![South Florida Bulls stand during the national anthem before the game of an NCAA men’s basketball matchup Monday, Nov. 4, 2024 at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Fla. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union]](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,x_0,y_0,w_2500,h_1406/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ImagnImages/mmsport/184/01k1ntapsa6n8hyt3z9e.jpg "South Florida Bulls stand during the national anthem before the game of an NCAA men’s basketball matchup Monday, Nov. 4, 2024 at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Fla. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union]")
Over the past decade, Houston and Memphis have been the programs that first come to mind when people mention the American Conference. In 2025-26, however, there is another team looking to contend in the AAC, and it’s one that hasn’t had much history of success: the South Florida Bulls. The Bulls have had just six 20-win seasons since 1971-72. In that time, they have made the NCAA Tournament just three times. They made it twice in three years from 1989 to 1992 and haven’t been back since 2011-12. No team has been through as much off the court in the last 18 months as the South Florida Bulls.
By March 2024, head coach Amir Abdur-Rahim led them to the NIT and a school record 25 wins. Seven months later and just weeks before the start of the 2024-25 season, Abdur-Rahim shockingly passed away at the age of 43 due to complications arising from a medical procedure. The Bulls went 13-19 under interim head coach Ben Fletcher in what had to be a very difficult year in 2024-25.
Two years removed from their best season in school history, South Florida landed Bryan Hodgson, a former Alabama assistant and current Arkansas State head coach, to build upon the culture and success that Abdur-Rahim had started. Despite not having much sustained success over the last 50-plus years, the Bulls have reason to be uncharacteristically optimistic entering this season.
1. New head coach Bryan Hodgson
The first reason for optimism is the new head coach. Hodgson spent just two seasons at Arkansas State, but he compiled a 45-28 record, including going 25-11 last season with a first-place finish in the Sun Belt. What really put Arkansas State on the map were a couple of road wins over now conference foes, Memphis and UAB. The Wolves beat UAB by one in overtime, but the game in Memphis was an eye-opener for a lot of people on a national stage, beating the No. 16th-ranked Tigers 85-72.
What made Arkansas State so successful last season was its ability to work on the defensive end. They finished the season 11th in the country in effective field goal percentage defense, as well as in the top 25 in field goal defense both inside and outside the arc. Couple that with a team that turned the ball over 10.7 times per game, and it's clear why they won 25 games, with seven of their 11 losses coming by five points or less. If Hodgson can get that defensive effort to translate, the Bulls will have a good foundation for success.
2. An impact transfer class is coming
The next reason for the good vibes at USF is due to the players that Hodgson was able to bring aboard. At Arkansas State, he had four double-digit scorers, and two of them, Joseph Pinion and Izaiyah Nelson, followed him to USF. Pinion averaged 12 points and four rebounds while shooting 43% from the field and 36% from deep last season. The 6’10 Nelson was the Wolves’ leading rebounder, grabbing just under nine per game and scoring 10 points per contest.
Hodgson brought in six other transfers, four of whom were double-digit scorers at their previous spots. Xavier Brown is a point guard that Hodgson is familiar with, having faced the James Madison product in the Sun Belt. Brown averaged 10.7 points for the Dukes last season. Joining him in the backcourt is Devin Haid, who did a little bit of everything for Central Connecticut State last season. He scored 14 points, grabbed over five rebounds, dished out two assists, and had 1.6 steals per game while shooting 49% from the field last season. Josh Omojafo is a 6’5 guard who shot 38% from three and averaged 11.4 points for a Robert Morris team that went 26-9. One guy not to sleep on is Wes Enis, who spent last year at Division II Lincoln Memorial. Enis averaged 20 points and four rebounds, shooting 41% from deep and 45% from the field.
To supplement returning forward DeAnte Green, Hodgson brought in a couple of solid rotational pieces. Daimion Collins spent last season at LSU and showed flashes of an impact player. He had 22 points, four rebounds, and four blocks in 23 minutes in a win over Oklahoma. In the two games against Ole Miss, he had 29 points and eight rebounds. Isaiah Jones is a 6’7 swingman from Oakland who averaged 6.8 points and 4.5 rebounds last season. He scored a season-high 15 points in their first-round Horizon League tournament win over Green Bay.
3. Hopes of improved shooting
The last reason South Florida can contend for the American title next season is some improved shooting. Last year, both South Florida and Arkansas State shot below 45% from the field and 32% from beyond the arc. Both returning players, Green and CJ Brown, shot over 45% from the field, and of the transfers brought in, all six of them exceeded at least one of those numbers last season. With Hodgson’s teams having a propensity to play close games, a slight shooting improvement could be enough to swing the pendulum in the Bulls’ direction in those games.
South Florida has had to deal with an unimaginable tragedy, but with Hodgson now at the helm, there is hope that he can continue the success and legacy of Abdur-Rahim in Tampa.