The latest on the new ticket policy

Here’s the latest information after meeting with Bill McGillis, USF’s Senior Associate Athletic Director Thursday afternoon.

For North Carolina:

Any student to visit the Sun Dome ticket office on Thursday or today will receive a wristband and be able to enter through Raymond James Stadium at any gate Saturday.

Any individual attending the game with a companion ticket will receive an actual ticket, not a wristband, and can enter through any gate with the ticket and sit in the student section in the lower bowl.

Companion tickets will be allowed to enter through any gate on Saturday.

All student seats are on a first come, first serve basis.

The 12,000 student seats isn’t meant to be a cap, it is the allotment for student seating as a group.

McGillis said every student attending the game against North Carolina will be accommodated. Additional seating will be made available with unsold tickets in the lower bowl and possibly opening the upper bowl.

A decision is expected to be made Friday regarding the opening of the upper portion of the stadium. When it is, there will be a notice on USF Oracle Online .

On the first day of the new ticket policy, 3,036 students received tickets. The Sun Dome ticket office will be open from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday.

Lee Roy Selmon will be introducing the Bulls' offensive and defensive starters for ESPN's broadcast Saturday.

Students without a vehicle may attend the game for free on a Bull Runner shuttle. Buses for Saturday’s game against North Carolina will be picking students up at 10:30 am from the student parking lot on the corner of Willow and Maple Dr.

There will be nine buses and will be on a first come, first serve basis. The buses will be leaving Raymond James Stadium within a half hour after the game’s end.

Each game is going to have a difference color wristband. The athletics department was still deciding what color will be used next game. For Saturday, the band is green and McGillis was considering a neon yellow band for West Virginia on Friday Sept. 28.

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For West Virginia:

McGillis said the number of fans expected is “approaching” 50,000 not including the 12,000 student tickets. The capacity crowd at Raymond James Stadium is 65,675.

The student section in the upper deck will range from sections 302-305 (near entrance A) and 341-344 (near entrance B). Nine sections of the upper deck have been sold out for Friday, but I’m uncertain of which sections.

Students can begin camping out for Mountaineers/Bulls tickets on Sunday at 5 p.m. in the Sun Dome parking lot. Cooking will be allowed. The basketball arena will be open for students to use restrooms and security will be patrolling the parking lot at night.

The ticket office will open at 6 a.m. on Monday morning and the plan is to have the line move quickly as six additional ID card scanners will be used to keep the line moving. The goal is to allow plenty of time for students to attend an 8 a.m. class on Monday.

Tickets will be available throughout the week and the Sun Dome office will remain open until 6 p.m. on Monday. For Tuesday-Thursday tickets will be available from 7 a.m.-8 p.m. and on Friday from 7 a.m.-noon.

Any questions? Want to share your new ticket experience? Sound of in the comments section and I'll answer or try and find an answer for you.


-Brendan Galella

Starting Lineups

No surprises here, but below is the starting lineup announced by Auburn's public address announcer:

Offense:

18-Amarri Jackson-WR
87-Jessie Hester Jr.-WR
78-Mark Dile-LT
65- Ryan Schmidt-LG
77-Jake Griffin-C
61-Zach Hermann-RG
75-Walt Walker-RT
9-Cedric Hill-TE
89-Taurus Johnson-WR
11-Marcus Edwards-WR
8-Matt Grothe-QB
30-Ben Williams-RB
20-Aston Samules-RB

Defense:

90-Jarriett Buie-LE
76-Richard Clebert-NT
98-Aaron Harris-DT
95-George Selvie-RE
27-Tyrone McKenzie-LB
59-Ben Moffitt-LB
53-Brouce Mompremier-LB
21-Trae Williams-CB
32-Carlton Williams-SS
5-Nate Allen-FS
4-Mike Jenkins-CB
3-Jerome Murphy-NB

Special Teams:

27-Justin Teachey-P
25-Delbert Alvarado-K
67-Eric Setser-LS
12-Anthony Severino-H
27-Justin Teachey-Kickoff
18-Amarri Jackson-KR

I don't think television can properly display the noise that 87,000 fans can make. Nearly every seat is full and there is a sea of orange broken up by one section of USF green and white in the north west corner of Jordan-Hare Stadium.

