The South Florida Bulls (also known as the USF Bulls) are the

athletic Athletic may refer to: * An athlete, a sportsperson * Athletic director, a position at many American universities and schools * Athletic type, a physical/psychological type in the classification of Ernst Kretschmer * Athletic of Philadelphia, a ...

teams that represent the

University of South Florida The University of South Florida (USF) is a public research university with its main campus located in Tampa, Florida, and other campuses in St. Petersburg and Sarasota. It is one of 12 members of the State University System of Florida. USF i ...

. USF competes in

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest level of intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major collegiate athleti ...

and is a member of the

American Athletic Conference The American Athletic Conference (The American or AAC) is an American collegiate athletic conference, featuring 11 member universities and five affiliate member universities that compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's (NCAA ...

for all sports besides sailing, which competes in the

South Atlantic Intercollegiate Sailing Association The South Atlantic Intercollegiate Sailing Association (SAISA) is a conference in the Intercollegiate Sailing Association and was founded April 25, 1964. SAISA encompasses a geographic area that includes Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, G ...

within the

Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association The Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association (ICSA) is a volunteer organization that serves as the governing authority for all sailing competition at colleges and universities throughout the United States and in some parts of Canada. History The fir ...

. The university currently sponsors 19 varsity sports, nine for men and ten for women. The sports sponsored are

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding ...

, men's basketball,

women's basketball Women's basketball is the team sport of basketball played by women. It began being played in 1892, one year after men's basketball, at Smith College in Massachusetts. It spread across the United States, in large part via women's college compet ...

, men's and women's cross country, football, men's and women's golf, women's sailing, men's soccer,

women's soccer Women's association football, more commonly known simply as women's football or women's soccer, is a team sport of association football when played by women only. It is played at the professional level in multiple countries and 176 national te ...

softball Softball is a game similar to baseball played with a larger ball on a smaller field. Softball is played competitively at club levels, the college level, and the professional level. The game was first created in 1887 in Chicago by George Hanc ...

, men's and women's tennis, men's and women's track and field (outdoor and indoor for both), and

women's volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...

. In addition, USF will add a

women's lacrosse Women's lacrosse (or girls' lacrosse), sometimes shortened to lax, is a sport with twelve players on the field at a time (including the goalkeeper). Originally played by indigenous peoples of the Americas, the modern women's game was introduce ...

team and a women's beach volleyball team in the 2024–25 school year. USF also offers 40 club teams including cricket, flag football, ice hockey, and rugby. Michael Kelly has served as the

athletic director An athletic director (commonly "athletics director" or "AD") is an administrator at many American clubs or institutions, such as colleges and university, universities, as well as in larger high schools and middle schools, who oversees the work of c ...

since 2018. The school colors are green and gold and the mascot is

Rocky D. Bull Rocky the Bull (officially Rocky D. Bull) is the mascot of the University of South Florida. He is an anthropomorphized bull who can typically be seen at athletic dressed in USF athletic gear--usually a football or basketball jersey, but occasi ...

. Across all sports, the Bulls have won one team NCAA national championship (women's swimming in 1985). Outside of the additional seven individual and three relay national championships in women's swimming, USF athletes have won seven individual and relay NCAA national championships in men's swimming, two individual NCAA national championships in rifle, and two individual NCAA national championships in men's outdoor track & field. Additionally, the university has won five national championships in varsity sports outside of NCAA competition. The softball team won the 1983 and 1984 national championships in the

American Softball Association USA Softball (formerly the Amateur Softball Association (ASA) and ASA/USA Softball) is the governing body for the United States national softball team. It is a member of the sport's international governing body, the World Baseball Softball Confe ...

, which was the highest level of college softball at the time. Sailing, which is not an NCAA-sanctioned sport but is still a varsity team sponsored by the USF Athletic Department, has won three national championships in the Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association:

Sloop A sloop is a sailboat with a single mast typically having only one headsail in front of the mast and one mainsail aft of (behind) the mast. Such an arrangement is called a fore-and-aft rig, and can be rigged as a Bermuda rig with triangular ...

in 2009 and Offshore Large Boats in 2016 and 2017. USF's teams have also won 159 conference championships, and athletes have won 206 individual and relay conference championships. As of the 2020 Summer Olympics, 15 Bulls have competed as athletes in the

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a multi ...

, winning one gold medal.

History

Beginnings

The University of South Florida was founded in 1956 and opened in 1960. First president

John S. Allen John Stuart Allen (May 13, 1907 – December 27, 1982) was an American astronomer, university professor and university president. He was a native of Indiana, and pursued a career as a professor of astronomy after receiving his bachelor's, ma ...

was against the prospect of the new university supporting intercollegiate athletic teams, instead wanting to focus on education. In 1962, still years before any sports were announced, students voted to make the Golden Brahman, a breed of bull, the university's first mascot because of Florida's history in cattle raising. President Allen had a change of heart in 1964 and approved the university's first sports teams to begin in the 1965–66 academic year and asked physical education professor and future USF Athletic Hall of Fame member

Dick Bowers Richard T. "Dick" Bowers (August 9, 1930 - November 29, 2007) was an American college athletics administrator. He was the first athletic director at the University of South Florida (USF) from 1966 to 1982. Early life and college Bowers was born ...

to become USF's first athletic director.

Baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding ...

, men's soccer, men's cross country, men's golf, men's swimming, men's tennis, and

women's tennis Women's tennis is one of the most popular sports for women. It is one of the few sports in which women command fame and popularity that equal those of their male counterparts. Women's Tennis Association is the main organisation which runs femal ...

were the seven original sports to be offered by the young university. The men's teams began play as NCAA College Division (now known as

NCAA Division II NCAA Division II (D-II) is an intermediate-level division of competition in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). It offers an alternative to both the larger and better-funded Division I and to the scholarship-free environmen ...

) independents and were called the Golden Brahmans. Since the NCAA did not sponsor women's sports at the time, the new women's tennis team played as an independent in the

Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women The Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW) was founded in 1971 to govern collegiate women's athletics in the United States and to administer national championships (see AIAW Champions). It evolved out of the Commission on Inter ...

Small College Division and went by the Lady Brahmans instead of the Golden Brahmans. Subsequent women's teams would play in the AIAW and were called the Lady Brahmans as well. The Golden Brahmans men's soccer team won the first intercollegiate game in school history on September 25, 1965, defeating Florida Southern College 4–3. In 1969, swimmer Joe Lewkowicz won the first individual national championship in school history in the 200-yard butterfly.

1970s

The Golden Brahmans' men's swimming team nearly became the first team in USF history to win a national championship, finishing in second place in the 1971 NCAA Championship. The men's basketball team was founded in 1971 and was by far the most significant step in USF's young athletic history at the time. In spring 1972, USF's men's golf team were the runners up in the NCAA Championship. The Lady Brahmans

, women's golf,

, women's swimming, and

volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...

teams started the next academic year, and the university had also considered adding women's archery, badminton, and bowling to comply with the new

Title IX Title IX is the most commonly used name for the federal civil rights law in the United States that was enacted as part (Title IX) of the Education Amendments of 1972. It prohibits sex-based discrimination in any school or any other educa ...

law. The men's golf team then finished as national runners up again in 1973. USF's men's sports made the jump to the

NCAA University Division The NCAA University Division was a historic subdivision of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) consisting of member schools competing at the highest level of college sports. The University Division was first established as a basis fo ...

(now known as

) in fall 1973, and remained as independents. Likewise, USF's women's teams moved to the AIAW Large College Division in 1973. USF became a charter member of the

Sun Belt Conference The Sun Belt Conference (SBC) is a collegiate athletic conference that has been affiliated with the NCAA's Division I since 1976. Originally a non-football conference, the Sun Belt began sponsoring football in 2001. Its football teams partici ...

in 1976 (for men's sports only) as their first ever conference affiliation. That year, the men's soccer team became the first team in USF history to win a conference championship, winning both the regular season and tournament Sun Belt titles. In 1978, USF won the Sun Belt Cup (now known as the Vic Bubas Cup) for the first time as the Sun Belt Conference's all-sports champion for the 1977–78 academic year. They would go on to win the Cup again in each of the next four years and seven of the next eight.

