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THE ORACLE

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U N I V E R S I T Y O F S O U T H F L O R I DA

‘I thought I knew a lot about USF’

Mike Griffin, a former student body president, now leads the univeristy system toward consolidation.

By Maria Ranoni M A N A G I N G

E D I T O R

He is no stranger to USF. In fact, he served as a twoterm student body president and was an instrumental figure in getting the financing approved for the current Marshall Student Center.

However, Mike Griffin said his new role as chair of the USF Consolidation Task Force is furthering his knowledge of the university system as a whole.

“I think we’re moving in the right direction,” Griffin said in an interview with The Oracle. “Certainly, I’ve learned a lot through this process. I thought I knew a lot about USF. I’ve been heavily

By Jesse Stokes E D I T O R

I N

involved with USF since I was a student, but I’ve learned a lot and it’s all been very, very good.”

Griffin, who is currently the senior managing director for Savills Studley Occupier Services — a commercial real estate services firm specializing in tenant representation — served as student body president from 2001-03.

Since earning a bachelor’s d e g re e in business administration, Griffin has served in numerous positions at USF and in the Tampa Bay community, including as a former chair of the Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce, a charter member of the USF Board of Trustees

and as a guest lecturer at USF and Hillsborough Community College, according to Savills Studley’s website. Griffin also assisted USF with creating an inaugural master’s degree program in Real Estate.

Now, as chair of this significant task force that is leading USF’s three campuses — Tampa, St. Pete and Sarasota-Manatee — to operate under a single accreditation by 2020, Griffin said the forward momentum will not be interrupted, despite his abrupt appointment.

“There’s been no hiccups thus far and I do not anticipate there being any largely because this has been

Though he has served many roles at USF in the past, Mike n See GRIFFIN on PAGE 3 Griffin is now in new territory leading consolidation efforts.

SPECIAL TO THE ORACLE/ PORT TAMPA BAY

Despite initial meeting, disagreements persist about the safety of undocumented students

C H I E F

In an era where the U.S. government is partially shut down over disputes of immigration and border security, a similar conversation has made its way to the campus of USF. Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) are lobbying to members of the administration to become “noncompliant” with federal agencies such

as Immigration Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the FBI to establish itself as a sanctuary campus.

Their stance comes from an alleged background of the university willfully turning over the information of undocumented students to agencies like ICE and the FBI without a warrant, according to Taylor Cook, a member of SDS. “To be noncompliant with federal agencies such as ICE and the FBI means to not let

NEWS 3

these agencies have access to undocumented students information without a warrant,” Cook said. “We realize that with a warrant, they should have access to the information, but there is no reason for these federal agencies to have access to undocumented students’ information.”

However, according to Dean of Students Danielle McDonald, noncompliance with such agencies is not a solution.

“Since our first meeting,

FOCAL POINTS 4

some of the participants have changed and the goal seems to have circled back to declaring USF a sanctuary campus,” McDonald wrote in an email to The Oracle. “I do not believe it is in the best interest of the students to continue to focus on that term.

“It has shown to be a subjective term that does not provide true protections for our students and could have more negative impact than positive. I believe our efforts

OPINION 6

can be better served focusing on ensuring that our students know their rights, how the university protects their rights and provides supports needed.”

McDonald said she and her office have not ever been, nor is it within their boundaries to be, directly involved with any situation of the university disclosing the information of undocumented students to federal agencies.

n See SANCTUARY on PAGE 5

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NEWS

GRIFFIN

U N I V E RS I T Y O F S OU T H F L O R I DA

Continued from PAGE 1

such a task-force-memberdriven initiative … So the good news is that we’re able to seamlessly continue and it just so happens that I shared one of those three subcommittees that was heavily involved with some of these major items that we’re working on right now,” Griffin said.

The three subcommittees — student access, shared governance/transparency and student success/academic programs/campus identity — were all tasked with handing in recommendations to the overall Consolidation Task Force last year, who also have a deadline to turn in final recommendations to the USF Board of Trustees by Feb. 15.