Keep updating this website throughout the contest for updates.

-Brendan Galella

Grothe on ESPN.com

Bulls quarterback Matt Grothe graced the homepage of ESPN.com Wednesday along with Rutgers running back Ray Rice, Louisville quarterback Brian Brohm and West Virginia running back Steve Slaton. What's funny is even though Grothe is pictured, Ivan Maisel's story failed to mention the USF quarterback among his Big East Heisman hopefuls saying, "Take the Heisman candidates: tailbacks Steve Slaton of West Virginia and Ray Rice of Rutgers, and quarterbacks Pat White of West Virginia and Brian Brohm of Louisville. Most league offices are careful not to promote one member's players over another."

The caption on the front page lists Grothe as a potential Heisman candidate.

After suffering a hip injury earlier in the week, the USF coaching staff says the sophomore listed as "day-to-day" but would be expected to play if it were a game day.

Keep checking into the Oracle Sports Blog for more information about the Bulls.

-Brendan Galella

USF Season Predictions

In early June I received an email from the website SportsProjections.com asking for a brief overview of the USF football team and how game-by-game predictions on how they will fare.

Here is a link to the website, but only Atlantic Coast Conference, Big 12 and Big 10 have been filled out.

Sports Projections

Here's the what the USF page will look like upon publication:



Contributor: Brendan Galella

Web address: www.usforacle.com

Last Year Record: 9-4 (4-3 Big East)

Last Year Summary: Quarterback Matt Grothe emerged as USF’s primary offensive weapon both through the air and on the ground. USF ranked second in the Big East in total defense, allowing only 298.5 yards per game and 20 touchdowns on the year. The Bulls season culminated with the programs first bowl victory, a 24-7 victory over East Carolina in the PapaJohns.com Bowl.

Returning Starters: 8 offensive, 7 defensive

Players to Watch This Season: QB Matt Grothe, RB Mike Ford, WR Amarri Jackson LB Ben Moffitt, CB Trae Williams CB Mike Jenkins

Offensive Strengths: Quarterback- signal caller Matt Grothe led the Big East with 3,198 yards from scrimmage last season.

Offensive Weaknesses: Wide receiver- remains an issue for the Bulls. Ean Randolph graduated and senior Amp Hill has transferred.

Defensive Strengths: Secondary- cornerback Mike Jenkins has proven to be the shut down corner on the team and fellow corner Trae Williams was tested often last season, and tied for fifth in the country with seven interceptions.

Defensive Weaknesses: Linebacker- After the departure Stephen Nicholas and Patrick St. Louis, Ben Moffitt is the only starter returning. Chris Robinson, Brouce Mompremier and Iowa State transfer Tyrone McKenzie will all try and fill the voids.

2007 Season Summary: The Bulls have alternated wins with Louisville, Rutgers and West Virginia since joining the Big East Conference two seasons ago. USF will likely contend for the conference crown and have a legitimate chance of winning the Big East as they play host to both the Mountaineers and Cardinals. USF has to be cautious of an in-conference let down game, as their loss to Cincinnati last season ruined any aspirations of playing in a BCS Bowl.

Big Games of the Year: Sept. 28 vs. West Virginia, Oct. 18 at Rutgers & Nov. 17 vs. Louisville

2007 Projected Record: 9-3 (5-2 Big East)

2007 Projected Bowl (if applicable): Texas Bowl


Schedule

Sept. 1- Elon (W)

Sept. 8- at Auburn (L)

Sept. 22- North Carolina (W)

Sept. 28- West Virginia (W)

Oct. 6- at Florida Atlantic (W)

Oct. 13- UCF (W)

Oct. 18- at Rutgers (L)

Oct. 27- at Connecticut (W)

Nov. 3- Cincinnati (W)

Nov. 10-at Syracuse (W)

Nov. 17- Louisville (L)

Nov. 24- at Pittsburgh (W)



Big East Conference Standings Projection

1. Louisville
2. West Virginia
3. South Florida
4. Rutgers
5. Cincinnati
6. Pittsburgh
7. Connecticut
8. Syracuse