1980s

In 1981, the Golden Brahmans simplified their nickname to Bulls for their men's teams. Naturally, the women's teams soon picked up the nickname of Lady Bulls, though they were officially still called the Lady Brahmans. The

AIAW The Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW) was founded in 1971 to govern collegiate women's athletics in the United States and to administer national championships (see AIAW Champions). It evolved out of the Commission on Inter ...

dissolved after spring 1982, and all of USF's women's sports besides softball went on to immediately join the NCAA. In 1983, USF's softball team won the first team national championship in school history. Softball was not an NCAA sponsored sport at the time, so the championship was won in the

, which governed the top level of collegiate softball. The Lady Brahmans won the ASA Championship again in the spring of 1984 before joining the NCAA the next year. In spring 1985, USF's women's swimming team became the first, and as of 2021, only team in USF history to win a team NCAA championship. Two years later though in the Spring of 1987, both the men's and women's swimming teams were cut due to financial hardships brought on by the sport not being sponsored by the Sun Belt, among other issues. The university added a women's cross country team the next fall to avoid

violations. Also that fall, the school officially changed the name of all women's teams from Lady Brahmans to Bulls. In 1989, Michelle Scarborough won the 14th individual NCAA national championship in USF history in the air rifle event of the

NCAA Rifle Championship The NCAA Rifle Championship is an annual co-educational rifle national collegiate championship sponsored by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The tournament includes an individual and team championships consisting of the two ...

. The Bulls rifle team finished as the runners up in the 1989 championship.

1990s

Michelle Scarborough won another NCAA co-ed rifle championship in

1990 File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of Humankind, humanity on Earth, Astroph ...

, this time in the smallbore event. 1990 was also the ninth and final time USF won the Sun Belt Cup, as the school left the Sun Belt to join the Metro Conference starting in the 1991–92 school year. That same year, the men's and women's outdoor track and field teams were founded and Jon Dennis won the national title in the men's outdoor 5000 meter run, which he won again in

1993 File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peace ...

. As of June 2021, no USF athlete has won an individual or relay national title since. The men's and women's indoor track and field teams were added that fall. In 1995 the Metro Conference merged with the

Great Midwest Conference The Great Midwest Conference was an NCAA Division I athletics conference that existed from 1991 to 1995. History It was formed in 1990 with six members: Cincinnati and Memphis State (now Memphis) from the Metro Conference, UAB from the Sun Be ...

to form

Conference USA Conference USA (C-USA or CUSA) is an intercollegiate athletic conference whose current member institutions are located within the Southern United States. The conference participates in the NCAA's Division I in all sports. C-USA's offices are ...

, giving USF their third conference allegiance in school history. This year also brought the Bulls

team to life. USF added their most famous sport in 1997, beginning to play football as a

Division I-AA The NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), formerly known as Division I-AA, is the second-highest level of college football in the United States, after the Football Bowl Subdivision. Sponsored by the National Collegiate Athleti ...

independent. Fall 1997 was also the inaugural year of the Bulls sailing team, which is now USF's most successful sport with three national championships, albeit competing in the

rather than the NCAA.

2000s

The football team became

Division I-A The NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), formerly known as Division I-A, is the highest level of college football in the United States. The FBS consists of the largest schools in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). A ...

in 2001 and joined Conference USA with the rest of USF's sports in 2003, but the school left the conference to join the

Big East The Big East Conference is a collegiate athletic conference that competes in NCAA Division I in ten men's sports and twelve women's sports. Headquartered in New York City, the eleven full-member schools are primarily located in Northeast and M ...

in 2005. USF football became very notable in the Big East, reaching as high as No. 2 in the

BCS rankings The Bowl Championship Series (BCS) was a selection system that created four or five bowl game match-ups involving eight or ten of the top ranked teams in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of American college football, includi ...

in 2007. In spring 2009, USF's women's basketball team won the

Women's National Invitation Tournament The Women's National Invitation Tournament (WNIT) is a women's national college basketball tournament with a preseason and postseason version played every year. It is operated in a similar fashion to the men's college National Invitation Tourname ...

for the first postseason tournament victory in their history. The following fall, the sailing team won the fourth team national championship in school history in the Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association Sloop National Championship.

2010s

The early 2010s brought lots of change to the university's athletic programs. Six new athletic facilities opened between 2011 and 2013:

Corbett Soccer Stadium The University of South Florida athletic facilities are the stadiums and arenas the South Florida Bulls use for their home games and training. The University of South Florida currently sponsors 19 varsity athletic teams and has 11 facilities in the ...

USF Baseball Stadium USF Baseball Stadium at Red McEwen Field is a baseball stadium located in Tampa, Florida, United States. It is home to the University of South Florida Bulls baseball team of the Division I American Athletic Conference. The facility has a c ...

USF Softball Stadium The University of South Florida athletic facilities are the stadiums and arenas the South Florida Bulls use for their home games and training. The University of South Florida currently sponsors 19 varsity athletic teams and has 11 facilities in the ...

, the

Frank Morsani Football Practice Complex The University of South Florida athletic facilities are the stadiums and arenas the South Florida Bulls use for their home games and training. The University of South Florida currently sponsors 19 varsity athletic teams and has 11 facilities in the ...

, the Pam and Les Muma Basketball Practice Center, and the Chowdhari Golf Center; plus extensive renovations were completed on the

Yuengling Center Yuengling Center (formerly the USF Sun Dome) is an indoor arena on the main campus of the University of South Florida (USF) in Tampa, Florida. Construction began in November 1977, and it opened on November 29, 1980. It is located in USF's Athl ...

USF Track and Field Stadium The USF Track and Field Stadium (formerly known as the USF Soccer Stadium from 1978 to 1991 and the USF Soccer and Track Stadium from 1991 to 2010) is a track and field stadium that was built in 1978. The stadium is currently home to the men's an ...

, and USF Varsity Tennis Courts. The nearly $70 million project also included construction of recreational fields for baseball, softball, soccer, and more. In 2013, the new golf center became USF's first

LEED Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is a green building certification program used worldwide. Developed by the non-profit U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), it includes a set of rating systems for the design, constructio ...

certified athletics facility. The Yuengling Center was certified LEED Silver the following year. Following the Big East Conference realignment in 2013, USF found itself as a charter member of the new

, where the Bulls still play today. The Bulls sailing team won their second ICSA national championship and the fifth team national championship in USF history in 2016 in the Offshore Large Boats competition and repeated as Offshore Large Boat champions in 2017. Also in 2017, USF launched the Bulls Unlimited channel on

TuneIn TuneIn is a global audio streaming service delivering live news, radio, sports, music, and podcasts to over 75 million monthly active users. TuneIn is operated by the company TuneIn Inc. which is based in San Francisco, California. The compa ...

, becoming the second school in the country to have its own 24/7 digital radio station. The station is available for free nationwide and carries live play-by-play coverage of all games in eight different sports plus highlights, shows, and more. A second channel, Bulls Unlimited 2, was launched in 2019 and mostly carries game replays, as well as live game coverage when games are happening simultaneously in two sports.

2020s

In 2021, the women's basketball team won their first conference titles with both the regular season and tournament AAC crowns and became the first team besides Connecticut to win an AAC title in the sport. In November 2021, athletic director Michael Kelly announced that USF would add a

team beginning in the 2023–24 school year (later postponed to the 2024–25 school year), which will make it the first new sport at the school since 1997. The following February, USF announced that a women's beach volleyball team would be added in 2024–25. USF varsity teams have won a total of 159 conference championships and six national championships. The school's athletes have won an additional 191 individual conference championships, 15 relay conference championships, 17 individual national championships, and four relay national championships. Bulls teams also have four national runner-up finishes in the NCAA and two in the ICSA, plus numerous individual and relay national runner-up finishes. Club teams representing USF have won 11 national championships.

Varsity sports

USF sponsors 19 varsity sports teams, nine for men and ten for women. A

team will be added in spring 2024, and a women's beach volleyball team will be added in spring 2025.

Football

Under head coach

Jim Leavitt James Pierce Leavitt (born December 5, 1956) is an American football coach and former player. He served as the head coach at the University of South Florida from the football program's inception in 1997 until 2009, compiling a record of 95–57. ...

, USF began college football play as a Division I-AA (now

Division I FCS The NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), formerly known as Division I-AA, is the second-highest level of college football in the United States, after the Football Bowl Subdivision. Sponsored by the National Collegiate Athlet ...

) independent for their first four seasons, finishing with a winning record three times and ranked in the AP Poll twice. During their

final year Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: * Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of co ...

in Division I-AA, the Bulls beat three teams ranked in the DI-AA top 15: No. 13 James Madison, No. 6 Western Kentucky, and No. 1 Troy State; as well as Division I-A Connecticut. That team finished with a 7–4 record, with all four losses coming to Division I-A opponents. They were ineligible for the Division I-AA playoffs as they were to transition to Division I-A the following year. The team grew rapidly and moved to Division I-A in

2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a multi-national coalition in an invasion of Afghanistan ...

, where they remained an independent. In

2003 File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia Space Shuttle Columbia disaster, disintegrated during reentry into Atmosphere of Earth, Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an 2002– ...

, the Bulls moved to

, but they would leave for the

Big East Conference The Big East Conference is a collegiate athletic conference that competes in NCAA Division I in ten men's sports and twelve women's sports. Headquartered in New York City, the eleven full-member schools are primarily located in Northeast and ...

2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris (dwarf planet), Er ...

