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By TOM ZEBOLD
USF Senior Writer
TAMPA, NOV. 4, 2015 – Childhood friends Quinton Flowers and Deatrick Nichols came to USF to make a difference and that's exactly what they're doing early in their careers as Bulls.
In his first year as a starting quarterback, Flowers has led the Bulls to four wins – equaling the program's 2014 total – with four more regular season games remaining. The sophomore has thrown 10 touchdown passes and he's on pace to break USF's single-season rushing record for a quarterback.
Nichols also has had a big hand in helping USF move closer to bowl eligibility. The sophomore cornerback has started every game this season and his aggressive style has helped the “Bull Sharks” defense rank 25th nationally with 7.4 tackles for loss per outing.
“If the ball comes my way, it's time to make a play,” Nichols said.
Flowers and Nichols have both been making big plays together since their Little League days in Miami's Liberty City.
“We always played together. We just separated at high school,” Nichols said.
Flowers chose to play for Miami Jackson High School, where he generated more than 8,000 all-purpose yards and 32 touchdowns. The four-star prospect led the Generals to their first state semifinal appearance in six years at the end of the 2012 season.
“I always wanted to be different. I always wanted to make a change at a school,” Flowers said.
Nichols chose to play for Miami Central High School, one of the most successful programs in Florida. Despite missing much of his senior year with an injury, Nichols still racked up 105 tackles, 12 interceptions and two forced fumbles in his prep career.
“(Deatrick) believes in himself and he plays with so much confidence,” defensive coordinator Tom Allen said. “If you're going to play corner, you've got to have that.”
Flowers and Nichols had a long list of schools recruiting them throughout high school and decided to become Bulls after sharing the same vision as head coach Willie Taggart.
“We talked about it, what he wanted to do, what I wanted to do. I wanted to change a program, too,” Nichols said. “Coach T did believe in us. He told us he wanted us to change the program around. We went for it and we're just trying to do it right now.”
Flowers continues to make strides in the passing game and he's played a big role in USF ranking 23rd in the FBS in rushing offense (213 yards per game). Flowers set a new top rushing mark for QB's this season with a 201-yard performance in a win over SMU. Heading into Saturday's game at East Carolina, Flowers has 578 rushing yards and he needs 295 more to break Matt Grothe's single-season program record for a quarterback.
Nichols currently ranks fourth on the team with 39 tackles and second with 8.0 tackles for loss in the 4-2-5 scheme. Nichols also has an interception, a sack, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery to his credit this season.
“We do things for a team effort. We want teams wins, that's the biggest goal,” Nichols said.
Watch Flowers, Nichols and the Bulls try to move closer to bowl eligibility 7:30 p.m. Saturday at East Carolina. The game will be televised nationally on CBS Sports Network.
Clarett Grabs the Bulls' Attention
Throughout his time at USF, Taggart has made a point of bringing in key figures to speak to his team about all types of topics in an effort to make the Bulls well-rounded.
Monday the team got a visit from former Ohio State star running back Maurice Clarett. The former Big Ten freshman of the year has rebounded from a troubled past to become an entrepreneur who is making an impact nationwide as a public speaker
“He spoke for an hour and you could have heard a pin drop,” defensive coordinator Tom Allen said. “He was just talking the whole time and he had their attention because he walks in their shoes. He was a guy that was a big-time name… and it just got taken away because of his choices. He was very honest with them and talked to them very straightforward, and they were listening.”
Bulls Bits
- Under the guidance of assistant head coach Raymond Woodie, USF leads the conference and ranks in the top 25 nationally in two special teams categories – kickoff returns (sixth, 27.57 ypr) and punt returns (12th, 15.58 ypr). Rodney Adams ranks sixth in the FBS with 30.6 yards per kick return.
- USF is on pace to shatter the program's single-season rushing mark. The Bulls have registered 1,711 rushing yards this season. The top USF rushing mark of 2,436 yards was set in 2005.
- Get an inside look at the program by watching USF Football: A New Era On The Bay each game week. The 12-episode show tracks USF's development over the year with game highlights, player features and much more. Catch the show on Bright House Sports Network Thursdays at 11:30 p.m. and Fridays at 8:30 a.m. FOX Sun Sports also airs the show Thursdays at 4 p.m.
Watch every episode up to this point in the season at the Bulls' TV show page HERE.
The USF Football program is in its 19th season overall and 16th at the FBS level. The Bulls have made six bowl appearances, including every season between 2005-10, and have four bowl game victories. USF has produced 14 All-America selections, 25 NFL Draft picks and reached the No. 2 ranking in the Associated Press Poll in 2007.
