Jim Leavitt era (1997–2010) In 1997,
Jim Leavitt, previously the co-defensive coordinator at
Kansas State, was hired as the team's first head coach. Their first team meeting was held under a shade tree, as the school had no proper football facilities on campus. The team started as a Division I-AA (now
Division I FCS) independent for their first four seasons, finishing with a winning record three times and ranked in the AP Poll twice. During the 2000 season, their final year in Division I-AA, the Bulls beat three teams ranked in the top 15: No. 13 James Madison, No. 6 Western Kentucky, and No. 1 Troy State; as well as Division I-A Connecticut. That team finished with a 7–4 record, with all four losses coming to Division I-A opponents, however they were ineligible for the Division I-AA playoffs as they were to transition to I-A the following year. In 2001, the Bulls moved to Division I-A (now Division I FBS), where they remained independent. They joined
Conference USA in 2003, but only stayed until 2005, when they became a member of the
Big East Conference. On December 31, 2005, USF lost to
NC State in the
Meineke Car Care Bowl, the team's first bowl appearance. On December 23, 2006, USF won its first bowl game, the inaugural
Papajohns.com Bowl, with a victory over former Conference USA rival
East Carolina. Leavitt led the Bulls to 5 straight bowl games from 2005 to 2009, earning a 3–2 record. South Florida upset Top 25-ranked teams such as
Louisville (2005),
West Virginia (2006, 2007, 2009),
Auburn (2007),
Kansas (2008) and
Florida State (2009). During Leavitt's tenure, the Bulls were 7–12 against opponents ranked in the Top 25. The
2007 football season marked the first ascent into both the
AP Poll and
BCS standings for the Bulls. They reached No. 23 after defeating No. 17 Auburn 26–23 in OT, No. 18 after defeating
North Carolina 37–10, No. 6 after defeating No. 5 West Virginia 21–13, No. 5 after defeating
FAU 35–23, and the team finally peaked at No. 2 in the country after defeating
UCF 64–12. The Bulls' high ranking was short lived, as South Florida lost its next 3 games after injuries plagued the team. The Bulls would rebound and win three straight games to close out the regular season ranked No. 21 in the BCS standings and No. 23 in the AP Poll. After a 9–3 season, the Bulls earned a bid to their third straight bowl game, the
Brut Sun Bowl against
Oregon. Leavitt was fired on January 8, 2010, after an investigation revealed that, during halftime of a game against Louisville, he grabbed a player by the shoulder pads and struck him twice across the face. The investigation also claimed that Leavitt interfered with the investigation by telling several coaches and players to change their stories.
Skip Holtz era (2010–2012) On January 14, 2010,
Skip Holtz, son of legendary coach
Lou Holtz, was hired as the team's second head coach, leaving
East Carolina after five seasons. During his first season, Holtz led the Bulls to the program's first victory over the
Miami Hurricanes. Following the regular season, he led the Bulls to 31–26 victory over the
Clemson Tigers in the
Meineke Car Care Bowl. USF finished with an overall record of 8–5 record, the fifth consecutive season of at least eight wins. To start the
2011 season, Skip Holtz led the Bulls to a dramatic 23–20 victory against
Notre Dame, his alma mater. Unfortunately, the Bulls finished the season with an overall record of 5–7, the team's first losing season since 2004. The team struggled again during the
2012 season, as the Bulls finished with a 3–9 record, which, at the time, was the worst in school history. USF athletics director
Doug Woolard fired Holtz at the conclusion of the 2012 season, and Holtz was subsequently hired by
Louisiana Tech to be the new head coach.
