Can Jeff Scott and USF football replicate UCF's success?

TAMPA — University of South Florida head football coach Jeff Scott is walking in George O'Leary's footsteps. Scott is trying to get a football program which has been spinning its wheels the past few years out of a rut and back on course, much as O'Leary did for the University of Central Florida team when he took over in 2004 and got UCF headed in the right direction.

O'Leary had been in the big time, at Georgia Tech, and he knew what it took to win at that level, and not just on the field. In fact when he got to UCF, he campaigned in Orlando and around the state for an upgrade in UCF facilities.

Battle tested:After All-America season returning kicks, USF's Battie ready for encore

Zier on Jeff Scott:Scott remains focused, but USF needs to start winning

High hopes:USF fifth-year center Brad Cecil excited about 2022 Bulls

The Nicholson Fieldhouse, the state's first indoor practice field, was finished shortly after he arrived for $4.3 million but O'Leary's biggest contribution was spearheading the drive for an on-campus stadium, which was completed in 2007 at a cost of $60 million. All of that plus his early success — he took UCF to the Fiesta Bowl and beat Baylor — helped UCF gain the national recognition it needed to establish its brand.

Now, Scott is attempting to do the same thing in Tampa. However, this is not 2007 and the bar is much, much higher. He has succeeded in pushing for construction of an indoor practice facility, a $22 million project which will be completed this year but an on-campus stadium?

Yes, South Florida has it on the drawing board and yes, there is much positive talk about it and even a $5 million donation from the Morsani family to get the ball rolling.

But so far, there really isn't much there. Mostly, it's just a grandiose plan. Scott says he sometimes takes a golf cart down to the proposed site and envisions what might be. "I really believe we're getting ready to enter a phase here in the next five years where we're really going to have an opportunity to move up in a lot of areas," Scott said.

"Players want to be a part of something special. A new training room , a new weight room, a new locker room, new meeting rooms, all those things are really important," the USF coach said. "But they want to be part of a festive game day atmosphere.

"I can see a place where people gather, where students are walking around and the alumni come back, a very energetic atmosphere when the team comes out on the field. To get that kind of atmosphere, we have to have a place of our own. We need to have our own home where we can really celebrate."

Anybody who's every been to a major college football game and felt the electricity which virtually crackles in the air can attest to that. Which is why when you look at what UCF and O'Leary accomplished 15 years ago, it boggles the mind. At the time, there was nothing to indicate the Knights had a major league future, but the school did what it needed to do anyway.

There are serious questions about whether or not USF can follow suit and actually pull this off. A new stadium will cost around $400 million, and it's highly unlikely that South Florida can get any tax money to help with construction. That means the $400 million will have to come from donors. It took USF a good while to come up with the $22 million it needed for the indoor facility, and hitting the Tampa Bay community for $400 million more, well ..

Scott is undeterred. "We have our history and our past but now, it's about what's in front of us," he said.

A true believer if there ever was one.