South Florida Football’s Van Buren Named to Davey O'Brien Great 8
September 14, 2026 | Football
Van Buren named to Davey O'Brien Great 8 for Week 2; National QB of the Week to be announced Tuesday.
TAMPA, Fla. (SEPT. 14, 2026) – South Florida quarterback Michael Van Buren Jr. has been named to the Davey O'Brien Great 8 for Week 2, the Davey O'Brien Foundation announced Monday.
The Davey O'Brien National QB of the Week, selected from this group of eight, will be announced Tuesday at 11 a.m. CT. Additionally, all quarterbacks named to a weekly Great 8, including Van Buren, are now on the Davey O'Brien Award Midseason Watch List.
Van Buren earned the recognition after accounting for all four of South Florida's touchdowns in a 28-24 comeback win over Army on Saturday at Michie Stadium. He completed 19-of-30 passes for 239 yards and two touchdowns through the air, while adding a team-high 45 rushing yards and two scores on the ground, capped by a fourth-down, 38-yard touchdown pass to Joshua Porter with 19 seconds remaining that completed the comeback.
Van Buren was also selected as an Honorable Mention for the American Conference Offensive Player of the Week following this performance.
DAVEY O'BRIEN GREAT 8: WEEK 2
South Florida returns to Raymond James Stadium next Saturday to face Delaware State in a 7:00 p.m. kickoff. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+ and can be heard on Q105FM and Bulls Unlimited digital radio.
Follow us:
For the latest updates from South Florida Athletics, visit GoUSFBulls.com. Follow South Florida Football on social media Facebook, Instagram, X, and Youtube.
Get Your Tickets Today!
Call 1-800-GO-BULLS (1-800-462-8557) or email BullsTickets@usf.edu to claim your season or single-game tickets. You can also download the South Florida Bulls app on the Android or Apple stores to purchase tickets and parking. Visit USFBullsTix.com for more information.
About South Florida Football
The South Florida football program first took the field in 1997 and will play its 30th season in 2026.
In 2025, the Bulls went 9-4, earned a third straight bowl appearance, made the program's first College Football Playoff ranking appearance, and were ranked four times in the weekly Associated Press Top 25 poll. South Florida completed construction on a new $22-million Indoor Performance Facility in 2023, and construction is in progress on $349-million on-campus stadium and football operations center broke slated for completion by 2027.
The Bulls have posted 18 winning seasons, earned 16 All-America selections (including two consensus selections, the last coming in 2021), and 35 first-team all-conference honorees. South Florida has had 30 players selected in the NFL Draft, while the Bulls have made 13 bowl game appearances (going 8-5), tied for the third-most nationally in the first 25 seasons of a program's bowl eligibility. South Florida posted back-to-back 10-win seasons in 2016 and 2017, logging a program-record 11-2 mark in 2016, while finishing both seasons ranked in the Top 25. The Bulls spent a program-record 20 straight weeks ranked in the Top 25 during the 2016 and 2017 campaigns and reached as high as No. 2 in the AP rankings during the 2007 season.
– #GoBulls –
The Davey O'Brien National QB of the Week, selected from this group of eight, will be announced Tuesday at 11 a.m. CT. Additionally, all quarterbacks named to a weekly Great 8, including Van Buren, are now on the Davey O'Brien Award Midseason Watch List.
Van Buren earned the recognition after accounting for all four of South Florida's touchdowns in a 28-24 comeback win over Army on Saturday at Michie Stadium. He completed 19-of-30 passes for 239 yards and two touchdowns through the air, while adding a team-high 45 rushing yards and two scores on the ground, capped by a fourth-down, 38-yard touchdown pass to Joshua Porter with 19 seconds remaining that completed the comeback.
Van Buren was also selected as an Honorable Mention for the American Conference Offensive Player of the Week following this performance.
DAVEY O'BRIEN GREAT 8: WEEK 2
- Michael Van Buren Jr., South Florida
- Bear Bachmeier, BYU
- Devon Dampier, Utah
- JJ Kohl, Florida International
- Drew Mestemaker, Oklahoma State
- Austin Simmons, Missouri
- Kamario Taylor, Mississippi State
- Caden Veltkamp, FAU
South Florida returns to Raymond James Stadium next Saturday to face Delaware State in a 7:00 p.m. kickoff. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+ and can be heard on Q105FM and Bulls Unlimited digital radio.
Follow us:
For the latest updates from South Florida Athletics, visit GoUSFBulls.com. Follow South Florida Football on social media Facebook, Instagram, X, and Youtube.
Get Your Tickets Today!
Call 1-800-GO-BULLS (1-800-462-8557) or email BullsTickets@usf.edu to claim your season or single-game tickets. You can also download the South Florida Bulls app on the Android or Apple stores to purchase tickets and parking. Visit USFBullsTix.com for more information.
About South Florida Football
The South Florida football program first took the field in 1997 and will play its 30th season in 2026.
In 2025, the Bulls went 9-4, earned a third straight bowl appearance, made the program's first College Football Playoff ranking appearance, and were ranked four times in the weekly Associated Press Top 25 poll. South Florida completed construction on a new $22-million Indoor Performance Facility in 2023, and construction is in progress on $349-million on-campus stadium and football operations center broke slated for completion by 2027.
The Bulls have posted 18 winning seasons, earned 16 All-America selections (including two consensus selections, the last coming in 2021), and 35 first-team all-conference honorees. South Florida has had 30 players selected in the NFL Draft, while the Bulls have made 13 bowl game appearances (going 8-5), tied for the third-most nationally in the first 25 seasons of a program's bowl eligibility. South Florida posted back-to-back 10-win seasons in 2016 and 2017, logging a program-record 11-2 mark in 2016, while finishing both seasons ranked in the Top 25. The Bulls spent a program-record 20 straight weeks ranked in the Top 25 during the 2016 and 2017 campaigns and reached as high as No. 2 in the AP rankings during the 2007 season.
– #GoBulls –
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