“The task force has been hard at work for quite some time,” Griffin said. “A very large and, I would say, unprecedented, amount of outreach to the community has been happening. So, really it’s a culmination now of taking all of that feedback from the community, from stakeholders, from our three subcommittees and putting them into these final recommendations and delivering them to the Board of Trustees next month.”

Griffin formerly served as chair of the Student Success/ Academic Programs/Campus I d e nt i ty s u b co m m i tte e before being appointed to his new position on Dec. 13.

According to a press release announcing the change,

Debbie Sembler, has taken over Griffin’s former role.

The former chair of the task force, Jonathan Ellen, promptly resigned in early December following revelations of major safety issues at Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital in St. Petersburg, where Ellen served as CEO. Acco rd i n g to the Tampa Bay Times, Ellen’s re s i g n a t i o n o c c u r re d after its investigation that revealed the mortality rates for patients having heart surgeries increased dramatically, becoming this highest in the state.

Within the same week, after this vacancy was left in the task force’s highest leadership position, the Board of Governors named Griffin as the chair.

“My goal is to continue to find ways where this (consolidation) is a benefit to all and a benefit to each campus and I’m confident we’re moving in that direction,” Griffin said.

Griffin, being a former student himself, said that some of these benefits include an increased degree value, more course and degree offerings and the accessibility of a USF education with pathways through other state colleges even as USF’s admission re q u i re m e n t s become stricter.

“This is all about students,” Griffin said. “This is all about student success.

That’s why we’re here.”

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New app launched by University Police has safety, efficiency in mind

By Jesse Stokes E D I T O R

I N

C H I E F

Staying safe on campus got a little bit easier according to the University Police Department (UP) with the launch of their new app designed to be a one-stop shop for members of the USF community.

The app, according to Audrey Clarke, a UP spokesperson, was launched in December and “provides a lot of the safety resources in one place.”

Those resources include a system called: “Friend Walk,” which works in a similar way to iPhone’s Find My Friend app.

“The Friend Walk gives your location to a friend, they accept it, and then you go to your destination and send a notification to your friend saying: ‘Hi, I made it there no problem,’” Clarke said. “If you did not reach your destination or your friend cannot contact you, then your friend can contact the police on your behalf.

“This Friend Walk is between you and your friend, it is not monitored by the police department.”

Clarke said Friend Walk was previously known as “Guardian.”

Captain Meg Ross said another system UP used in the past was “Smart911” — which was a way for community members to upload data about themselves, including any existing medical issues, a picture and contact information that automatically pops up when your device is used to dial 911 — however, the system garnered an underwhelming response in both registration and use.

“Of course, one of the issues with Smart911 is if you are not able to talk, for whatever reason, and someone else is calling 911,” Ross said. “So, if you register with your medical reason, but it may not be your phone that is calling, Smart911 does not have your information.

“We are talking less than 10 times

The new SAFE app includes options to report a tip, view maps of the campus and has a circulation of the university’s Twitter feed, among other items. SPECIAL TO THE ORACLE that we actually had the information come through on a 911 call.”

Clarke said that the app is customizable between campuses, which may be helpful for students who attend more than one of the USF locations.

“You can customize the features per campus, so with consolidation, it is excellent if you go over to St. Pete or Sarasota, it will provide contact information for those particular campuses,” Clarke said. “There is some geofencing, so if you go to the USF St. Pete campus, it should send you a notification saying: ‘Hi, would you like to change your preference?’”

Adam Freeman, a university spokesperson, said that none of

the emergency notification system options — which include desktop notifications, text message alerts and outdoor sirens — are changing as a result of the app.

Another feature on the SAFE app is the “Report a Tip” option. However, Ross said community members must understand that this is not an alternative to 911.

“It is report a tip, not a crime report,” Ross said. “We are still encouraging people to use 911 for emergencies and the non-emergency line to report a crime.

