Alex Golesh declares new identity after USF knocks off No. 25 Boise State

Brian Schaible

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Alex Golesh declares new identity after USF knocks off No. 25 Boise State image

Alex Golesh stood at the podium last night proud of his players and the program they are building.

“This ain’t the same old South Florida anymore,” Golesh told his team after a 34-7 victory over No. 25 Boise State.

The third-year head coach was quick to point to the atmosphere inside Raymond James Stadium. “The student section was awesome, awesome, awesome,” Golesh said. “Obviously…5:30, tough in a city like this where everybody’s working, everybody got stuff to do, but super grateful for the crew that showed up tonight and watched a really gritty, really gritty game.”

That grit showed up on defense. “Three turnovers, four fourth down stops, that’s seven possessions that were created,” Golesh said. “If you do that, man, you could play with anybody in the country.”

It also showed up in a play that swung momentum. True freshman Locklan Hewlett lined up in punt formation and dropped a 45-yard touchdown pass. “Huge credit to Majewski and Kammerer for coming up with it. Huge credit for Lachlan for executing it. Key (Keshaun Singleton) certainly for catching it,” Golesh said. “I thought that kind of got the momentum going at just the right time.”

More than the highlights, Golesh saw something deeper. “For the first time in two and a half years, I felt like we truly are ready to put a true identity out on display,” he said. “Until it becomes player driven, it can max out at whatever point. And I felt like tonight it was truly player driven.”

Golesh did not let his team look too far ahead. “Winners act a certain way. Elite football teams act a certain way,” he said. “Celebrate the win tonight. Learn from the positive, from the negative. And then turn the page. Because the next one’s really, really big, too.”

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Brian Schaible

Brian Schaible is a freelance writer with The Sporting News. He is an award-winning journalist with over 25 years of experience covering college and professional sports. Brian holds a master’s degree in journalism/public relations from Kent State University.