Alex Golesh’s run at USF is getting a fresh look, and the numbers make Brian Hartline’s latest comment hard to square with what actually happened in Tampa.
Hartline, now the Bulls’ head coach, told Pete Nakos of On3 that there was "some success here the last couple of years, but nowhere near where it should be."
That line has been read by many as a swipe at Golesh, who left South Florida with a program in far better shape than the one he inherited. And the turnaround was real.
When Golesh took over in 2023, USF was stuck near the bottom of the Group of Five. The Bulls had won only four games across the previous three seasons and were coming off a 1-11 finish the year before he arrived.
Golesh changed the tone fast. In his first season, USF went from one win to seven and capped it with a bowl victory.
Two years later, the Bulls were up to nine wins. The offense turned into one of the most dangerous units in the American Athletic Conference, recruiting took a step forward, and the program had a level of energy it hadn’t seen in years.
His work also showed up in the record book. Golesh finished with the second-highest winning percentage of any full-time head coach in South Florida history.
The clearest sign of what he built may have come when he left for Auburn. Several offensive players went with him to The Plains, including starting quarterback Byrum Brown. That kind of loyalty stands out, especially when compared with the departures that followed Hugh Freeze from Liberty or Bryan Harsin from Boise State.
Hartline has had success as an assistant at Ohio State, but the challenge in front of him is a different kind of test. Rebuilding a roster from scratch in Year 1, especially after so many players followed Golesh out the door, is a massive ask.
For now, Golesh’s legacy at USF looks a lot sturdier than Hartline’s remark suggested.
In Other News...
Auburn Fans Have Seen This Cam Newton Story Before
A red card in a World Cup match can change the mood around a player and a team in a hurry, and the United States briefly found itself dealing with that kind of uncertainty after its leading offensive threat was sent off against Bosnia. The initial suspension created an immediate question for the next step of the tournament, the sort of bureaucratic twist that can matter just as much as the action on the field when a knockout round is looming.
Auburn fans have seen a version of this before, when a high-profile eligibility issue once hung over the program before giving way to a return to the lineup. It is the kind of reminder that sports can move from crisis to clarity quickly, even if the path there leaves plenty of people waiting to see how the next game will be affected. [Read more 🡒]
Auburns July Surge Now Faces A Massive Recruiting Test
Auburns 2027 recruiting class has already given Alex Golesh and his staff plenty to point to, sitting inside the national top 10 and near the top of the SEC with 25 commitments. The class has been built with a mix of size and balance, and the Tigers have also spread their reach well beyond campus, landing pledges from multiple states while continuing to work the region hard.
Now the next big evaluation comes with the kind of prospect that can change the tone of a class. Four-star defensive lineman Karlos May has Auburn in the mix as the staff, with defensive line coach Vontrell King-Williams leading the charge, keeps pressing for another major addition. The Tigers have spent July building momentum, but this recruitment will show whether that surge can turn into a finish that matches the early buzz. [Read more 🡒]