. The Big East eventually became the

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment ...

as part of the major college football conference realignment. The football team plays its home games in

Raymond James Stadium Raymond James Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Tampa, Florida that opened in 1998 and is home to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL) and the University of South Florida (USF) Bulls college football program. The s ...

, which is also the home field of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ma ...

Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South divisio ...

. On November 16,

2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains independence from Indonesia and ...

, USF beat No. 25 Bowling Green State University, its first victory over a ranked Division I-A opponent. On September 24, 2005, USF surprised No. 9 Louisville for its first victory over a Big East conference foe. As a result, USF received its first ever votes in the

AP Poll The Associated Press poll (AP poll) provides weekly rankings of the top 25 NCAA teams in one of three Division I college sports: football, men's basketball and women's basketball. The rankings are compiled by polling 62 sportswriters and broa ...

. South Florida received increased press coverage for their upsets of Top 25 ranked teams such as West Virginia ( 2006,

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto ...

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...

), Auburn (2007), Kansas (

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing ...

) and Florida State (2009). On September 16, 2007, a week after defeating Auburn, USF was nationally ranked for the first time in the young program's history. The AP Poll listed USF at No. 23, while the

USA Today Coaches Poll The Coaches Poll is a weekly ranking of the top 25 NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) college football, Division I college basketball, and Division I college baseball teams. The football version of the poll has been known officiall ...

had the Bulls at No. 24. This was an NCAA record, as USF achieved its first Top 25 ranking faster than any other Division I-A team in the modern era with 104 weeks. On October 14, 2007, after the AP, Coaches', and BCS rankings were released, the Bulls were ranked No. 2, No. 3, and No. 2 respectively, the highest ranked the football program has ever been. However, the following week, the Bulls lost to Rutgers in a 30–27 upset in Piscataway, New Jersey. The Bulls finished the 2007 season 9–3 ranked No. 21 in the BCS standings, and earned a spot in the

Sun Bowl The Sun Bowl is a college football bowl game that has been played since 1935 in the southwestern United States at El Paso, Texas. Along with the Sugar Bowl and Orange Bowl, it is the second-oldest bowl game in the country, behind the Rose Bowl ...

, which they lost to Oregon. On September 12, 2008, the Bulls defeated No. 11 ranked Kansas 37–34 at Raymond James Stadium. USF would win its next two games, getting to 5–0, and being ranked No. 10 in the AP Poll, before losing to Pittsburgh 26–21. The Bulls finished the season 7–5, which earned them a spot in the inaugural St. Petersburg Bowl against the Memphis Tigers, where they won the first bowl game in school history 41–14. On September 26, 2009, USF defeated No. 18 Florida State 17–7 at

Doak Campbell Stadium Doak S. Campbell Stadium (in full Bobby Bowden Field at Doak S. Campbell Stadium), popularly known as "Doak", is a football stadium on the campus of Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida. It is the home field of the Florida State Semi ...

in Tallahassee. On October 4, 2009, the Bulls entered the AP rankings for the first time in the season, coming at #23 after beating Syracuse 34–20. The following week, they lost to highly favored No. 8 Cincinnati. The Bulls would finish the season 8–5 and received a bid to the

International Bowl The International Bowl was a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) collegiate American football bowl game played in Toronto from 2007 through 2010. During its run, it was the only post-season bowl game played outside the United States ...

against the Northern Illinois Huskies. The Bulls would go on to win 27–3. Jim Leavitt was fired on January 8, 2010, after an investigation alleged that he grabbed a player by the shoulder pads and struck him twice across the face. The investigation also claimed that Leavitt interfered with the investigation by telling several coaches and players to change their stories. Leavitt maintains he never struck the player, but was merely trying to console him, and after a wrongful termination suit against USF, the university eventually settled with Leavitt for $2.75 million. On January 14, 2010,

Skip Holtz Louis Leo "Skip" Holtz Jr. (born March 12, 1964) is an American football coach who is the head coach for the Birmingham Stallions of the United States Football League (USFL). Previously, he was the head coach for the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs (2 ...

was hired away from East Carolina and named the team's second head coach. The Bulls went 8–5 in Holtz's first season, finishing it off with a 31–26 Meineke Car Care Bowl victory over Clemson. USF started the 2011 season on a high note, defeating No. 16 Notre Dame 23–20 at

Notre Dame Stadium Notre Dame Stadium is an outdoor football stadium in Notre Dame, Indiana, the home field of the University of Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team. It was built in 1930 under the guidance of Knute Rockne, regarded as one of the greatest c ...

. The Bulls reached No. 16 in the AP Poll after starting the season 4–0 but would struggle for the rest of season, finishing with a record of 5–7 and failed to qualify for a bowl game for the first time in 7 seasons. The Bulls'

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

was its worst ever at the time, as the team finished 3–9. On December 8, 2012, USF announced that

Willie Taggart Willie Author Taggart (born August 27, 1976) is an American football college coach. He has held the head coach position at five NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision programs: Western Kentucky (2009 to 2012 seasons); South Florida (2013 to 2 ...

, who previously coached at Western Kentucky, would be the third head coach in USF football history. The Bulls struggled in Taggart's first year, posting a 2–10 record, however, the team improved slightly in his

second year Second year (also known as S2 in Scotland) is the second year of schooling in secondary schools in Scotland and in the Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Eu ...

, finishing 4–8. Taggart finished his third season at USF 8–5 with a loss in the Miami Beach Bowl to Western Kentucky. In Week 5 of 2016 against Cincinnati,

Marlon Mack Marlon Devon Mack (born March 7, 1996) is an American football running back for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at South Florida and was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in the fourth rou ...

passed

Andre Hall Andre Hall (born August 20, 1982) is a former American football running back. He was signed by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as an undrafted free agent in 2006. He played college football at South Florida, where he was the school's all-time leadin ...

to become the leading rusher in program history. Two weeks later, in a Week 7 game against UConn, Mack passed B.J. Daniels to become the program leader in rushing touchdowns. During their Week 9 game against No. 22 Navy, the Bulls set a school record for rushing yards in a game, racking up 412 yards in a 52–45 victory. The Bulls broke that record two weeks later in their Week 11 game against Memphis, rushing for 416 yards in a 49–42 victory. Also in that game, the Bulls broke the school record for offensive touchdowns in a season (58). In a Week 12 game against SMU, Quinton Flowers passed Matt Grothe to become the school leader in single season total offense. The Bulls secured their first 10 win season after a 48–31 victory over UCF in Week 13. During that game, Quinton Flowers set the school record for single season rushing yards (1,425), passing the mark Marlon Mack set in 2015. On November 30, 2016, Quniton Flowers was named the American Athletic Conference Offensive Player of the Year, which is the first such award in school history. The Bulls ended their season with a 46–39 overtime victory over South Carolina in the

Birmingham Bowl The Birmingham Bowl is a post-season NCAA-sanctioned Division I FBS college football bowl game played annually in Birmingham, Alabama. First held in 2006, the game is owned and operated by ESPN Events. The University of Alabama at Birmingham ( ...

on December 29, 2016. On January 12, 2017, Quinton Flowers was named the 2017 College Football Performance Awards National Performer of the Year. Taggart left after the season to become the coach at Oregon. USF hired former Texas head coach

Charlie Strong Charles Rene Strong (born August 2, 1960) is an American football coach who is currently the co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach at the University of Miami. He recently served as the assistant head coach and inside linebackers co ...

as their new head coach on December 11, 2016. The 2017 Bulls earned their second straight 10 win season after beating Texas Tech in the Birmingham Bowl. The Bulls started

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

with a 7–0 record, but did not win another game and finished 7–6. Strong was fired after the 2019 campaign, finishing 4–8. The Bulls hired former Clemson offensive coordinator

Jeff Scott Jeffrey Bradford Scott (born December 28, 1980) is an American football coach. He was the head coach at the University of South Florida from 2020 to 2022. Playing career Born in Arcadia, Florida, Scott later lived in Seneca, South Carolina and ...

as their new head coach on December 9, 2019. Scott won two

College Football Playoff National Championship The College Football Playoff National Championship is a post-season college football bowl game, used to determine a national champion of the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), which began play in the 2014 college football seaso ...

s with Clemson. His first season, shortened by the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identified ...

, was the worst in program history, finishing with a 1–8 record. Scott was fired in 2022 with three games remaining in the season after compiling a total record of 4–26. Special teams coach Daniel Da Prato was named interim head coach for the remainder of the season. The Bulls lost their three remaining games, but played with notable improvements. Tennessee offensive coordinator Alex Golesh, a

Broyles Award The Broyles Award is an annual award given to honor the best assistant coach in college football. First awarded in 1996, it was named after former University of Arkansas men's athletic director Frank Broyles. The award is presented in Little ...

finalist, was hired as USF's sixth football head coach on December 4, 2022. Some notable USF football players are

George Selvie George Selvie (born March 6, 1987) is a former American football defensive end in the National Football League for the St. Louis Rams, Carolina Panthers, Jacksonville Jaguars, Dallas Cowboys and New York Giants. He was drafted by the St. Louis ...

