USF hopes to build on foundation Scott set in 1st 2 years

All the pieces are not in place yet — mainly because South Florida Coach Jeff Scott is still looking for some of them — but there is reason to believe that when he finds the right parts, maybe this puzzle really can be put together, that South Florida can indeed transform its football program.

Scott's football team has been like a yo-yo on a string this year, up one week and down the next, and nothing illustrates that better than the final two games of the season, when the Bulls were butchered by Tulane in New Orleans one week and then came back the following Friday with what might have been their best overall effort of 2021 in a loss to Central Florida in Orlando.

So, though there is still a long way to go, USF has shown flashes of competitiveness. Scott must now build on that, work to eliminate the inconsistency that has prevented this team from showing much improvement. To do that, he needs more and better players, particularly in the offensive and defensive lines where USF must get more physical.

Games are won and lost up front and the Bulls have to get better at protecting quarterback Timmy McClain, a championship caliber quarterback who, as he gains experience to compliment his special skill set, can take USF where it wants to go. This offense will rise or fall on McClain's play and he must be given the time he needs to do his job.

Defensively, the Bulls have to be strong enough up front to disrupt opposing offenses and put pressure on the other team's quarterback, something they simply could not do this year. Additionally, they must improve their depth, hopefully by getting some experienced players through the transfer portal.

Scott probably can't accomplish all this in one offseason, but he needs to get this team pointed in the right direction and on its way in 2022 after it fizzled again this year, even though he is under no immediate pressure from the administration.

"At the end of the day, me being in this league for two years and kind of seeing what other people do, seeing what they do on offense, what they do on defense and also kind of getting to know our roster and our team and where we are, I think I'm definitely going to be in a better position as I go through the process of kind of figuring out what scheme we want to run here and what we need to do to be successful," Scott said.

"When I came here," (athletic director) Michael Kelly was very honest with me. He told me there was a lot of work to do and that this was not a quick fix, that there was not gonna be a quick turn around. He wanted someone to come in and take it (the football program) all the way down to the studs and build it up the right way so that when we do have a winning program we can have sustainable success. And that was the mindset we came in with last year."

And that's still Scott's mindset now. It's probably the right approach, and Scott has spent two years trying to lay the foundation. Hopefully, that's finished now and we will see something rise out of the ground.

PAT'S PICKS: Last week, 5-1. For the season, 65-22, .747.

This article originally appeared on The Ledger: USF hopes to build on foundation Scott set in 1st 2 years