Bulls in 2011

So I've already slipped in my new year's resolution of a post a week - what of it? I didn't say I'd post every week, only average a post a week.

Anyway, news today that ND scheduled the University of South Florida as part of the 2011 schedule. I actually watched a fair bit of the Bulls this year and they were one of the more exciting stories with wins against Auburn and West Virginia launching them to #2 in the country before a loss to Rutgers sent them into a 3 game losing streak. They were also handled by Oregon in the Sun Bowl. Jim Leavitt seems to have turned the corner on building a program which is only eleven years old, mining the rich Florida recruiting waters for castoffs which is now garnering its share of heralded recruits. I would expect them to be a dangerous foe in 2011 and have the additional motivation of playing in one of college footballs most storied venues. A patsy they are not.

On the positive side, November is the right time to take on a team in South Bend from the deep South. Also, like Michigan State, the Bulls will have difficulty with quality depth - so playing them late in the year is preferable to the first few weeks of the season. Kudos to Dr. Kevin White for this one. I could definitely see a return 'neutral' site game being announced in Tampa. The purpose of the neutral label would be more for ticket and revenue allotment as it would make sense to play in USF's home stadium.