Okay, we didn't really mess up. But since the beginning of the Stampeding Through The Roster series, there have been additions and subtractions and other changes to the roster, leaving us with many players who couldn't be profiled the day their jersey number was up. So this article will list all the changes and introduce you to all the players we couldn't cover... which includes one of the stars of this year's team.
LEFT THE TEAM: #98 Brandon Wilkinson transferred, #27 Dontae Aycock left the football team, and #23 Faron Hornes left school after their Stampeding piece appeared (in the last two cases, immediately after).
NO LONGER ON THE ROSTER: #86 John Toston, #84 Clinton Jones, #77 Jake Kaufman, #76 Nathan Marvel, #69 Archibald Ryan, #67 Brandon Gengler, #45 Kasey Owens, #42 Victor Sanchez, #40 Corey Schomp, and #32 Zach Fisher are no longer on the roster.
Kaufman was a highly-recruited offensive lineman. He is still attending practices, so he hasn't left the team, but being left off the roster suggests his back injury might be serious.
The other players were summer walkons who were longshots to make the fall roster. We may see some of them back on the roster later.
TRANSFERS: #86 Michael McFarland (Florida), #82 Chris Dunkley (Florida), and #37 Tre Griffin (Navy) have joined the team.
FRESHMEN: The true freshmen have now been added to the roster. #29 C.J. Garye, #19 Kenneth Durden, and #11 Matt Floyd were on the roster when their jersey number came up, so they have already been profiled. The others we'll meet later in this article.
CHANGED JERSEY NUMBERS: Lots of players, but the only change that affected our roster countdown is Ryne Giddins, who switched from 7 to 97 before we covered #7 and after we covered #97. Because his jersey number du jour never coincided with the number of days remaining until Notre Dame, he never had a day on our countdown. He'll have it now:
(After the jump: profiles of Giddins, McFarland, Dunkley, Griffin, and the remainder of the freshman class.)
#97 DE Ryne Giddins
Redshirt Sophomore, 6'3" 262 lbs.
Stats in 2010: Had 3.5 sacks, 2 quarterback hurries, 19 tackles (15 unassisted), and 6 tackles for loss. Also had an interception against Louisville, returning it five yards. (Have you noticed all the oddball stats are from the Louisville game?)
Current Spot on Depth Chart: Starting left defensive end.
How did he come to USF: From Armwood High School in Seffner. Take I-4 to I-75 north, get off at Fowler and you're there. Takes about 20 minutes.
Recruiting Rankings: Giddins was, and may still be, the most heralded recruit ever to sign with USF out of high school. He was hotly recruited by Florida and other big names, but chose the hometown Bulls. Scout rated him four stars and the #12 defensive end prospect nationally. Rivals rated him even higher, with 4 stars, the #3 defensive end, the 10th best player in Florida and 61st in the country. He was also a Parade All-American, the first USF signee to be so honored.
Projected Playing Time for 2011: As much as he wants. Ryne Giddins is a dominant defensive end whom every opposing offensive line this season will be focused on stopping.
Next up is transfer Mike McFarland. Thanks to Ken for his thorough, well-written piece on McFarland's transfer that made researching the below entry a breeze:
#86 TE Michael McFarland
Redshirt Freshman, 6'5" 240 lbs.
Stats in 2010: None, as he redshirted while a member of the Florida Gators.
Current Spot on Depth Chart: Not listed on the post-spring depth chart as he was not with the team at that time.
How did he come to USF: Transferred from the University of Florida after his redshirt freshman season, after having the usual "it's just not working out" breakup talk with the coaching staff. Played football and basketball for Blake High School in Tampa. McFarland doesn't have the usual litany of other schools that pursued him, because he committed very early to the Gators.
Recruiting Rankings: Scout gave him 4 stars and rated him the #12 tight end prospect in the country. Rivals rated him 3 stars and #24.
Projected Playing Time for 2011: Normally, transfers from four-year colleges have to sit out a season, but McFarland is applying for a hardship waiver. And this is USF football, which has historically been very successful at getting these waivers approved by the NCAA. We await the hardship waiver ruling, but the tight end position is pretty well staffed with Andreas Shields and Isaac Virgin.
Next up is receiver Chris Dunkley, whose entry will look a lot like McFarland's:
#82 WR Chris Dunkley
Redshirt Freshman, 6'0" 173 lbs.
Stats in 2010: None, as he redshirted while a member of the Florida Gators.
Current Spot on Depth Chart: Not listed on the post-spring depth chart as he was not with the team at that time.
How did he come to USF: Transferred from the University of Florida after his redshirt freshman season, after having the usual "it's just not working out" breakup talk with the coaching staff. Went to Pahokee High School, a prodigious producer of football talent. Out of high school he took visits to Alabama, Georgia, and West Virginia. As a transfer he was sought by Cincinnati, Marshall, and West Virginia again.