Jason Pierre-Paul Jason Andrew Pierre-Paul (born January 1, 1989) is an American football outside linebacker for the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at South Florida and was drafted by the New York Giants in t ...

Marquez Valdes-Scantling Marquez Reshard Valdes-Scantling (born October 10, 1994) is an American football wide receiver for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at NC State and South Florida, and was drafted by the G ...

, and

Men's basketball

The birth of the basketball program at the University of South Florida was in 1971. The first game was a 74–73 victory at Stetson University. The Bulls inaugural season ended with a record of 8–17. Since 1980, home games have been played at what is now the

. The Bulls have made the

NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament The NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament, branded as NCAA March Madness and commonly called March Madness, is a single-elimination tournament played each spring in the United States, currently featuring 68 college basketball teams fro ...

three times and won their conference tournament once.

Brian Gregory Brian Francis Gregory (born December 15, 1966) is an American college basketball coach who was most recently the head men's basketball coach at South Florida. He was previously serving as a consultant to Tom Izzo at Michigan State after being le ...

is the current head coach of the program. The Bulls won their first postseason tournament (other than conference tournaments) in the

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

College Basketball Invitational The College Basketball Invitational (CBI) is a men's college basketball tournament created in 2007 by The Gazelle Group. The inaugural tournament occurred after the conclusion of the 2007-08 NCAA Division I men's basketball season, 2007–08 men ...

. Notable men's basketball players who went to USF include

Chucky Atkins Kenneth Lavon "Chucky" Atkins (born August 14, 1974) is an American former professional basketball player who played for nine different NBA teams throughout his career. Basketball career Atkins played college basketball at the University of South ...

and

Dominique Jones Dominique O'Neal Jones (born October 15, 1988) is an American professional basketball player for the Jilin Northeast Tigers of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). A noted scorer in college, Jones had the second-highest scoring average in th ...

Women's basketball

The women's basketball team was founded in 1972. The current head coach is Jose Fernandez. Fernandez arrived in Tampa in April 2000, as a women's basketball assistant coach and was officially named head coach on December 14, 2000. Under his lead, USF advanced to the program's first ever NCAA tournament during the 2005–06 season, and to 10 postseason tournaments in 11 years after the Bulls had recorded just five winning seasons in the 28 year history of the team before Fernandez became head coach. Fernandez has also guided USF to eight 20 win campaigns in his career with the Bulls. On April 4,

, Fernandez led the team to their first ever post season championship with a 75–71 win over the Kansas Jayhawks in the WNIT. Fernandez also coached USF's first NCAA women's basketball tournament game, beating Texas Tech in the first round of the 2013 NCAA Tournament. The Bulls have made the NCAA Tournament seven times and the

nine times in their history. They have won two conference championships, one in the regular season and one in the AAC Tournament. Notable USF women's basketball players include

Courtney Williams Courtney Monae Williams (born May 11, 1994) is an American professional basketball player for the Minnesota Lynx of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Williams completed her high school basketball career at Charlton County High ...

and Wanda Guyton.

Baseball

The head baseball coach is

Billy Mohl William T. Mohl (born June 1, 1984) is an American baseball coach, who is the current the head baseball coach of the South Florida Bulls. Mohl played baseball for the Tulane Green Wave baseball team while obtaining a degree. Playing career Moh ...

. The team plays at USF Baseball Stadium at Red McEwen Field on the Tampa campus. The program has won eleven combined regular season and tournament conference titles and made 14 NCAA Tournaments. USF has produced many

MLB Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

players including

National Baseball Hall of Fame The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by private interests. It serves as the central point of the history of baseball in the United States and displays baseball- ...

member

Tony La Russa Anthony La Russa Jr. (; born October 4, 1944) is an American former professional baseball player, coach, and manager. His MLB career has spanned from 1963 to 2022, in several roles. He is the former manager of the St. Louis Cardinals, Oakland A ...

. Pitchers have thrown one perfect game and three no hitters (not including the perfect game) in school history. 127 USF players have been selected in the

MLB Draft The first-year player draft is the primary mechanism of Major League Baseball (MLB) for assigning amateur baseball players from high schools, colleges, and other amateur baseball clubs to its teams. The draft order is determined based on a lo ...

Men's cross country

The Bulls men's cross country team began in 1965 and has won seven team conference championships and nine individual conference championships. They have qualified for the

NCAA Men's Division I Cross Country Championship The NCAA Division I Men's Cross Country Championship is the cross country championship held by the National Collegiate Athletic Association each autumn for individual men's runners and cross country teams from universities in Division I. Teams an ...

four times. The men's team is coached by Erik Jenkins along with the women's team and the men's and women's track & field teams.

Women's cross country

South Florida's women's cross country was founded in 1987 and has won five conference titles, back to back NCAA South Regional championships in 1999 and 2000, and one individual conference championship. They have qualified for the

NCAA Women's Division I Cross Country Championship The NCAA Women's Division I Cross Country Championship is the cross country championship held by the National Collegiate Athletic Association each autumn for individual runners and cross country teams from universities in Division I. Teams and i ...

five times.

Men's golf

The men's golf coach is Steve Bradley. The team was founded in 1966 and finished as the NCAA College Division runners-up in 1972 and 1973. The Bulls have won 17 conference championships, including 11 straight from 1979 to 1989 as members of the Sun Belt Conference. Team members have also won 11 individual conference championships. The 2015 team finished fifth in the NCAA Championship.

Women's golf

The women's golf coach is Erika Brennan, who was hired in 2018. They have won 6 conference championships and a Florida women's golf state title. Their highest finish in the NCAA Championship is fourth, achieved in 1991. Team members have won three individual conference championships.

Sailing

The Bulls women's sailing program is a nationally recognized team and is USF's most successful sport by number of national championships won. Since 2004 the team has been coached by

Allison Jolly Allison Blair Jolly (born August 4, 1956) is an American sailor and Olympic champion. Born in St. Petersburg, Florida, Jolly began sailing at the age of 10 and attended the Florida State University where she won the Inter-Collegiate Sailing As ...

, gold medalist in the first Olympic women's sailing event at the

1988 Summer Olympics The 1988 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad () and commonly known as Seoul 1988 ( ko, 서울 1988, Seoul Cheon gubaek palsip-pal), was an international multi-sport event held from 17 September to 2 October ...

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the Capital city, capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the North Korea, Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea ...

. As sailing is not an American Athletic Conference or NCAA sanctioned sport, USF is a member of the

within the

. The varsity sailing team was formed in 1997 after being a popular club team for USF St. Petersburg students for many years before that. The team uses a waterfront facility on Bayboro Harbor on the University of South Florida's St. Petersburg campus called the

Haney Landing Sailing Center The University of South Florida athletic facilities are the stadiums and arenas the South Florida Bulls use for their home games and training. The University of South Florida currently sponsors 19 varsity athletic teams and has 11 facilities in the ...

. It is the only varsity sport based on USF's St. Petersburg campus. The USF sailing team won the Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association Sloop National Championship in 2009 and back to back ICSA Offshore Large Boats National Championships in 2016 and 2017. They were National Runners Up at the ICSA Singlehanded National Championships in 2009 and 2011. The Bulls represented the United States in the 2017 and 2018

Student Yachting World Cup The Student Yachting World Cup (SYWoC) is an annual sailing competition for students which was created in 1979 and is held in France. 36th edition The 36th edition of the Student Yachting World Cup took place in La Rochelle, France. The compet ...

s. One USF sailor, Paige Railey, has competed in the

Olympics The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a var ...

, representing the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

, 2016, and

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global social and economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, worldwide lockdowns and the largest economic recession since the Great Depression in ...

Men's soccer

Men's soccer was the first NCAA sport ever played at USF, beginning in 1965. The Bulls won the NCAA College Division state championship in 1966 going undefeated at 10–0–1. In 1976, the team won the first conference championship in school history across all sports by winning the regular season Sun Belt title, which they followed up by winning the inaugural Sun Belt Conference tournament too. The Bulls have made the NCAA Tournament 22 times (including the Elite Eight three of those times) and have won 27 total conference championships (13 regular season and 14 tournament), the most of any program at USF. Notable USF men's soccer alumni include

Roy Wegerle Roy Wegerle (born March 19, 1964) is a former United States international soccer player who appeared for the national team 41 times between 1992 and 1998. Born and raised in South Africa, he was naturalized as a U.S. citizen in 1991. Since retiri ...

Jeff Cunningham Jeff Cunningham (born August 21, 1976) is an American former professional soccer player who played as a forward. He is Major League Soccer's third-all-time leader in regular-season goals scored with 134. Youth and college Cunningham was born ...

