Spring practices are already in the books and fall camps will be here before you know it, which means you’ll have an early jump into the 2006 NCAA football season. Knowing the teams now will save you time. in August and Matt Fargo is here to help you understand what to expect this coming year. We go from worst to first in this 2006 college football trailer.

#60 – South Florida Bulls 6-6 UB; 6-5 ATS

Fargo’s Take Defense wins championships and that will have to be the adage for South Florida this season. The Bulls ranked 79th in the country in both scoring and total offense a season ago and must replace more essential players than have returned. The leader in that class to depart is running back Andre Hall, who rushed for 1,374 yards on 5.1 ypc while scoring 13 touchdowns. He was also the leading receiver in both receptions and yards, so replacing him will be next to impossible. The offense scored 13 points or fewer in five of its 12 games, including shutting out its bowl game against NC State. Defense made up for things, ranking 17th in total defense and 14th in scoring defense and those rankings may need to be repeated to reach the postseason yet again. There are great prospects on this team, so depth could be a huge advantage late in the season.

Returning starters on offense – 7 Usually, the return of a senior quarterback can make up for the loss of an all-conference running back, but that’s not the case in South Florida. Hall was that good and quarterback Pat Julmiste is that bad. He completed just 49.2 percent of his passes last season while throwing for just 1,489 yards and six touchdowns while throwing 11 interceptions. He came into the spring as the number two quarterback, but Carlton Hill, who was supposed to take over, didn’t perform well, and Julmiste reclaimed the top spot. Along with a new running back, three offensive linemen also need to be replaced so the running game, the strength last season, could struggle early on. Receivers are the deepest and most experienced unit, but getting the ball to them will be problematic similar to last season. The offense might actually go off course in 2006.

Returning starters defense – 7 The reason the Bulls are ranked as high as they are is because of the defense that should be the best unit in the Big East this season. Seven players are back, including six from the past seven, but that increases to eight with the return of safety Danny Verpaele, who was a freshman All-American but missed all of last season with a foot injury. Pass defense was 6th nationwide and 16th in the top pass efficiency defense category. ¾ of the defensive line needs to be replaced, but there is excellent experience coming and the best linebacking corps in the conference makes the run defense very strong once again. The Bulls allowed 16 points or fewer in seven games last year, including four of the last five, which should provide plenty of momentum heading into the new season.

Schedule Whatever lack of offense the Bulls have is made up for with a schedule that could see the Bulls return to the postseason. They begin the season with two non-conference home games against McNeese St. and Florida International before traveling to Central Florida and then Kansas. Then South Florida starts the Big East roster with back-to-back home games against Rutgers and Connecticut before traveling to North Carolina for its final non-conference game. After a trip to Cincinnati, the Bulls host their last two conference games at home against Pittsburgh and Syracuse. The last two games are the main reason South Florida won’t win the Big East as they have to travel to Louisville and West Virginia to close out the year. A surprise in one of those could change that, but it’s not likely.

You can bet on… The talented and wealthy state of Florida has been very good to the Bulls as they have gone 34-21 since becoming a 1-A program in 2001 and have only had one losing season in that span. The defense is good enough to lead this team to another winning record and a second straight bowl appearance, but the offense needs to do its part along the way. South Florida is 12-5 ATS in its short history against non-conference teams, including a perfect 3-0 mark last season. Three of the four non-conference lineup games are on the road this season, where the Bulls are just 13-21 ATS. The defenses they will face in those games are going to be very good, so the offense definitely needs to put something together to keep the non-conference run against the number.