The University of South Florida has emerged as one of the biggest surprises across the opening two weeks of college football. After defeating Boise State 34-7 in the season opener, the Bulls took down cross-state rival Florida 18-16 this past weekend. USF has now catapulted into 18th in the AP Poll and deserves to be talked about with a bit more respect.
Oddsmakers have taken some notice with some significant movement in a few different markets. Looking at the odds on DraftKings Sportsbook, South Florida opened the season with -120 odds of winning over 6.5 games this season and held the sixth-best odds of winning the American Conference Championship at +700 odds.
South Florida entered the opening matchup of the season against Boise State as 4.5-point underdogs despite the number initially opening as a 10-point spread. After Boise State got off to a 7-0 lead, South Florida scored 34 unanswered points to produce the dominant victory.
The Bulls were even larger underdogs against the Gators this past weekend. Florida entered as 18.5-point favorites on DraftKings, but this did not stop South Florida from scrapping out an 18-16 victory. The Bulls will now face Miami this week for their final ranked matchup and a chance to make their largest statement yet.
Looking at the futures market, South Florida has climbed to the second favorite to win the American Conference Championship Game at +380 odds on DraftKings Sportsbook. It trails only Tulane at +260 odds.
South Florida also now holds +450 odds on DraftKings Sportsbook at qualifying for the CFB playoffs after opening the season without being one of the 30 teams with +500 odds or shorter. Its odds of qualifying have leaped from +2500 to open the season to +450 following the impressive pair of ranked victories.
The Bulls’ upcoming matchup with Miami offers another chance to solidify their season outlook and really put themselves on the map. The Hurricanes enter as 16.5-point favorites and hold -800 odds on the moneyline. South Florida holds +550 odds of pulling off the outright upset, with the game total set at 54.5 points.
Facing off with the No. 5-ranked team in the country is another huge chance for South Florida, and it has performed at a level that is indomitable to this point. Expect plenty of eyes on this week’s matchup as the Bulls attempt to take another leap in the college football playoff picture.
This will mark their last ranked matchup of the season, with conference play set to open soon. South Florida is off to as strong a start to the season as it could ask for and will look to continue riding the momentum from here.
