Bowl loss to Marshall puts finishing touches on historic collapse by USF

The USF Bulls started out the 2018 season with an impressive 7-0 record, and it looked like they may roll into a Week 13 matchup with rival UCF with both teams undefeated.

However, that wasn’t the case. USF started collapsing down the stretch, losing their last five games of the year. Heading into Thursday night’s Gasparilla Bowl against Marshall, the Bulls needed a win to avoid a historic collapse.

Marshall dominated from the opening whistle, though, jumping out to a 21-7 lead in the first quarter and cruising to an easy 38-20 victory. That means USF now has the distinction of being the only team to start 7-0 and finish 7-6:

USF looking very much like a team that could become the first to finish 7-6 after starting 7-0.

— Chris Fallica (@chrisfallica) December 21, 2018

That’s not a good look for coach Charlie Strong, but he doesn’t seem to be on the hot seat. Conversely, Colorado fired coach Mike MacIntyre after the Buffaloes started 5-0 and missed a bowl game with a 5-7 record.

The heat may not be on Strong yet, but he’ll likely need to keep his team from falling apart down the stretch next year to keep his job.

Adam Spencer

Adam is a daily fantasy sports (DFS) and sports betting expert. A 2012 graduate of the University of Missouri, Adam now covers all 16 SEC football teams. He is the director of DFS, evergreen and newsletter content across all Saturday Football brands.