, and Mark Chung.

Women's soccer

The Bulls women's soccer team was founded in 1995. The team is led by coach Denise Schilte-Brown, who is the second coach in the program's history. She joined the program in December 2006 and had previously coached at Virginia Commonwealth and University of Maryland, Baltimore County. The women's soccer team has made seven appearances in the NCAA Tournament, and have won seven combined regular season and tournament conference championships, including during an undefeated regular season and conference tournament run in

. They most recently won a regular season conference title in 2021. Notable USF women's soccer players include

Christiane Endler Claudia Christiane Endler Mutinelli (born 23 July 1991) is a Chilean professional footballer who plays as goalkeeper for Division 1 Féminine club Lyon and the Chile national team. She has previously played for Colo-Colo, Valencia, Pari ...

and Évelyne Viens.

Softball

The Bulls softball team began NCAA play in 1985. The team has won seven total regular season and tournament conference championships and made 17 NCAA Tournament appearances. Additionally, the team has made one NCAA

Women's College World Series The Women's College World Series (WCWS) is the final portion of the NCAA Division I softball tournament for college softball in the United States. Eight teams participate in the WCWS, which begins with a double-elimination tournament. In other wo ...

(

). Ken Eriksen, who played baseball for USF from 1981 to 1984, has been the head coach of the team since 1996 and is the winningest coach across all sports in USF history. He became the first coach at USF to reach 1,000 wins after pitcher

Georgina Corrick Georgina Louise Corrick (born September 29, 1999) is a British born, American raised professional softball player for Athletes Unlimited Softball. She played college softball for the South Florida Bulls. She is also a member of the Great Britai ...

's no hitter on April 30, 2021. Eriksen is also the current manager of the

United States women's national softball team The United States women's national softball team is the national softball team of the United States. It is governed by USA Softball (formerly known as the Amateur So ...

. Prior to 1985, Bulls softball played in the

, which disbanded in 1982; and the

, which sanctioned college softball after the collapse of the AIAW until the NCAA started sponsoring the sport in 1985. They made the AIAW Women's College World Series in 1976 and 1981 and won the ASA National Championship in

1983 The year 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call. Events January * January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to TCP/IP is officially completed (this is considered to be the beginning ...

and 1984. They have won eight combined regular season and tournament conference championships. USF pitchers have thrown five perfect games and 27 no hitters as of the end of the 2022 season. In 2022, Georgina Corrick became the first

pitching triple crown In baseball, a player earns a Triple Crown when he leads a league in three specific statistical categories in the same season. The term "Triple Crown" generally refers to the batting achievement of leading a league in batting average, home runs, ...

winner in NCAA softball history, leading the nation in wins, strikeouts, and ERA.

Men's tennis

The men's head coach is

Ashley Fisher Ashley Fisher (born 25 September 1975) is a professional tennis player who comes from New South Wales in Australia. Fisher turned professional in 1998. Fisher has never played a major singles match on the ATP Tour, but has won four notable d ...

, who was hired after the 2016 season. The Bulls men's tennis team has won 20 conference championships, the second-most of any USF team. They have also qualified for 17 NCAA tournaments, advancing to the Round of 16 for their best ever finish in 2015.

Women's tennis

The women's tennis team is coached by Cristina Moros. They have won 13 conference titles and made 12 NCAA tournaments as well as four

United States Lawn Tennis Association The United States Tennis Association (USTA) is the national governing body for tennis in the United States. A not-for-profit organization with more than 700,000 members, it invests 100% of its proceeds to promote and develop the growth of tennis, ...

tournaments (where they finished third in 1970 and 1971) and three

tournaments.

Men's track and field

USF men's track & field athletes have won two individual national championships and 24 individual indoor, two relay indoor, 48 individual outdoor and two relay outdoor conference championships. They, along with the women's team and cross country teams, are coached by Erik Jenkins. Athlete Jon Dennis won the national title in the 5000 meter run in 1992 and 1993. USF Athletic Hall of Fame member Matthew O'Neal finished as the national runner-up in 2016 in the indoor triple jump. The USF men's track & field program has produced two Olympians:

Llewelyn Bredwood Llewelyn Bredwood (born 30 April 1976) is a Jamaican sprinter. He competed in the men's 4 × 100 metres relay at the 2000 Summer Olympics. Bredwood ran for the University of South Florida The University of South Florida (USF) is a public ...

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of Hispan ...

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...

and

Kemel Thompson Kemel Thompson (born September 25, 1974) is a former Jamaican athlete who competes in the 400 metres hurdles. His personal best time is 48.05 seconds, achieved in London in 2003. Kemel competed for the University of South Florida from 1992–19 ...

of Jamaica in

and

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

Women's track and field

The Bulls women's track & field team has won three indoor and three outdoor conference championships, along with producing 40 individual indoor, 2 relay indoor, 53 individual outdoor and 8 relay outdoor conference champions. The USF women's track & field team has produced three Olympians:

Damu Cherry Damu Cherry (born November 29, 1977, in Tampa, Florida) is an American hurdler. Her personal best time is 12.44 seconds, achieved in July 2006 in Lausanne. Cherry competed for the University of South Florida The University of South Flori ...

of the

Dayana Octavien Dayana Octavien (born June 10, 1982) is a Haitian-American track and field athlete who competes internationally for Haiti. Octavien competed in the 2008 Summer Olympics for Haiti in the discus event. She placed sixth the year prior in the Pan ...

Haiti Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and ...

in 2008, and

Sasha Springer-Jones Sasha Springer-Jones (born 17 March 1978 in Port-of-Spain) is a track and field sprint athlete who competes internationally for Trinidad and Tobago.

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago (, ), officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean. Consisting of the main islands Trinidad and Tobago, and numerous much List of islands of Trinidad and Tobago, small ...

in 2008.

Volleyball

The women's volleyball team was founded in 1972. The Bulls have made the NCAA Tournament seven times and won 18 combined conference regular season and tournament championships. Former USF volleyball player Jolene Shepardson is the current head coach.

Sports timeline

ImageSize = width:1000 height:auto barincrement:20 Period = from:1965 till:2023 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal PlotArea = right:20 left:0 bottom:50 top:5 #> to display a count on left side of graph, use "left:20" to suppress the count, use "left:20"<# Colors = id:barcolor value:rgb(0.99,0.7,0.7) id:line value:black id:bg value:white id:Yes value:rgb(0.812,0.769,0.576) # Use this color to denote the sport is offered DateFormat = yyyy AlignBars = justify PlotData = width:15 textcolor:black shift:(5,-5) anchor:from fontsize:s bar:1 color:Yes from:1965 till:1987 text: Men's swimming and diving (1965–87) bar:2 color:Yes from:1965 till:end text:

(1965–present) bar:3 color:Yes from:1965 till:end text: Men's cross country (1965–present) bar:4 color:Yes from:1965 till:end text: Men's golf (1965–present) bar:5 color:Yes from:1965 till:end text: Men's soccer (1965–present) bar:6 color:Yes from:1965 till:end text: Men's tennis (1965–present) bar:7 color:Yes from:1965 till:end text:

Women's tennis Women's tennis is one of the most popular sports for women. It is one of the few sports in which women command fame and popularity that equal those of their male counterparts. Women's Tennis Association is the main organisation which runs femal ...

(1965–present) bar:8 color:Yes from:1971 till:end text: Men's basketball (1971–present) bar:9 color:Yes from:1972 till:1987 text: Women's swimming and diving (1972–87) bar:10 color:Yes from:1972 till:end text:

Women's basketball Women's basketball is the team sport of basketball played by women. It began being played in 1892, one year after men's basketball, at Smith College in Massachusetts. It spread across the United States, in large part via women's college compet ...

(1972–present) bar:11 color:Yes from:1972 till:end text: Women's golf (1972–present) bar:12 color:Yes from:1972 till:end text:

Softball Softball is a game similar to baseball played with a larger ball on a smaller field. Softball is played competitively at club levels, the college level, and the professional level. The game was first created in 1887 in Chicago by George Hanc ...

(1972–present) bar:13 color:Yes from:1972 till:end text:

Volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...

(1972–present) bar:14 color:Yes from:1985 till:1990 text: Rifle (1985–90) bar:15 color:Yes from:1987 till:end text: Women's cross country (1987–present) bar:16 color:Yes from:1992 till:end text: Men's outdoor track and field (1992–present) bar:17 color:Yes from:1992 till:end text: Women's outdoor track and field (1992–present) bar:18 color:Yes from:1994 till:end text: Men's indoor track and field (1994–present) bar:19 color:Yes from:1994 till:end text: Women's indoor track and field (1994–present) bar:20 color:Yes from:1995 till:end text:

Women's soccer Women's association football, more commonly known simply as women's football or women's soccer, is a team sport of association football when played by women only. It is played at the professional level in multiple countries and 176 national te ...

