South Florida Bulls 2026 Preview: An All-New Roster Bets Big on Hartline and the Portal
South Florida finished 9-4 (6-2 American) in 2025, standing among the league's best teams for much of the fall before a Cure Bowl loss to Old Dominion (10-24) closed the year. The defining story is wholesale turnover on the sideline and the roster. Alex Golesh left for Auburn and took dual-threat quarterback Byrum Brown with him, and USF replaced him with first-time head coach Brian Hartline, the former Ohio State wide receivers coach and offensive coordinator known for developing NFL pass catchers.
Hartline arrives with a transfer haul rated the best in the Group of Six, roughly 41 additions, plus new coordinators Tim Beck on offense and Josh Aldridge on defense. Only four starters return, so the gap between conference contention and a step backward is thin.
Offense
With Brown gone, the job is an open competition among newcomers. Michael Van Buren Jr., a former 4-star with a dozen SEC starts (eight at Mississippi State in 2024 and the last four for LSU in 2025) and 2,896 career passing yards at 57.5 percent, holds the edge in experience. Luke Kromenhoek, who made two starts as a Florida State freshman (502 yards) before a season at Mississippi State, pushes him, and KJ Cooper (1,626 yards in 10 starts at Texas Southern) adds a third option.
Hartline declined to name a starter after spring practice. There is arm talent in the room, but replacing Brown's dual-threat production is the tallest task on the roster.
This is Hartline's specialty and the clearest strength. He rebuilt the room in the portal, led by Bryson Rodgers, who followed him from Ohio State, alongside Arhmad Branch (Purdue), Armani Winfield (Colorado State, 617 yards), Kenny Odom (UTEP, 1,323 yards), Cameron Seldon and Jaron Glover. Holdover Mudia Reuben (36 catches, 495 yards) is the top returning target. At tight end, Wyatt Sullivan is back after 18 receptions for 176 yards.
The top three rushers from 2025 are gone, so USF leans on FCS production. DJ Crowther ran for 1,312 yards over four years at Dartmouth, and Jason Collins Jr. topped 1,000 yards at Morgan State. Sophomore Alvon Isaac, the lone returning back of note, also adds value in the return game.
The front is projected to be the largest in school history, averaging 6-foot-5 and 315 pounds. Thomas Shrader (Appalachian State, Florida State) slides to the right side, joined by tackle Michael Wooten (Oregon, Arizona), All-Sun Belt guard Caleb Cook (Georgia Southern), 30-game center Cash Hudson (Missouri State) and tackle Ethan Green (Cincinnati). The size is there; building continuity across so many new pieces may take time.
Defense
Just one defensive starter returns overall, and the front is essentially rebuilt through seven transfers with little combined FBS experience. The headliner is Jack CJ Hicks, a former blue-chip recruit out of Ohio State (44 games) viewed as the conference's top edge addition, with Shamar Meikle (Oregon State) working opposite. Nose tackle Major Dillard (330 pounds) commands attention inside, and Asani Redwood (West Virginia, 47 tackles) plus end Michael Williams II round out the rotation. The talent is real, but the group is unproven.
Grayson "Pup" Howard, a former Florida starter (nine starts in 2024) whose 2025 was limited to three games by injury, is the marquee newcomer if healthy. Sam Robinson (Rutgers) and Ayden Jackson (Georgia Southern, 19 career starts) fill out a corps that loses its top tacklers from a year ago.
Safety Tavin Ward anchors as the defense's lone significant holdover, a fourth-year starter coming off 60 tackles and an interception. The portal restocked around him with cornerback Za'Quan Bryan (Minnesota, 12 starts, 10 pass breakups), Teddy Foster (Florida), Amarion Fortenberry (South Alabama, Kansas State), safety Israel Boyce (West Virginia) and nickel Tayvion Beasley (BYU). Roughly nine transfers reshape the back end.
Here USF holds a genuine edge. Kicker Nico Gramatica, a second-team all-conference pick, made 18 of 24 field goals with a long of 52 and owns five career makes from 50 yards and beyond. Redshirt freshman Luke Goater takes over the punting, extending the program's run of Australian punters to a ninth straight season. Alvon Isaac handles kick returns.
Overview and Prediction
The schedule sets up favorably. A soft non-conference slate (FIU, at Army, Delaware State, at Bowling Green) precedes a league draw that brings Memphis and Tulane to Tampa while avoiding both Navy and North Texas. It is the 30th season of USF football and the last in Raymond James Stadium before a $348.5 million on-campus venue opens in 2027.
The preseason consensus places USF in the upper half of the American, with projections ranging from a top-three league finish to the middle of the pack. If Hartline's transfers mesh quickly, a first conference title is within reach. But four returning starters, a quarterback battle without a clear answer and a nearly rebuilt defense make regression just as plausible, and several observers do not expect this group to match last year's regular-season win total. The make-or-break is chemistry: a roster full of newcomers has to become a team in a hurry.