*Not to pile on, but the downward spiral of the USF football program has subplots beyond a second consecutive losing season and no bowl game. Only 23,800 actually showed up for the Homecoming game against Syracuse–and it wasn’t even televised. The last-second–again–loss was USF’s 12th in its last 13 Big East games. And this just in from the NCAA: its Graduation Success Rates data show USF last in Big East football. With a big contract buy-out, look for personally popular head coach Skip Holtz to stay on the job, but major changes will have to start with the firing of first-year defensive coordinator Chris Cosh.
*I still say Tim Tebow should have bowed out on top: a classy, Heisman Trophy winner with enough smarts, charisma and name recognition to immediately leverage on behalf of serious humanitarian needs. More formal public service would eventually beckon. Uniquely special people are a societal gift. But now too many know him for underwear ads, the trivialization of religion through (now trademarked) “Tebowing” and for being an NFL bust. Seems unworthy of Tim Tebow. Or it used to.