Willie Taggart era (2013–2016) On December 8, 2012, USF announced the hire of
Willie Taggart, who previously served as head football coach at
Western Kentucky. Despite having the top rated recruiting class in the American Conference heading into the 2013 season, the Bulls struggled in Taggart's first year, posting a 2–10 record, which, at the time, was the worst record in school history. USF once again had the top recruiting class in the American Conference heading into the 2014 season, and the Bulls showed improvement in Taggart's second year, finishing with a 4–8 record. In Taggart's third season, after having the second best recruiting class in the
American Athletic Conference, the Bulls finished with an 8–5 record. After a 1–3 start, with losses to FSU,
Maryland, and
Memphis, and a 44–3 victory over in-state rival
UCF. During the bowl game, multiple school records were set, including single season rushing yards (1,381), and 100-yard rushing games (9), by
Marlon Mack, and single season receiving yards (822) by
Rodney Adams. The same day as the team's bowl game, Taggart received a three-year contract extension. Before the 2016 season, the Bulls were selected by many media outlets to win the East division of the American, and were projected to play the
University of Houston in the
American Athletic Conference Football Championship Game. The Bulls ended the 2016 season tied with Temple for 1st place in the East division, but because of a Week 8 loss to the Owls, USF did not play in the American Athletic Conference Championship Game. In a Week 5 game against Cincinnati, Marlon Mack passed
Andre Hall to become the leading rusher in program history. Two weeks later, in a Week 7 game against
UConn, Mack passed
B.J. Daniels to become the program leader in rushing touchdowns. After that game, Coach Taggart was included on the watch list for the
Paul "Bear" Bryant Coach of the Year Award, presented annually to the best coach in college football. During their Week 9 game against No. 22
Navy, the Bulls set a school record for rushing yards in a game, racking up 412 yards in a 52–45 victory. During that game, Quinton Flowers set the school record for single season rushing yards (1,425), passing the mark Marlon Mack set in 2015. On November 30, 2016, Quniton Flowers was named the
American Athletic Conference Offensive Player of the Year, which was the first such award in school history. On December 7, 2016, Willie Taggart was announced as
Oregon's new head coach, a position that was vacant after the firing of
Mark Helfrich on November 29, 2016. Led by interim coach
T. J. Weist, the Bulls ended their season with a 46–39 OT victory over
South Carolina in the Birmingham Bowl on December 29, 2016. On January 12, 2017, Quinton Flowers was named the 2017 College Football Performance Awards National Performer of the Year.
Charlie Strong era (2017–2019) On December 11, 2016, USF announced that former
Texas and
Louisville head coach
Charlie Strong would become the Bulls' new head coach, the fourth in school history. Strong was hired, in part, because of his strong professional and recruiting ties to the state of Florida, as he served as an assistant coach at the
University of Florida for almost a decade. Before the 2017 season, the American Athletic Conference Media Poll listed USF as the favorites to win the 2017 American Athletic Conference Championship Game and the unanimous pick to win the East division. On August 3, the Bulls were ranked No. 21 in the preseason Amway Coaches Poll. On August 19, Quinton Flowers was named to the
Manning Award Watch List, making him the first Bull to be named to five preseason watch lists, as he had already been named to watch lists for the
Maxwell,
Walter Camp Player of the Year,
Davey O'Brien National Quarterback Award, and
Johnny Unitas Golden Arm awards. On August 21, the Bulls were ranked No. 19 in the preseason AP Poll, which matched the highest preseason ranking in school history (2008). In their Week 1 game against
San Jose State, the Bulls set school records for both rushing attempts (74) and total plays (101) in a single game. On September 15, the Bulls earned their first victory over a
Big Ten opponent, beating
Illinois 47–23. During this game, the Bulls totaled 680 yards of offense, the second-most in program history, and the most against an FBS opponent. During the Bulls' Week 4 game against Temple, Quinton Flowers became the program leader in both rushing touchdowns, passing Marlon Mack, and total touchdowns, passing