(1995–present) bar:21 color:Yes from:1997 till:end text: Football (1997–present) bar:22 color:Yes from:1997 till:end text:

Sailing Sailing employs the wind—acting on sails, wingsails or kites—to propel a craft on the surface of the ''water'' ( sailing ship, sailboat, raft, windsurfer, or kitesurfer), on ''ice'' ( iceboat) or on ''land'' ( land yacht) over a chose ...

(1997–present) ScaleMajor = gridcolor:line unit:year increment:5 start:1965 TextData = fontsize:M textcolor:black pos:(0,30) tabs:(500-center) text:^"South Florida Bulls Athletic History"

Future varsity sports

On November 10, 2021, USF athletic director Michael Kelly announced that two new women's varsity sports would be created in the coming years. Women's lacrosse and women's beach volleyball will begin during the 2024–25 school year.

Lacrosse

The women's lacrosse team is scheduled to become the women's sport added at USF since 1997 when it begins play in spring 2025. The team was originally scheduled to begin in spring 2024, but have been postponed. They will play home games at Corbett Stadium, the current home of the Bulls soccer teams, but have plans to move to their own lacrosse-specific stadium in the future. The university has announced that Mindy McCord will be the first head coach of the team.

Beach volleyball

The women's beach volleyball team is scheduled to begin play in spring 2025. They will play on campus with a new facility planned to be built on the north side of the

. Because beach volleyball is not sanctioned by the American Athletic Conference, the team will either have to join another conference as an affiliate member or play as an independent.

Discontinued varsity sports

Swimming and diving

USF's only team NCAA national championship came in women's swimming and diving in 1985. The 1984–85 team alone won five individual national titles, two relay national titles, and racked up 35 All-American honors. All 10 members of the team as well as the coaching staff were inducted into the USF Athletic Hall of Fame's inaugural class in 2009. During its existence, members of the team won an additional two individual and one relay national championship and the team earned a third-place finish at the 1984 NCAA Championship. Also a member of the USF Athletic Hall of Fame, Joe Lewkowicz of the men's swimming and diving team won the first individual national title in school history with the 1969 200 yard butterfly event. The 12 time All-American also won the 1972 400 yard medley relay national championship with other members of the team. The program as a whole won six individual national titles and one relay national title during its existence, and finished as national runners up in 1971. Financial difficulties, along with the sport not being sponsored by the

, led to both the men's and women's teams being cut after the 1986–87 season.

Rifle

The co-ed rifle team only existed from 1985–1990 and competed in four

s. In spite of this, the team did extremely well each time, finishing fifth in the 1986 NCAA Championship, third in the

1987 File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airpor ...

and 1988 NCAA Championships and second in the 1989 NCAA Championship. They also won the NRA Smallbore Intercollegiate Sectionals in 1987. USF Hall of Fame inductee Michelle Scarborough won two individual national titles with the Bulls rifle team, winning championships in the 1989 air rifle event and the 1990 smallbore event (smallbore is considered the more prestigious of the two events in college

riflery Shooting sports is a group of competitive and recreational sporting activities involving proficiency tests of accuracy, precision and speed in shooting — the art of using ranged weapons, mainly small arms ( firearms and airguns, in forms such ...

). Rifle is the one of the only NCAA sponsored sports where men and women directly compete against each other, meaning that Scarborough was not only the best woman at these events, but shot better than all the men as well. Scarborough's 1989 championship in air rifle stood as the highest score ever in the event for either men or women (399/400) until the event format changed from 40 shots to 60 shots in 2005. Three Bulls shooters have competed in the Olympics. Dorothee Deuring represented

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

in 1988,

Kristen Peterson Kristen Peterson is an American sports shooter. She competed in the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul and the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona. She was also a member of Team USA in the 1990 ISSF World Shooting Championships, which won the gold medal ...

represented the

in 1988 and

1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment building in Amsterdam after two of its engines ...

, and

Peter Durben Peter Durben is an American sport shooter. He competed in the Men's 50 meter Free Rifle Prone event at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona. He is also the brother of fellow Olympic rifle shooter Daniel Durben. Durben attended the University o ...

represented the

. Other athletes competed internationally as well. Most notably, Michelle Scarborough won three team gold and an individual bronze medal at the

1991 Pan American Games The 1991 Pan American Games were held in Havana, Cuba from August 2 to August 18, 1991. There were 4,519 athletes from 39 countries of the PASO community, with events in 33 different sports. The main stadium was the Estadio Panamericano, a mul ...

and Matthew Suggs won a team gold and individual silver medal at the 1987 ISSF 10 meter air rifle world championship. USF's rifle program would be short lived and never competed as a team after 1989. Michelle Scarborough was the only representative of the university in the 1990 NCAA Rifle Championship and was the last to do so.

Notable non-varsity sports

USF offers over 40 different club sports to students, which compete against club teams from other universities. With the exception of the all-girl and co-ed cheerleading squads, all club sports are funded through USF's Student Government Association rather than the athletic department. Some of the most notable club sports include:

Cricket

USF's

Twenty20 Twenty20 (T20) is a shortened game format of cricket. At the professional level, it was introduced by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) in 2003 for the county cricket, inter-county competition. In a Twenty20 game, the two teams have ...

cricket club team immediately found great success after being established in 2009. Between their inaugural year and 2016, the Bulls made seven American College Cricket semifinals and five national championship games, capped off by winning national championships in 2014 and 2016. The Bulls returned to the ACC semifinals in 2017 and 2018 as well. Beginning in 2019, they moved from American College Cricket to the National Collegiate Cricket Association.

Flag football

USF has both a Men's and Women's Flag Football Club, both of which compete in the

National Intramural and Recreational Sports Association The National Intramural-Recreational Sports Association (NIRSA) is an organization which regulates various sports through the collegiate systems across the United States. NIRSA serves students who play at the university varsity or club level in ...

. The men's team won the NIRSA National Championship in 1994 and 2001.

Ice hockey

The Ice Bulls club team were founded in 1989 and play in the

Southern Collegiate Hockey Conference The Southern Collegiate Hockey Conference is a collegiate hockey conference within Division II of the College Hockey Federation. All teams within the conference come from universities based in the state of Florida. History The SCHC began play in ...

of the College Hockey Federation. They have made Nationals of their previous league, the

American Collegiate Hockey Association The American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA) is a college ice hockey association. The ACHA's purpose is to be an organization of collegiate affiliated non-varsity programs, which provides structure, regulates operations, and promotes qualit ...

, five times, and most recently won the SCHC championship in 2020 to qualify for Nationals for a sixth time, but the ACHA canceled the National Tournament due to the

. The Ice Bulls play their home games at AdventHealth Center Ice in

Wesley Chapel, Florida Wesley Chapel is a census-designated place in Pasco County, Florida, United States. Wesley Chapel is a suburb in the Tampa Bay Area. Wesley Chapel originated in the mid-1800s as a cohesive community of settlers who demonstrated a uniquely rur ...

and all home games are free to the public.

Karate

The USF co-ed karate club team competes in the National Collegiate Karate Association. They won NCKA National Championships in 1994 and 1995.

Lacrosse

USF offers lacrosse teams for both men and women. The men's team was originally founded in 1971 and re-founded in 2000 after being defunct for most of the 1990s. The early teams were poorly equipped until coach Bronson Thayer convinced New York Yankees owner and Tampa resident

George Steinbrenner George Michael Steinbrenner III (July 4, 1930July 13, 2010) was an American businessman who was the principal owner and managing partner of Major League Baseball's New York Yankees from 1973 until his death in 2010. He was the longest-serving own ...

to help fund the team. The team has won three state championships: 1978 (after a perfect season), 1984, and 1989. Today the team plays in the

SouthEastern Lacrosse Conference The SouthEastern Lacrosse Conference (SELC) is a lacrosse-only athletic conference affiliated with the Men's Collegiate Lacrosse Association (MCLA). The SELC incorporates teams in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee, and is divid ...

in the

Men's Collegiate Lacrosse Association The Men's Collegiate Lacrosse Association (MCLA) is a national organization of non-NCAA men's college lacrosse programs. The MCLA oversees game play and conducts national championships for over 200 teams in ten conferences throughout the United ...

. The women's lacrosse team competes in the Southeastern Women's Lacrosse League.

Paintball

Paintball is one of the most popular club teams at USF. They compete as a co-ed team in the National Collegiate Paintball Association. They have won two NCPA national championships: 2017 and 2018.

Rugby

The USF men's rugby club was founded in 1969. USF plays rugby in the South Independent conference against local rivals such as Central Florida and Florida State. The Bulls were the USA Rugby South champions and national semifinalists in 2009 and 2011. The Bulls were promoted to Division I college rugby in 2011. The Bulls play sevens in the fall and fifteens in the winter and spring. USF also has a women's rugby club, which was established in 1992 and plays in the Florida Rugby Union.

