Miami’s defense has to fix one major problem to derail the USF hype train in Week 3

There may not be a team in the country that has had a more impressive or more unlikely first two weeks than USF. Alex Golesh’s South Florida Bulls are 2-0 with a convincing win over last year’s Group of Five College Football Playoff representative, Boise State, and another over then No. 13 Florida, 18-16 in Week 2. 

Already the Group of Six favorite for the CFP as the potential American Conference Champions, and No. 19 in the country, USF could solidify its place as a top contender with a Week 3 victory over No. 5 Miami at Hard Rock Stadium. And unless Mario Cristobal and first-year defensive coordinator Corey Hetherman bolster the biggest weakness on their revamped defense, they’ll get it. 

Corey Hetherman must limit Byrum Brown’s explosive plays on Saturday

Byrum Brown is one of the more dynamic quarterback in the country, especially at the non-Power Conference level. He has a big arm to threaten defenses vertically, but his legs have proven to be even more valuable. The 6-foot-3, 232-pound senior is tough to bring down and can make tacklers miss in open space. He’s forced 5 missed tackles already this year and averages nearly four yards per carry after contact. 

With his volatile play style, downfield aggressiveness, and a high sack rate, USF’s veer-and-shoot, Art Briles-inspired offense hasn’t been particularly efficient on a down-to-down basis, ranking 114th in success rate, but it has been highly explosive, especially on the ground. USF’s 13.7 percent explosive run rate is 94th percentile in the country, despite facing two quality defenses through the first two weeks of the season. 

Running back Alvon Isaac, though he’s carried the ball just nine times, has been even more of a big-play machine, breaking three of those attempts for 15+ yard totes and amassing 93 of his 117 total rushing yards after contact. As fast and physical as Todd Orlando’s defense has been through the hot start, the USF offense has a similar mean streak. 

Miami, conversely, has allowed nearly a nine percent explosive rush rate, which is 26th percentile, and against Notre Dame in Week 1, surrendered four explosive runs on just 25 attempts or a 16 percent rate. It’s a small sample size, and generally, Miami has defended the run well under Heatherman, while being vastly improved against the pass compared to last season’s Lance Guidry disaster. Still, allowing explosives at such a high clip will sustain and otherwise fickle USF attack. 

The good news for the Heaterman’s Hurricanes is that this year, they have the bodies to fix it. A year ago, the secondary was plagued by communication issues, but Guidry wasn’t the only issue. In 2025, thanks to Transfer Portal pickups, the defense is talented enough to make meaningful strides week over week. Oh, and not facing Notre Dame’s running back duo of Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price won’t hurt either. 

One of Miami’s most inconspicuous offseason additions was former Rutgers linebacker Mohamed Toure, and through two weeks, he looks back to 100 percent after injuries sidelined him in 2024, and is even with Rueben Bain Jr. with five run stops to lead the Canes. Miami also has just one missed tackle in run defense this year, credited to Zechariah Poyser. 

Heaterman calls an aggressive game defensively. He blitzed Notre Dame redshirt freshman QB CJ Carr on nearly half of his dropbacks in Week 1, and isn’t afraid to play man coverage behind his pressure looks. That can leave a defense susceptible to deep shots through the air and big runs on the ground. 

This week, it could be wise to play a bit more zone to keep eyes on a mobile quarterback and to rush more to contain Brown in the pocket, rather than to get sacks. USF doesn’t exactly ascribe to the death by a thousand paper cuts philosophy, so if Hetherman dares Brown to be patient, he’s bound to make a mistake. 

Either way, the Hurricanes have the superior athletes and should control the line of scrimmage well enough on both sides of the ball to make it a moot point. Miami is a 17.5-point favorite after all, but if the Bulls do keep the game close and Hetherman reverts to his default settings, he might be playing right into USF’s hands.