Bulls fall out of Big East chase with loss

CINCINNATI, OHIO — With highlight reel catches and two goal-to-go stands, the Cincinnati Bearcats handed the No. 23 South Florida football team its third loss of the year, winning 24-10.
 
The Bulls netted 182 rushing yards, but failed to turn those into points when it was most crucial — near the goal line.
 
“When you get the ball inside the 10 (yard line) two times and not to convert two times, there’s no excuse for that,” USF coach Jim Leavitt said. “We just didn’t look very good the first, or second, time we were down there.”
 
USF trailed by 14 late in the fourth, and twice drove the ball inside the 10-yard line of the Bearcats.
 
Twice, the Bulls walked away with nothing.
 
USF drove the ball to the Bearcats’ 2-yard line, but a false start penalty pushed USF back to the seven. After two rushing plays netted two yards, Grothe threw two incomplete passes.
 
Junior quarterback Matt Grothe said Cincinnati just had USF’s number.
 
“We couldn’t do anything,” he said. “They did a good job of stopping us, and we did a good job of stopping ourselves.”
 
Senior running back Ben Williams, who led the team with 79 rushing yards, said USF hurt itself.
 
“We’ve got to cut away the penalties,” Williams said. “We had a great opportunity, with the ball in the red zone, and it took away a good opportunity to score.”
 
The loss puts the Bulls out of the Big East title picture, Leavitt said.