Texas and were slated to open the conference season at defending AAC East Division champion Cincinnati when the American Athletic Conference announced schedules for all conference members on Tuesday.
Cincinnati finished No. 21 in the Final AP Top 25 Poll of 2019 after completing an 11-3 season with a 38-6 victory over Boston College in the Birmingham Bowl. Meanwhile, Texas finished No. 25 after completing an 8-5 campaign with a 38-10 victory over No. 11 Utah in the Alamo Bowl. They are among five teams on the Bulls’ 2020 schedule that finished the 2019 season ranked in the AP Top 25. USF will face two of those at home (No. 20 Navy & No. 24 UCF) and three on the road (No. 17 Memphis, No. 21 Cincinnati and No. 25 Texas).
The Bulls’ 2020 schedule features eight teams that reached a bowl game in 2019, five that won that bowl game, nine that posted a winning record and five that posted 10 or more wins in 2019. Three of the Bulls’ first five games of the season will be played on the road and USF will play six home games and six road games on the year.
The schedule also features two Friday contests, both at home, and will once again boast a tough November conference stretch with road trips to defending conference champion Memphis as well as Houston and home contests vs. Navy and UCF, with three of the four posting 10 or more wins in 2019.
Kick times and specific television designations will be announced at a later date.
The Bulls open the season on Sat., Sept. 5 vs. the Longhorns in 95,594-seat Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium in Austin, Texas. It will mark the Bulls’ seventh season opener on the road and first since winning at San Jose State (42-22) to open the 2017 campaign.
With Texas picked as high as No. 14 in several “Way Too Early Top 25” polls, the game will also likely mark the USF’s second straight season opener vs. a Top 25-ranked opponent and its biggest road opener since downing No. 16 Notre Dame, 23-20, in South Bend to open the 2011 season. Texas could be the highest ranked opponent the Bulls have ever faced to open a season. USF fell to No. 19/17 Wisconsin to begin the 2019 campaign.
The Bulls open the 2020 home season and will play Scott’s first game as head coach in Raymond James Stadium vs. Bethune-Cookman on Sat., Sept. 12. The Wildcats posted a 7-4 mark in 2019 and fans will want to catch the Wildcats’ renowned marching band that is also slated to perform at the game. The Bulls return to Ray Jay on Sat., Sept. 19 to face Nevada. The Wolfpack posted a 7-6 record and played in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl in 2019.
USF will finish off the non-conference campaign at FAU on Sat., Sept. 26. The defending Conference USA champion Owls went 11-3 last year and downed SMU, 52-28, in the Boca Raton Bowl. Scott’s first USF staff will feature defensive coordinator Glenn Spencer, offensive coordinator Charlie Weis Jr. and safeties coach Wes Neighbors, who all served in similar roles for FAU last year, as well as several other former FAU staff members now at USF. Meanwhile, former USF head coaches Willie Taggart (2013-16) and Jim Leavitt (1997-2009) are now FAU’s head coach and defensive coordinator, respectively, on an FAU staff that features several other former USF staff members.
USF opens its eighth season in The American at Cincinnati on Sat., Oct. 3. The Bulls are 2-6 all-time at Cincinnati and the contest will mark the first conference opener on the road for USF since the Bulls traveled to Cincinnati and won, 45-20, to begin the 2016 AAC campaign. That game also marks the Bulls’ only other road conference opener since joining The American in 2013.
USF’s first conference home game will be on Sat., Oct. 10 vs. ECU, a team USF owns a 9-1 all-time record against and defeated 45-20 last year in Greenville, N.C. The Bulls return to the road to face Temple on Sat., Oct. 17 in Philadelphia. USF lost to the Owls, 17-7, last year in Tampa and is 2-4 all-time vs. Temple, including 0-3 in previous visits to Philadelphia.
The Bulls return Raymond James Stadium on Fri., Oct. 23 to face Tulsa in a primetime clash that will air on an ESPN Network. USF is 3-0 all-time vs. the Golden Hurricane and this will be the first meeting since the Bulls posted a 25-24 victory at Tulsa in 2018. Every game in the series has been decided by eight points or less.
After the Bulls enjoy their lone bye week, USF returns to take on another tough November slate that begins with a pair of road games. The Bulls travel to Memphis on Sat., Nov. 7 before heading to Houston on Sat., Nov. 14. USF is 4-6 all-time vs. Memphis, which earned a New Year’s Six Bowl berth last year and fell to Penn State in the Cotton Bowl. The Bulls dropped a 49-10 decision to the Tigers in Tampa last year. USF will play its first game vs. the Cougars since falling, 49-42, at Houston in 2018. Houston holds a 4-2 lead in the series (2-1 in Houston) and has won the last four meetings.
The Bulls will close out the regular season with a pair of home games, taking on Navy on Sat., Nov. 21 in Raymond James Stadium followed by the return of the War on I-4 clash vs. UCF on Fri., Nov. 27, which will air on an ESPN Network. Navy leads the series 2-1 and will be returning to Tampa for the first time since a 52-45 USF victory in 2016. The Midshipmen downed the Bulls, 35-3, in Annapolis last year. USF leads the series with UCF, 6-5, but the Knights have won the last three meetings, including a 34-7 victory in Orlando last year.
Season tickets for the 2020 season may be renewed at www.HornsUp2020.com or by calling/texting 1-800-GoBulls. USF saw 80 percent of season ticket members renew by the Feb. 7 deadline to secure current seats and prices through the 2021 season, marking the fastest the program has ever reached 80 percent renewals.
Season ticket deposits for new members may also be placed HERE.
2020 USF FOOTBALL SCHEDULE
DATE OPPONENT (2019 Record/Bowl/Final AP Rank)
Sat., Sept. 5 at Texas (8-5, Alamo, W, #25)
Sat., Sept. 12 BETHUNE-COOKMAN (7-4)
Sat., Sept. 19 NEVADA (7-6, Famous Idaho, L)
Sat., Sept. 26 at FAU (11-3, Boca Raton, W)
Sat., Oct. 3 at Cincinnati* (11-3, Birmingham, W, #21)
Sat., Oct. 10 ECU* (4-8)
Sat., Oct. 17 at Temple* (8-5, Military, L)
Fri., Oct. 23 TULSA* (4-8)
Bye Week
Sat., Nov. 7 at Memphis* (12-2, Cotton, L, #17)
Sat., Nov. 14 at Houston* (4-8)
Sat., Nov. 21 NAVY* (11-2, Liberty, W, #20)
Fri., Nov. 27 UCF* (War on I-4) (10-3, Gasparilla, W #24)
About USF Football
The USF football program first took the field in 1997 and completed its 23rd season (20th at the FBS level) in 2019. The Bulls have posted 15 winning seasons, earned 14 All-America selections and 29 first-team all-conference selections and has seen 30 players selected in the NFL Draft. USF has made 10 bowl games appearances (going 6-4 in those games) and posted a program record six straight appearances from 2005-2010. The Bulls most recently made four straight bowl appearances from 2015-18 and posted back-to-back 10-win seasons in 2016 and 2017, logging a program-record 11-2 mark in 2016 while finishing both seasons ranked in the Top 25. USF spent a program record 20 straight weeks ranked in the Top 25 during the 2016 and 2017 seasons and reached as high as No. 2 in the national rankings during the 2007 season.
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