Marquel Blackwell. Also during this game, the Bulls allowed only 85 yards of total offense, which is a program record against an FBS opponent. With a win in this game, the Bulls extended their winning streak to nine games, a program record. With a 33–3 win over Cincinnati in Week 7, the Bulls extended their streak of 30-plus point games to 23, matching the AP Poll era record (since 1936) set by Oregon from 2011 to 2012. The Bulls also extended their winning streak to 11 games, the longest active streak in the country. USF also equaled the best start in program history (6–0), which was previously accomplished in 2007. On October 18, Coach Strong was named on the watch list for the Paul "Bear" Bryant Coach of the Year Award. With a 34–28 win over Tulane in Week 8, the Bulls extended their streak of 30-plus point games to 24, setting the AP Poll era record. This win also gave USF their best start in program history (7–0). On November 2, Quinton Flowers was named a finalist for the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award. During the Bulls' Week 13 game against rival UCF, Quinton Flowers passed Matt Grothe to become the program's all-time leader in total yards. He also set single-game records for both passing yards (503) and total yards (605). After losing to No. 13 UCF, the Bulls finished the regular season in 2nd place in the East division of the American, and they ended their season with a 38–34 victory over
Texas Tech in the Birmingham Bowl, finishing with a record of 10–2. The Bulls' 2018 recruiting class was ranked second in the American Athletic Conference, behind only Cincinnati. On July 24, the American Athletic Conference Media Poll ranked USF third, behind only Memphis and UCF. The Bulls were also ranked behind only UCF as favorites to win the East Division. On August 2, the Bulls received six votes in the preseason Amway Coaches Poll, which put them just outside the Top 25. During the Bulls' Week 6 game against
UMass, RB Jordan Cronkrite rushed for 302 yards, which set both USF and American Athletic Conference records for rushing yards in a game. On October 16, Coach Strong was named to the
Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Award watchlist. After starting the season 7–0, which tied the record for the best start in school history, the Bulls would lose their next five games to end the regular season 7–5. Despite the poor finish to the regular season, the Bulls were selected to play in the
Bad Boy Mowers Gasparilla Bowl against
Marshall. The Bulls would lose the game 38–20, however, wide receiver Randall St. Felix set two records, one for most yards in a USF bowl game, and the other for most yards in the Bad Boy Mowers Gasparilla Bowl, with 165 receiving yards. The Bulls struggled in Coach Strong's third year, finishing with a record of 4–8. On December 1, 2019, Strong was fired two days after a 34–7 loss to UCF.
Jeff Scott era (2020–2022) On December 9, 2019, USF announced that
Jeff Scott would be the program's fifth head coach. Scott was previously the co-offensive coordinator at
Clemson, where he won the College Football Playoff national championship in
2016 and
2018, and made the final at the conclusion of the
2019 season. During Scott's first season, the Bulls suffered their worst loss in program history, a 52–0 defeat in a Week 3 game against No. 7
Notre Dame in South Bend. The 2020 season saw three games canceled due to
COVID-19, and the team finished with a record of 1–8. The 2021 season saw the Bulls start 0–2, with losses to No. 25 NC State and No. 13 Florida, but they snapped their 10-game losing streak with a 38–17 win against
Florida A&M. On October 23, the team won their first game against an FBS opponent in the Jeff Scott era after beating Temple 34–14. Before the final game of the season, Coach Scott fired defensive coordinator
Glenn Spencer, and within a few weeks, he found Spencer's replacement in
Miami's defensive analyst
Bob Shoop. The team finished the 2021 season with a 2–10 record, but after the regular season, sophomore running back
Brian Battie earned several First Team All-America selections, joining George Selvie as the only two Bulls to earn First Team selections from two of the five major All-America organizations. When
247Sports launched the Transfer Team Rankings in 2021, the Bulls opened at No. 1 with eight Division I transfers. South Florida fired Scott and defensive coordinator Bob Shoop on November 6, 2022, following a 1–8 start to the season. Special teams coordinator
Daniel Da Prato took over as interim head coach, and linebackers coach
Ernie Sims became defensive coordinator.
