NEWPORT, R.I. – When the University of South Florida began its football program in 1995, four trailers served as the football offices for the team’s nine coaches on land that previously served as a practice bombing range.

It’s weird to think of a team in a BCS conference operating out of a trailer park, but until its 100,000-square foot training facility was completed in February of 2004, this was the only home USF’s football administration had known.

This season, three teams will join the Big East, including South Florida, Louisville and Cincinnati. Though the Bulls can now legitimately contest for a national championship, their humble beginning is never far from head coach Jim Leavitt’s mind.

‘When you start, you just work,’ Leavitt said. ‘You know the potential, you have a great location and a real good school. You really don’t think there’s a ceiling for what you can do.’

Leavitt grew up just across Tampa in St. Petersburg, Fla. After stints at Missouri, Iowa and Kansas State as an assistant, he returned home to kick-start a program at a school with about 40,000 students. Many were commuters and almost all were from Florida.

At the start, Leavitt knew things wouldn’t be easy. He’d have to vie for talent with regional powerhouses Florida, Miami and Florida State. Slowly, though, he has built a formidable program that is ready to take the Big East by surprise.

‘When I grew up, I saw what Miami and Florida and Florida State did,’ Leavitt said. ‘I saw that those teams weren’t very good. Now those are three of the best teams in the country.’

On a steamy afternoon in early July, Leavitt unveiled his up-and-coming program at Big East Media Day at the Marriott Hotel in Newport, R.I.

As each Big East coach was flanked by a handful of reporters at their school’s table, Leavitt spoke to an occasional passerby with pride and optimism about the future of his program.

The local talent in Florida is already taking notice. This fall, USF will welcome Carlton Hill, a speedy quarterback who spurned Miami for a chance to lead USF to national prominence.

‘Miami pouted from beginning to end about him,’ Leavitt said. ‘That was probably one of the first times we beat a team of that caliber for a player.

‘The Big East has helped us a lot.’

Also on the Bulls roster this season is sophomore Courtney Denson. The Miami native turned down Florida and Florida State for a chance to become the starting quarterback at Auburn.

After being converted into a cornerback for the Tigers, Denson decided to transfer to South Florida.

‘When we recruited him, (Denson) asked me in his home if South Florida had a shot at the national championship,’ Leavitt said. ‘I told him he could play quarterback but the odds are that we wouldn’t compete for a championship.

‘I wouldn’t answer the same way now because now we’re in a BCS conference.’

Syracuse cornerback Marcus Clayton, who is from Tallahassee, said there was a local stigma about South Florida that it was second-rate to the big three of Miami, Florida and Florida State.

When Leavitt went to visit Clayton in his home and offer him a scholarship, Clayton never gave them a chance.

The players and coaches at South Florida believe that stigma will soon change.

Leavitt said there’s no reason why the Bulls can’t be mentioned in the same breath as the big three in the next five years. The school is expected to grow to 60,000 students and Leavitt believes the support of its alumni at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa will help.

More than 100,000 alumni live within one hour of the campus.

‘Not even in five years,’ said defensive end Tim Jones, who originally committed to Miami. ‘I think it’ll be sooner than that. We have so much talent, it’s kinda scary.’

At Big East Media Day, Jones and star running back Andre Hall said there are many recruiting advantages USF has over other Florida schools.

‘A lot of coaches tell recruits they’re gonna give them a chance to play when they know it’s not true,’ Hall said. ‘At South Florida, I wanted to be a part of something up and coming. I wanted to be a part of something new.’

Though the Bulls have only six out-of-state players on their roster, Leavitt says that will change. When South Florida started its program a decade ago with a miniscule budget, it recruited locally to cut costs.

Hall said the parochial familiarity the players have with each other is a plus, though.

‘We all like the same music, the same type of girls, the same food,’ Hall said. ‘I think there is some added unity because of where we’re from.’

Leavitt said the fact USF has made it to the Big East means the program has been a success. Still, he won’t be content with a .500 season.

After interviewing for the head coaching job at Alabama in 2003, he withdrew his name shortly thereafter to accept a new five-year deal at USF.

‘You gotta remember how our program started,’ Leavitt said. ‘We worked in an abandoned trailer and we had no money. South Florida has been as successful as it is because of its location.’

Published on September 17, 2005 at 12:00 pm