“911 is for emergencies and I do not want people to confuse all of these things with the fact that 911 is your best response for an emergency.”

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FOCAL POINTS U N I V E RS I T Y O F S OU T H F L O R I DA

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USF alumnus competes to ‘be the hardest worker in the room’ on new series with The Rock

By Amelio Nazarko C O R R E S P O N D E N T

Working hard to reach his goals, especially in fitness, is something that Thong La, a recent USF alumnus, said he has always been passionate about.

Now, La will use his passion as one of 64 men and women who compete in The Titan Games, a competition series on NBC that airs Thursday at 8 p.m. and is produced by one of his idols, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.

The Titan Games, which premiered Jan. 3, features contestants battling against each other in challenges that test the competitors’ athletic abilities and will to succeed.

The competitors battle in the Titan Arena and advance to Mt. Olympus until one man and one woman win the title of Titan Champion and $100,000 each.

Johnson and the show’s other producers were seeking out ordinary people living normal lives who are also extremely physically fit to compete. This included La, who works for Space Machine & Engineering Corp. and power lifts both competitively and as a passion.

Johnson has been a long-time inspiration for La, and he even has one of Johnson’s quotes, “Be the hardest worker in the room,” on his desk at work.

La said once he discovered on social media that the show was searching for competitors, he applied because he felt all of the hard work he’s put into lifting made him a well-prepared

candidate. It would also award him the opportunity to meet one of his idols and be able to shake his hand.

“I had this feeling that I had the personality to get the attention of anyone who would be watching me,” La said. “Consistent hard work will be noticed.”

La and over 100 other potential contestants first tried out at a combine that tested the selected applicants’ athletic ability. It was then narrowed down to 64 people who were chosen to compete in the official games.

“I got a phone call saying I was one of the 64 contestants selected

by The Rock and NBC to compete on The Titan Games,” said La. “It was a very surreal moment.”

La said he started lifting in college as a form of stress relief.

“It started as something I did for fun, but once I started seeing results I got more focused,” La said.

Now, La power lifts competitively and his success in other competitions gave him the confidence he needed to perform in the games.

La competed in his first powerlifting competition in the USPA (United States Powerlifting Association).

“I ended up taking first place at my first competition on my 23rd birthday. That’s where it all started,” La said.

Although, the show is designed to test all facets of the mind and body. La said he had to make some adjustments to his routine and stray from what he

was comfortable with.

“With powerlifting, you don’t really work out cardio or agility stuff,” La said. “You focus on the three big lifts, which is the bench, squat and deadlift.”

Seeing as though the nature of The Titan Games is far different from his experience in powerlifting competitions, La said he wasn’t sure what lied ahead.

“I didn’t know what to expect in terms of training for the show,” La said. “I did my normal powerlifting training and added things like running with a weighted vest or I would go outside of my gym and jump on tires.”

La said that an important skill he learned from competing in The Titan Games was adaptability and becoming “comfortable with being uncomfortable.”

He recalled how overwhelming the experience was of actually being in the competition and stressed how important it was that he put one of The Rock’s most famous sayings, “Stay focused,” into practice.

“I had to blur everything out,” La said. “Everything else around me disappeared, even my opponent.”

La says that despite everyone facing off against each other, there was a welcoming and loving atmosphere among the contestants.

“Me and the Titans are a family,” La said. “It’s crazy to be put in a group where everyone has the same goals. We were all so

For Thong La, fitness and pursuing his goals has always been one of his passions. Having the opportunity to meet one of his idols was an added bonus. SPECIAL TO THE ORACLE/THONG LA comfortable around each other.”

For La, The Titan Games was a thrilling experience and he says he will maintain the same level of motivation and dedication that led him to this point.

La’s coach, Trevor Jaffe, said that it was always clear to him that La was willing to put in the work to achieve his goals.

Jaffe added that once La became interested in The Titan Games, he tested his own limits even more.

