By TOM ZEBOLD
USF Senior Writer
TAMPA – The USF-UCF football rivalry will be reignited Friday night in Orlando and head coach Willie Taggart has been giving the Bulls a history lesson on the I-4 Corridor Clash.
USF is 4-0 all-time against UCF, but no player on the current roster has ever faced off against the Knights. The last installment of the rivalry came on Sept. 6, 2008 when Matt Grothe threw a 25-yard touchdown pass to Taurus Johnson in overtime that gave the then-No. 17 ranked Bulls a 31-24 victory in Orlando.
“I've shown them videos of what it was like and I think they sense this rivalry,” Taggart said. “They see how packed Ray Jay was and you hear all these guys say, 'Wow.' You see how packed it was at Bright House Networks Stadium when we went over there. They've started to hear it from folks that have been around and former players of what it's going to be like. It's big-time college football and that's what it's supposed to be.”
Taggart said records go out the window in a rivalry game like this because of the magnitude of the situation. The Bulls will be looking to prevent No. 17/19 UCF from earning at least a share of the American Athletic Conference title and Taggart said USF-UCF will be something to watch for years to come.
“It's much bigger than just bragging rights. It's a conference game and it's a lot more important,” Taggart said. “This is why you play college football. How could you not get fired up for a game like this? You just got to – under the lights, Black Friday, it's on ESPN. All these kids want to play on national TV and it's a chance to make people know your name.”
More on USF-UCF
Friday's game will mark the 200th in USF program history and the Knights are the third team in the current BCS rankings the Bulls have faced this season (No. 13 Michigan State, No. 21 Louisville).
USF looks to go 3-0 against the Knights in Orlando after the first two meetings were decided by a touchdown. UCF (9-1, 6-0) has won its past six games and is one shy of matching the school record set in 2007.
Groza Award Finalist Kloss Making a Name for Himself
Marvin Kloss became the first player in USF football history to become a finalist for a major college football award when he was named as one of the final three up for the 2013 Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award.
The redshirt junior went 11 weeks without missing a field goal while connecting on a school-record 13 straight attempts this season. He leads the nation with nine field goals of 40-plus yards and four from 50-plus yards, both USF records. Kloss is 14-for-18 on field goals attempts overall, including 4-of-6 from 50 yards or more, and 13-for-13 in PAT attempts.
Taggart verbally applauded Kloss on his ability to put USF on the national map with such a prestigious honor. A panel of more than 700 coaches, sports information directors, media members and past finalists voted for the three Groza Award finalists and Kloss will soon be a household name across the country.
Kloss will be featured on the Home Depot College Football Awards Nomination Special that starts at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 26 on ESPNU and he'll be attending the Home Depot College Football Awards on Thursday, Dec. 12 that will air on ESPN at 7 p.m.
“We've talked about it as a football team, 'Make people know your name with the way you go out and play,' and he's done that,” Taggart said. “He's made not only folks in the Bay area and the conference know him, but the entire nation knows his name. That's great and we want him to finish it.”
Davis Closing In on More Records
Andre Davis extended his school record streak of 100-yard receiving games to three with another standout performance against SMU and the junior is closing in on more top USF marks heading into the I-4 Corridor Clash.
The Tampa native has 634 receiving yards this year, good for fourth all-time at USF, and he needs 72 more to pass the current single-season record set by Carlton Mitchell in 2009. Davis, who owns the USF record with a catch in 28 straight games, needs five more touchdown grabs to set a new program career mark and 208 yards to become USF's all-time receiving yards leader.