Recruiting Rankings: Dunkley is one of the most touted players ever to join the Bulls. Rivals gave him 4 stars, rated him the #9 receiving prospect in the nation, the #12 prospect in Florida, and #77 nationally. Scout rated him 5 stars and #8 among wide receivers. As with Darrell Scott, this level of talent is tough for USF to get straight out of high school. Though as we saw with Giddins, and later 4-stars like Terrence Mitchell, Andre Davis and Elkino Watson, we're making progress.
Projected Playing Time for 2011: As far as I know USF is not trying to get Dunkley a hardship waiver, so he will sit out the 2011 season as a transfer and be a redshirt sophomore in 2012.
Next up is our third and final four-year transfer:
#37 DB Trevon "Tre" Griffin
Redshirt Freshman, 6'0" 205 lbs.
Stats in 2010: None, while a plebe at Navy. Which the Washington Post has a great picture of here.
Current Spot on Depth Chart: Not listed on the post-spring depth chart as he was not with the team at that time.
How did he come to USF: Transferred from the Naval Academy and joined the team as a walk-on. Along with J.J. Peterson, he was one of the last players added to the roster for the trip to Vero Beach. Was recruited by USF out of Miramar High School a year ago but opted for Navy, leaving the academy after a short stint. Was also recruited by FIU and Minnesota.
Recruiting Rankings: Oddly, Scout.com has entries for both a Tre Griffin and a Trevor Griffin from Miramar. Either Trevon has an identical twin we don't know about, or the research squad over there made a goof. Just something to keep in mind when they rank our recruiting class in the 50s again. Rivals and ESPN did not have him, or Trevor, in their database.
Projected Playing Time for 2011: None, as he will have to sit out the season as a transfer.
And finally, a one-size-fits-all Stampede entry for our freshman class (excluding Garye, Durden, and Floyd, who have their own profiles. Tip to recruits: If you want a profile your freshman year, pick a jersey number under 30):
#32 RB Willie Davis, 5'9", 200 pounds
#42 LB Corian Hamilton, 6'0", 231 pounds
#44 LB Antoine Pozniak, 6'2", 220 pounds
#45 TE Tye Turner, 6'3", 264 pounds
#49 K Mattias Cibatti, 6'0", 178 pounds
#51 LB Zack Bullock, 6'3", 194 pounds
#53 Elkino Watson, 6'2", 291 pounds
#56 DL Clavion Nelson, 6'3", 280 pounds
#58 LB Edsel Caprice, 6'2", 209 pounds
#61 OL Brynjar Gudmundsson, 6'4", 290 pounds
#62 OL Mak Djulbegovic, 6'5", 255 pounds
#63 OL David "Boo" Simon, 6'3", 287 pounds
#64 OL Thor Jozwiak, 6'4", 295 pounds
#67 OL Max Lang, 6'5", 290 pounds
#69 OL Jake Smith, 6'5", 284 pounds
#76 OL Darrell Williams, 6'5", 245 pounds
#81 WR Andre Davis, 6'1", 190 pounds
#85 WR Ruben Gonzalez, 6'3", 188 pounds
#94 DL Marquis White, 6'2", 306 pounds
Stats in 2010: All these players were in high school last season.
Current Spot on Depth Chart: Pozniak and Matt Floyd, as early enrollees, were the only freshmen who even had a chance to make the post-spring depth chart. Neither did.
How did they come to USF: Most of them signed with USF out of high school as part of the 2011 recruiting class. Ciabatti, Djulbegovic, and Smith joined later as preferred walk-ons. Signee Alex Mut is not on the roster because he is grayshirting (and couldn't have competed this fall anyway due to injury). Other than Mut, the entire recruiting class is on the fall roster. That hasn't always been the case at USF; typically we've had an academic casualty or two.
Recruiting Rankings: The three walk-ons have no recruiting ratings. As for the rest of the class, here's Scout.com's review. Scout rated Andre Davis a 4-star, and split the rest of the class evenly between 2-star and 3-star. Rivals.com rated Watson a 4, Gudmundsson, Pozniak, Turner, and White as 2s, and everyone else a 3. ESPN's ratings seem poorly researched, giving default "45" ratings to almost half our class, despite the fact that these were consensus 3-star talents who signed with a successful BCS program. I guess after giving a billion dollars to the SEC, they don't have any money left to report on anyone else. Sign up for ESPN Insider today!
Projected Playing Time for 2011: Most of the freshman class will redshirt, but a few true frosh always find their way onto the field. The latest news is that those with a chance to play are Andre Davis, Durden, Gonzalez, Jozwiak, Pozniak, Turner, Watson, and Darrell Williams. This can always change; who knew this time last year that walk-on quarterback Bobby Eveld would not only play, but beat Miami?
There. That should be everybody, except the jersey numbers we haven't gotten to yet. If there's someone we've missed, please let us know in the comments.