Wakeboarding

The co-ed USF Wakeboarding Club competes in the American Wakeboard Association, a division of

USA Water Ski USA Water Ski & Wake Sports also known as USA Water Ski is a non-profit water skiing association headquartered in Polk County, Florida whose mission is 'to promote the growth and development of recreational water skiing, and organizing and governin ...

. They won the 2011 AWA National Championship.

Championships

NCAA National Championships

Team national championships

One USF team has won an NCAA national championship.

Individual national championships

Eight Bulls have combined to win 17 individual national championships across four sports.

Relay national championships

A combined four relay teams from two different sports have won national championships for USF.

List of individual and relay national champions

These are the 17 individual and four relay NCAA titles won by USF athletes.

Non-NCAA National Championships

This section lists national championships won by varsity USF teams outside the scope of NCAA competition. Club teams are not included in this list.

Conference championships

Team conference championships

USF has won 159 team conference championships. 26 of these championships have come as members of the American Athletic Conference.

Individual conference championships

Bulls athletes have combined to win 191 individual conference championships.

Relay conference championships

15 relay teams from USF have won conference championships.

All-sport conference titles

USF has won nine all-sport conference titles as a program, however the

is the only conference USF has competed in to offer such a competition while USF was a member (1976–77 until 1990–91).

Club team national championships

11 non-varsity club teams, which are not sponsored by the USF Athletic Department (other than the cheer team), have won national championships.

Athletes

USF Athletic Hall of Fame

The

University of South Florida Athletic Hall of Fame The University of South Florida Athletic Hall of Fame was established in 2009 to recognize and perpetuate the memory of student athletes, teams, coaches and administrators who have made demonstrably outstanding and significant contributions to the ...

was established in 2009 to recognize and perpetuate the memory of student athletes, teams, coaches and administrators who have made demonstrably outstanding and significant contributions to the success, tradition and heritage of USF Athletics, and who demonstrate the character and values that define the highest principles of sport. Induction in the University of South Florida Athletic Hall of Fame is the highest honor afforded by the USF Athletics Department. Athletic Director

Mark Harlan Mark Harlan is the athletic director at the University of Utah. Prior to taking the position at Utah, he was the athletic director at the University of South Florida. College Harlan is a graduate of the University of Arizona, where he earned a ...

refused to induct new members into the Hall of Fame during his tenure from 2014 to 2018, but Michael Kelly reinstated the Hall in 2019 after taking over as AD. As of the 2022 class, the Hall features 43 members including athletic directors

and

Lee Roy Selmon Lee Roy Selmon (October 20, 1954 – September 4, 2011) was an American professional American football, football player who was a defensive end for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football as a ...

, coach

Bobby Paschal Bobby Paschal (born October 22, 1941) is a retired college basketball coach. He was head coach of the South Florida Bulls team from 1986 to 1996, as well as the Southwestern Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns from 1978 to 1986. A native of Enterprise, Alab ...

, and athletes Charlie Bradley,

, and

. The Hall of Fame is located within the Lee Roy Selmon Athletics Center on USF's Tampa campus.

Bulls in the Olympics

15 USF alumni have participated as athletes in the

, representing 10 countries in 7 sports. 14 of these athletes competed in the

Summer Olympics The Summer Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'été), also known as the Games of the Olympiad, and often referred to as the Summer Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The ina ...

and one competed in the

Winter Olympics The Winter Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'hiver) is a major international multi-sport event held once every four years for sports practiced on snow and ice. The first Winter Olympic Games, the 1924 Winter Olympics, were h ...

. Every Summer Olympics since 1988 besides 1996 have featured at least one Bull. * Dorothee Deuring – Women's shooting, 1988 *

– Women's shooting, 1988,

– Men's shooting,

– Men's track and field,

Siri Nordby Siri Kristine Nordby (born 4 August 1978) is a Norwegian football defender who played over fifteen years for Røa in Norway's Toppserien league. She also played for the Norway women's national football team. Career Nordby started her career at ...

– Women's soccer,

– Women's track and field,

Sasha Springer-Jones Sasha Springer-Jones (born 17 March 1978 in Port-of-Spain) is a track and field sprint athlete who competes internationally for Trinidad and Tobago.

– Women's track and field,

Amanda Evora Amanda Evora (born November 17, 1984) is an American former competitive pair skater. She competed with Mark Ladwig. They are two-time (2010, 2011) U.S. silver medalists, 2012 U.S. bronze medalists and two-time (2007, 2009) U.S. pewter medalis ...

– Women's figure skating,

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

* Paige Railey – Women's sailing,

, 2016,

Olivia Chance Olivia Juliet Bridget Chance (born 5 October 1993) is a New Zealand footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder or a left winger for Scottish Women's Premier League club Celtic and has represented New Zealand at international level. Sh ...

– Women's soccer,

Demi Stokes Demi Lee Courtney Stokes (born 12 December 1991) is an English professional footballer who plays for Manchester City and the England national team. She previously played for Sunderland in the English FA Women's Premier League. Club career Stok ...

– Women's soccer,

* Évelyne Viens – Women's soccer,

In 2020, Évelyne Viens became the first USF alum to win an

Olympic medal An Olympic medal is awarded to successful competitors at one of the Olympic Games. There are three classes of medal to be won: gold, silver, and bronze, awarded to first, second, and third place, respectively. The granting of awards is laid ou ...

as an athlete in any sport when Canada's women's soccer team won gold. However, multiple USF alumni coached medal winning teams and individuals in the Olympics prior to this, including Ken Eriksen and Ed Baird.

Rivalries

War on I-4

USF's main rival is the

University of Central Florida The University of Central Florida (UCF) is a public research university whose main campus is in unincorporated Orange County, Florida. UCF also has nine smaller regional campuses throughout central Florida. It is part of the State University ...

Knights A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the G ...

, who are located 98 miles northeast in unincorporated Orange County near

Orlando Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, according to U.S. Census Bureau figures r ...

. The first meeting between the rivals was a men's basketball game in 1972, where the South Florida Golden Brahmans beat the Florida Tech Knights of the Pegasus 115–96. The close geographic proximity and the schools being founded around the same time (South Florida in 1956 and Central Florida in 1963) made the two naturally become rivals. The Bulls and Knights became conference foes for the first time in 2013, when UCF joined the American Athletic Conference. The rivalry gets its name from Interstate 4, which runs through both Tampa and Orlando. The rivalry was officially recognized by both USF and UCF on September 21, 2016, when it was announced that a rivalry series between all 14 sports that both schools sponsor would begin (USF is the only one of the two that offers men's cross country, women's sailing, and men's track and field while UCF is the only one of the two that offers women's rowing). Each sport is worth six total points, and sports where the teams meet head to head multiple times in the regular season will have the six points divided by the number of games played for a total of 84 possible points with 43 points needed to clinch the trophy. In the event of a tie in the overall competition, the athletic program that scores higher in the annual NCAA Graduation Success Rate will be awarded one extra point and crowned as the champion for that season. In the unlikely event that this is also tied, the series ends as a tie for that season and the previous winner retains the trophy. Only regular season matches are counted toward War on I-4 point totals for the 10 sports in which the teams compete head to head, meaning if the teams meet in a conference or NCAA tournament that game does not count for War on I-4 competition purposes. The winner each year will take possession of a large trophy shaped like an

Interstate The Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, commonly known as the Interstate Highway System, is a network of controlled-access highways that forms part of the National Highway System in the United States. T ...

road sign, which will be displayed on their campus for the following year. One side of the trophy reads "Tampa" and features the USF logo while the other reads "Orlando" and features the UCF logo. The winner of the annual Thanksgiving weekend football clash receives a similarly shaped "War On I-4" trophy. As of the end of the 2020–21 school year, South Florida holds the all-time series lead for eight of the ten sports in which the schools meet head-to-head: baseball (79–74), men's basketball (24–17), women's basketball (30–14), softball (19–16), men's soccer (), men's tennis (34–11), women's tennis (19–9) and volleyball (49–41) . The series is tied 6–6 in football. UCF only leads in women's soccer (), but UCF has won all four overall War on I-4 titles awarded since 2016, and led USF in the 2019–20 edition of the rivalries, but that title was not awarded due to spring sports being canceled by the NCAA because of

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quickl ...

Rowdies Cup

USF also has a men's soccer derby with the crosstown

member

University of Tampa The University of Tampa (UT) is a private university in Tampa, Florida. It is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. UT offers more than 200 programs of study, including 22 master's degrees and a broad variety of majors, ...

Spartans Sparta (Doric Greek: Σπάρτα, ''Spártā''; Attic Greek: wikt:Σπάρτη, Σπάρτη, ''Spártē'') was a prominent city-state in Laconia, in ancient Greece. In antiquity, the city-state was known as Lacedaemon (, ), while the nam ...

