About 1,500 people crowded around a live ESPN broadcast set on the University of South Florida Tampa campus Thursday.
Students showed off their body paint, face paint, signs, bull 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.
But ahead of its nationally televised Thursday evening game against the University of San Antonio, cameras, lights, and ESPN television personality Matt Barrie were center stage 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 in order to have some front row standing space.
“ (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.”
The USF Herd of Thunder Marching Band, its coed cheer team, and all-girls cheer team were also present.
Mia Allen, a third-year student and cheerleader, said cheering for the team 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 has ended up being one of my favorite things that we get to do every weekend."
And Rob Higgins, USF's 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."
