About 1,500 people crowded around a live ESPN broadcast set on the University of South Florida Tampa campus Thursday afternoon.
Students showed off their body paint, face paint, signs, Bulls hats and giant cut-out pictures heads of players as they chanted, “USF!”
The Bulls' football team is usually overshadowed by larger programs in the state, like the Miami Hurricanes, Florida Gators and Florida State Seminoles.
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But ahead of USF's nationally televised 55-23 victory over the University of Texas-San Antonio, cameras, lights and ESPN anchor and play-by-play broadcaster Matt Barrie were centerstage as they set up shop near the Marshall Student Center.
“ USF has kind of gotten the attention themselves this college football season,” Barrie said. “[They] had some upsets in the early part of the year against Boise State and Florida. And so they're kind of culminating into a day like this with 'SportsCenter' on campus because they're still in the playoff hunt.”
The national attention was a dream come true for some USF fans.
Sophomore Josh Lefkowitz arrived about an hour and a half before the 2 p.m. broadcast to secure a front-row standing spot.
“ (ESPN's) 'College GameDay' helped me learn how to read,” Lefkowitz said. “I was reading the bottom ticker and that's what taught me how to read. … I've always dreamed of either being on camera or behind the camera.”
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USF's Herd of Thunder marching band, coed cheer team and all-girls cheer team were also present.
Mia Allen, a third-year student and cheerleader, said cheering for the Bulls has been a blessing.
“College game day is an amazing experience, especially from our perspective,” Allen said. “I literally picked USF for cheerleading, and game days have ended up being one of my favorite things that we get to do every weekend."
The excitement wasn’t lost on USF coach Alex Golesh, who was interviewed by Barrie during the program.
“Today was a cool day, starting with ‘SportsCenter’ deal on campus,” Golesh said after the Bulls’ victory over UTSA. “I thought that was an incredible sight right in the middle of campus. I can’t tell you how many people said, ‘Man, I’ve never been right here in the heart of campus. This is an incredible looking place.’ The energy and the passion about what’s going on here, how it’s happening, why it’s happening. It was a really, really cool day in that regard.”
Rob Higgins, USF's new CEO of Athletics, praised the students who turned out.
"This isn't a moment. It's a movement. These students have been incredible all season long,:" he said. "Every opportunity, they have been showing up in a big way. They're not only showing up, but they're showing out, a lot of energy, their voices, the signs you see, it is truly incredible. And we're just so appreciative of the student body here."