Alex Golesh Era (2023–2025) On December 4, 2022, USF announced that
Alex Golesh would be the program's sixth head coach. Golesh previously served as the offensive coordinator/tight ends coordinator for the
University of Tennessee, where he was named a finalist for the
Broyles Award after the 2022 regular season. The Bulls showed tremendous improvement in Golesh's first season, finishing with a 6–6 record in the regular season and becoming bowl eligible for the first time since 2018. During the Week 11 game against Temple, wide receiver
Sean Atkins set the program record for receptions in a season, surpassing the previous record that was held by Rodney Adams. The very next week, in a game against UTSA, he set the program record for receiving yards in a season, surpassing the previous record that was held by
Marquez Valdes-Scantling. The following week, in a game against Charlotte, quarterback
Byrum Brown set the program record for passing yards in a season, surpassing the previous record that was shared by Quinton Flowers and Matt Grothe. In the process, he became the first quarterback in school history to pass for more than 3,000 yards in a season. Brown finished the season 7th in the FBS in total offense. The Bulls ended the season by winning the
Boca Raton Bowl, defeating Syracuse 45–0, which is the largest shutout in college bowl history. Going into the 2024 season, the Bulls had the top ranked recruiting class in the American Conference. The Bulls finished the 2024 regular season with a 6–6 record, and earned an invitation to the
Hawaii Bowl to play
San Jose State. During the Week 8 game against
UAB, wide receiver
Sean Atkins passed
Andre Davis for the most receptions in program history. Later in the season, during the Week 14 game against
Rice, Atkins would join Andre Davis as the only receivers in program history with over 2,000 receiving yards. In their Week 12 win against
Charlotte, the Bulls set a program record with 425 rushing yards. In Week 13, the Bulls set a program record for total yards against an FBS opponent when they tallied 715 yards in a win against
Tulsa. The Bulls ended the season by winning The Hawaii Bowl 41–39 in 5OT. This set for the record for the longest bowl game in history, however the record was broken just two days later when Toledo defeated Pittsburgh in the
GameAbove Sports Bowl in 6OT. During the game,
Sean Atkins set the school record for receiving yards, passing the record previously held by Andre Davis. For the 2025 season, the Bulls had the second ranked recruiting class in the American Conference behind Memphis. The Bulls continued to improve under Golesh, and they finished the regular season with a 9–3 record. The Bulls started the season with wins over No. 25 Boise State and No. 13 Florida, the first back-to-back wins over ranked opponents in program history. On September 30th, Cole Best was named to the Jason Witten Collegiate Man of the Year Watchlist. On October 2nd, Byrum Brown was named to the Maxwell Award Watchlist. On October 15th, Alex Golesh was named to the Bear Bryant Coach of the Year Watchlist. On October 16th, Mac Harris was named to The Sporting News Mid Season All-America Team. On October 22nd, Alex Golesh was named to the Dodd Trophy Midseason Watchlist. On October 23rd, Byrum Brown was named to the Manning Award Watchlist. On October 30th, Byrum Brown was selected to the Davey O’Brien QB class. On November 12th, Byrum Brown was named a Davey O’Brien Award Semifinalist. On November 20th, Christian Helm was named the Freddie Solomon Community Spirit Award Winner. On November 25th, Joel Gordon was named a Broyles Award Nominee. During the Week 14 game against Rice, Byrum Brown became the 12th player in FBS history with 3,000 passing yards and 1,000 rushing yards in a season. On December 2nd, it was announced that a record 11 Bulls earned All-Conference honors, including All-Conference First Team honors for Mac Harris and De'Shawn Rucker. On November 30th, after the conclusion of the 2025 regular season, Coach Golesh was named the head coach at Auburn.
Brian Hartline era (2026–Present) On December 3, 2025, USF announced that
Brian Hartline, previously the offensive coordinator/wide receivers coach at
Ohio State, would become the program's seventh head coach. == Conference affiliations==