TAMPA, Fla. – Coach Alex Golesh made it clear what he liked most about his Bulls’ 48-3 rout of Bethune-Cookman on Saturday night at Raymond James Stadium: the level of intensity out of the chute and the number of players who saw the field in all three areas. In fact, 18 of the 54 players who participated were true freshmen.
“The one thing I’m really proud of is how hard we played,” said the second-year coach. “I thought the guys came out and flew around on both sides of the ball. We really flew around with intent. Defensively, we got our hands on balls, we took away the run and got off the field on third down. Offensively, they played really hard, too. Just great effort and energy on both sides of the ball and it was good to get a lot of players involved in this game.”
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Here are a few other items worthy of note from the season-opening win.
Jhalyn Shuler: Unfortunately, the senior linebacker and last season’s leading tackler was injured as he was tackled on a 29-yard interception return in the first quarter. Shuler remained on the turf for a few minutes grabbing the back of his right knee. It was his first-career pick.
“We’ll have to get a scan on his knee,” Golesh said. “Hopefully, it’s not too serious, because that’s a tough one. You talk about guys who have bought in and changed this program, and he’s one of them.”
Byrum Brown: It was a productive and at times electric performance by the quarterback, who is still only 19. Brown, who might have liked a do-over on a couple of deep balls, completed 13-of-20 for 152 yards in a turnover-free effort. He ran for 74 yards, including a 42-yard sprint for a touchdown. He played less than three quarters.
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“There’s a lot to do better,” he said. “I missed a couple of throws, but that’s football. I felt I bounced back pretty well.”
Bryce Archie: The backup quarterback threw his first career touchdown pass, a 15-yard bullet to Michael-Brown Stephens with 2:19 remaining in the third quarter that closed out the scoring. It the Archie’s 17th career pass attempt. He finished 2-for-3 for 20 yards.
Sean Atkins: The receiver, who was named to the Biletnikoff Award watch list, caught four passes for 42 yards. Atkins also returned four punts for 42 yards and had a 48-yard return to the Wildcats’ eight-yard line negated by a holding call.
Jahari Grant: One of the 18 true freshmen to receive playing time, the defensive tackle out of Port St. Lucie recorded six tackles, including one for loss.
Nico Gramatica: Another true freshman, and son of former Bucs kicker and Super Bowl champ Martin Gramatica, was good on his only extra-point attempt and kicked off five times with four touchbacks.
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