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The USF men’s soccer schedule was released on Friday, and head coach Bob Butehorn has continued his trend of scheduling some of the toughest early-season slates possible.
IT'S OFFICIAL! We kick off the 2019 season at Maryland, reigning national champion! We'll play 12 games at Corbett Stadium, including three top-25 teams. You won't want to miss this!
— USF Men's Soccer (@USFMSOC) June 7, 2019
READ: USF Announces 2019 Men’s Soccer Schedule #HornsUphttps://t.co/z4EDjY28iB pic.twitter.com/MpVYo8iXms
The sports drought will end on August 17 with the first exhibition of the year vs Eastern Florida. A week later is the Rowdies Cup vs the University of Tampa. Both games will be at Corbett Stadium.
The regular season starts on the road at defending national champions Maryland. The home opener is against 2018 Big East runner-up Marquette on August 6, followed by ACC champion Louisville. They then head onto the road at Atlantic Sun champion Lipscomb.
Ohio State provides a big, flashy name at home on Sept. 17, followed by a tune-up at North Florida on Sept. 24 before the conference slate starts. The home conference games are:
- UConn - Sept. 27
- SMU - Oct. 11
- UCF - Oct. 26
- Cincinnati - Nov. 1
The Bulls play Tulsa, Temple, and Memphis on the road this year.
Three non-conference in-state games take place during conference play as well, and all three will be in Tampa. The now-yearly fixture vs FGCU (I-75 Darby?) is on Oct. 1, Jacksonville on Oct. 15, and FIU on Oct. 22.
The Bulls are trying to return to the NCAA tournament this season for the first time since the George Kiefer era. The last tournament appearance was in 2016, and saw USF bounced in the first round by Butehorn in his last season with FGCU.