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FACEBOOK GAMEDAY GALLERY: USF Bulls 42, San Jose State Spartans 22

SAN JOSE, Calif. – Twelve minutes into Charlie Strong’s tenure as the USF Bulls head coach, things weren’t looking good at all for the former Texas and Louisville head coach.

Forty-eight minutes later, however, everything looked a whole lot better as the Bulls avoided being bit by the upset bug right out of the gate returning to Florida instead with a 42-22 win over San Jose State and a 1-0 record.

In a game that ultimately lasted more than four hours, the host Spartans nearly rode Strong’s Bulls right out of San Jose with a Bryce Crawford field goal and two Josh Love-to-Bailey Gaither scoring strikes. The second came after a blocked punt which found the Bulls being dominated in pretty much every phase of the game at that point.

Following the second touchdown, however, the Bulls returned the favor by blocking the extra point leaving San Jose State with a 16-0 lead. From there, it was all USF.

By the end of the second quarter, the Bulls had put 28 points of their own on the board to take a 28-16 lead to the lockers. Two more touchdowns in the third and fourth quarters then stretched the lead to 42-16. While the Spartans responded quickly after the second touchdown, it ultimately just made the scoreboard look a little better at 42-22 as they were unable to continue the rally.

USF returns home to Tampa next Saturday for a home date with FCS opponent Stony Brook while San Jose State will be back in action at home against FCS opponent of their own – the Cal Poly Mustangs, their neighbors from further down the coast.

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