Joey Johnston

He said no to Alabama’s job offer. He turned down Kansas State and an opportunity at returning to his Big 12 Conference roots. Coach Jim Leavitt wanted to stay put — at fledgling South Florida, of all places — because he said there was no limit to the program’s potential. Some people thought he was crazy.

Guess what?

Leavitt was right.

Here is one of the best stories in college football, maybe one you don’t know very well. The No. 18-ranked South Florida Bulls are stealing the hearts of Tampa, which mostly revolves around its professional sports, and they might even steal a spot in a BCS bowl game.

Friday night represents a massive opportunity when South Florida (3-0) hosts No. 5 West Virginia (4-0). By upsetting the Mountaineers, the Bulls will stamp themselves as favorites to win the Big East Conference.

And what a tale that would become. But it’s nothing new for a program that seems like it was hatched from the pages of a far-fetched fiction novel.

For years, South Florida never had football, partly driven by the anti-sports sentiment of the school’s early administration. But that changed in the 1990s and finally, by 1997, South Florida fielded its first team, a Division I-AA independent.

The growth was incremental – from I-AA to a transition year to I-A independent to Conference USA membership. And that was where the Bulls seemed destined to stay – before the ACC raided the Big East. Suddenly, the Big East was looking for a foothold in Florida. And just as suddenly, South Florida started looking awfully attractive.

Here’s why Leavitt stayed at South Florida.

• Location, location, location: The majority of his recruiting can be accomplished on a tank of gas.
• Following his heart: He’s a native of the Tampa Bay area.
• BCS: South Florida’s BCS conference affiliation gives the Bulls the opportunity to compete for the same prize as Alabama, Kansas State or anyone else – a spot in a big-time bowl or even a shot at the national championship.

An 11th-year program that already plays for the highest stakes? How can it happen?

South Florida’s program is the perfect confluence of a fertile football area married to a supremely driven coach, accelerated by beautifully timed circumstances.

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But what about those humble beginnings?

Until 2004, South Florida’s football coaching offices were a collection of trailers, located just beyond behind left field at the school’s baseball complex. Clank! There went another batting-practice homer off the roof.

When South Florida’s initial team gathered for its first meeting — in 1996, before there were any games — there was no available space in any room. So they met outside, underneath a tree.

Shortly before South Florida’s opening game against Kentucky Wesleyan in 1997, in front of a sold-out crowd at Tampa Stadium, Bulls place-kicker Steve Riggs made a startling pre-game discovery. No one brought a kicking tee. A motorcycle policeman was dispatched to a nearby sporting good store and he returned (with the tee) just moments before kickoff.