. The rivalry (known as the Mayor's Cup before 2005) is named after the original Tampa Bay Rowdies who were the first professional sports franchise in Tampa. The winner of the annual exhibition match receives the trophy the now defunct Rowdies won in Soccer Bowl '75. The Bulls lead the all-time series . The Bulls and Spartans also play occasional exhibition games in other sports, particularly baseball and men's basketball, but not on a regular basis like with men's soccer. Since beach volleyball is played at the National Collegiate level (meaning schools from Divisions I, II, and III all compete directly against each other), it is likely that USF and Tampa will be rivals in that sport once USF's team begins in 2025.

Traditions

Since 1995, the university has shined green lights as opposed to the usual white lights on its iconic water tower the night following a victory by any of the Bulls sports teams to let the campus and surrounding area know of the win. The school also lights the water tower green for special events like homecoming week and commencement ceremonies. USF's fight song is the Golden Brahman March, named after the original mascot. USF is somewhat unique among colleges in that it has both a fight song and a victory song, March Victorious. The Golden Brahman March is played at the end of every Bulls home game along with USF's Alma Mater, but March Victorious is only played at the end of games that USF wins. USF's hand sign is "Horns Up", similar to Texas's "

Hook 'em Horns Hook 'em Horns is the chant and hand signal of The University of Texas at Austin. Students, alumni, and fans of the university employ a greeting consisting of the phrase "Hook 'em" or "Hook 'em Horns" and also use the phrase as a parting good-bye ...

". The signal is used as good luck during field goals, extra points, free throws, and as general school spirit. For basketball and volleyball games, rubbing the hoof of the Bull statue outside the student entrance to the

is said to bring the team good luck. The student sections for Bulls home games are known as The Herd. The first few rows of the student section for football, men's basketball, select women's basketball, and all War on I-4 games are reserved for the most passionate students, the Beef Studs, who paint their bodies green and gold for every game. A newer tradition for USF teams is the addition of "Slime Green" alternate jerseys for games against rival Central Florida, which utilize a much brighter neon green and yellow compared to the Bulls usual dark green and gold. This tradition began with a men's basketball game in 2020 and has since spread to all other sports in the

War on I-4 The War on I-4 is a college rivalry between the University of Central Florida Knights and University of South Florida Bulls. The rivalry is best known for its college football matchup which originated in a series of football games played from ...

Media

In 2017, USF became the second university in the nation to have its own 24-hour digital radio station after launching the Bulls Unlimited channel on

. Bulls Unlimited and its sister station Bulls Unlimited 2 carry live game coverage of most sports, highlights, shows, and historical game replays and are available for free nationwide. Under the current American Athletic Conference TV deal beginning in 2019, all home games and in-conference away games in baseball, men's and women's basketball, football, men's and women's soccer, softball, and volleyball are shown on one of the various

ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...

networks or streamed live on

ESPN+ ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...

. Football radio broadcasts can be heard in the

Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area Go ...

on flagship station WTHP 102.5 FM. Football radio broadcasts are available on Bulls Unlimited outside of the Tampa media market. USF receives about $7 million annually through the deal, which runs until the 2031–32 season.

Facilities

The USF Athletic District is the home for every USF varsity sport besides sailing and is located on the east side of campus, primarily along Bull Run Drive and Maple Drive. The district includes the Lee Roy Selmon Athletic Center (the athletic department's headquarters), Corbett Stadium (soccer), the

, the Pam & Les Muma Basketball Practice Center, the

(basketball), The Claw (golf), the

, the

, The Corral (volleyball), and the USF Varsity Tennis Courts.

Lee Roy Selmon Athletic Center

Opened in 2004, the Lee Roy Selmon Athletic Center is the main hub for USF Athletics. In 2012, the facility was dedicated to the late

, a

Pro Football Hall of Fame The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame for professional American football, located in Canton, Ohio. Opened on September 7, , the Hall of Fame enshrines exceptional figures in the sport of professional football, including players, coac ...

member and former Director of USF Athletics. Selmon is considered by many to be the "Father of USF Football". The 104,000 square foot facility houses all USF sports teams, except for men's and women's basketball, sailing, and volleyball. The building features a large strength and conditioning center, a sports medicine clinic, the USF Athletic Hall of Fame, and an Academic Enrichment Center complete with a computer study lab, a library, study lounges, and academic counseling.

Yuengling Center

Formerly known as the USF Sun Dome, the

on the Tampa campus is the home facility of the men's and women's basketball teams and the women's volleyball team. The first event held in the facility was a basketball game in 1980. Since the opening of the arena, it has been the site for USF commencement ceremonies, orientation sessions, and other major university and community events. The venue is also one of the top concert spots in the Tampa Bay region, having hosted musicians like

Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, pianist and composer. Commonly nicknamed the "Rocket Man" after his 1972 hit single of the same name, John has led a commercially successful career a ...

Florence and the Machine Florence and the Machine (stylised as Florence + the Machine) are an English indie rock band that formed in London in 2007, consisting of lead vocalist Florence Welch, keyboardist Isabella Summers, guitarist Rob Ackroyd, harpist Tom Monger, an ...

, Frank Sinatra,

Heart The heart is a muscular organ found in most animals. This organ pumps blood through the blood vessels of the circulatory system. The pumped blood carries oxygen and nutrients to the body, while carrying metabolic waste such as carbon diox ...

Sting Sting may refer to: * Stinger or sting, a structure of an animal to inject venom, or the injury produced by a stinger * Irritating hairs or prickles of a stinging plant, or the plant itself Fictional characters and entities * Sting (Middle-ear ...

, and more. The arena became LEED Silver certified in 2014.

Raymond James Stadium

The USF football team plays at

, home to the NFL's

. USF is one of only five FBS teams to play their home games in a current NFL stadium (the others being Miami, Temple, Pitt, and UNLV). Raymond James Stadium is located 13 miles away from the Tampa campus. The stadium has a capacity of more than 75,000 fans including a 12,000 seat student section in the north end zone, making it the largest stadium and largest student section in the American Athletic Conference when at full capacity, but seating for most games is limited to the 100 and 200 levels which brings the capacity down to around 45,000.

Spirit

Herd of Thunder

The

Herd of Thunder The Herd of Thunder (often called H.O.T. or the Pride of the Bay) is the name for the athletic bands of the University of South Florida, which includes the show band, "Rumble" pep band, and marching band ensembles, although it is often used to re ...

, often called HOT or the Pride of the Bay, is the marching band of the South Florida Bulls. It was founded in 1998 and first performed in 1999, two years after USF fielded its first football team. The pep band, Rumble, has existed since the 1970s and plays at all men's and women's basketball games. The Herd of Thunder's Winter Guard consistently places in the top of the annual

Winter Guard International Winter Guard International (WGI) is an American performing arts association, governing body, and the producer of regional championship events for three activities: color guard (known as winter guard), percussion ensembles, and small marching bands ...

World Championships, taking home the silver medal in the Independent Open category in 2012 and the bronze medal in the Independent A category in 2006.

Rocky the Bull

USF's mascot is

Rocky the Bull Rocky the Bull (officially Rocky D. Bull) is the mascot of the University of South Florida. He is an anthropomorphized bull who can typically be seen at athletic dressed in USF athletic gear--usually a football or basketball jersey, but occasion ...

(also spelled Rocky D. Bull), an anthropomorphic bull who dresses in USF gear. Rocky is seen at every USF home game and meet for all sports and wears the jersey of whatever sport is being played. Rocky won the Capital One Mascot Challenge in 2013, being voted as the best college mascot in the country. The win earned USF $20,000 toward the mascot program.

Cheerleading and Dance

The USF cheerleading program consists of two teams: a co-ed team and a competitive all-girl squad, which compete at the Universal Cheerleaders Association College Nationals. Both the all-girl squad and co-ed team continually rank among the top competitive college squads in the nation, and the co-ed team won back-to-back UCA Division I-A national championships in 2021 and 2022. The USF Sun Dolls are an all-girl dance team that perform at all home USF football and basketball games, in addition to competing in the annual

Universal Dance Association A dance squad or dance team, sometimes called a pom squad or song team, is a team of participants that participates in competitive dance. A dance squad can also include: a jazz squad, ballet squad, or any kind of religion dance squad. Dance squads ...

College Nationals. Despite being fully funded by the USF Athletic Department, the cheerleading and dance programs are officially considered club teams for competitive purposes, making them the only sport at USF with this distinction.

References

External links

* {{Navboxes , titlestyle = {{CollegePrimaryStyle, South Florida Bulls, color=white , list = {{American Athletic Conference navbox {{Divison1floridacolleges {{Florida College Sports {{Tampa Bay Sports Sports in the Tampa Bay area