“Thong was always a hardworking athlete,” Jaffe said. “The

Titan Games gave him even more passion to push his limits and a desire to motivate others to theirs. He’s an emerging leader and there’s no stopping him.”

La said that with the right motivation, reaching your goals is something that is always within reach, no matter the circumstance “You just have to want it,” La said. “In college, I was always getting busier and busier, but I still made time to go to the gym. If you want something bad enough, you will fit it into your schedule.”

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SANCTUARY Continued from PAGE 1

“USF complies with federal law which protects student records and privacy under both state and federal laws,” McDonald said.

McDonald said that there are some issues that get in the way of the university directly communicating with undocumented students to make them aware of what resources are available to them.

“The challenge in communicating is that we are deliberate in not having lists of undocumented students,” McDonald said. “The positive is that information is not available and therefore not able to be provided. The challenge is that it limits our ability to communicate directly with the students who need the information.”

What McDonald said

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conversations did turn to, before going back to the argument of USF becoming a sanctuary campus, is the implementation of a new page on the website of the Office of Multicultural Affairs about what rights undocumented students have and what services the university provides.

“We need to ensure that information is easy to access and understand in order to avoid future misperceptions and misunderstandings,” McDonald said about the goals for the web page.

However, for Cook, the conversation does not stop there.

“It is important that we do actually implement the change that SDS is asking for and that undocumented students are asking for,” Cook said. “A website is good in USF being transparent, but it is definitely

just the first step and it is not the end goal.”

McDonald said that a number of resources are already available for undocumented students on campus and that the members of SDS she met with last semester were not aware that a number of their concerns had already been addressed by the university.

“They had not participated in our UndocuAlly program or met with anyone in our Office of Multicultural Affairs or Dean of Students office to find out what we already do,” McDonald said of SDS. “They had also never requested a meeting to discuss their concerns. The University has continuously demonstrated support for undocumented students including the President who joined other University Presidents in signing a letter in support of undocumented students.”

Though, according to Cook, SDS has requested meetings with administrators since their campaign for a sanctuary campus began about a year ago.

Moreover, Cook said the conversations with McDonald are a nice start, but she and her organization still want to speak with members of upper administration, including President Judy Genshaft and Provost Ralph Wilcox.

Cook added that frustrations are growing as a result of what she claims is the university’s pushback against change.

“It feels like USF does not really want to change and they do not really want to meet our demands,” Cook said. “While they are meeting with us it just seems like we are being pushed off. We have gone through our demands multiple times and it has been told that ‘we are going to tweak this so we can show

the president and provost,’ but it feels like we just keep getting put off to make us be quiet.

“It is very important that we, a school that prides itself on diversity and being progressive, are actually progressive and provide a safe space for all students.”

However, for McDonald, she said keeping an open line of communication with students is a virtue of hers and the Dean of Students office.

“I would want to make clear that the Dean of Students Office is always open to meeting with students and discussing their concerns,” McDonald said.

“Students do not have to protest to get my attention. I believe that in the past few years of my serving in the role of Dean of Students I have demonstrated this value.”

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OPINION

U N I V E RS I T Y O F S OU T H F L O R I DA

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Liberal elitism is both patronizing and damaging

By Aida Vazquez-Soto O P I N I O N

E D I T O R

In political discourse, by far one of the most important assumptions is that you respect and acknowledge the opinions of the person you are debating. It is also often one of the first rules sacrificed in heated political discussions and even in our characterization of our opponents.

Phrases like “they don’t know any better” or catch-alls such as “they’ve never experienced diversity” are pervasive, especially when looking at how liberals talk about conservatives.

This kind of rhetoric is patronizing and problematic.

It hurts our ability to have honest conversations and makes it harder for conservatives to cull bad figures.

Elitism and finger-pointing are simply put, a hypocritical lack of The first victim of liberal elitism understanding. SPECIAL TO THE ORACLE is almost universally the dialogue. It becomes unequal, as one person is approaching the conversation from journey to their beliefs is one to being stereotyped within a group a place of equal footing and the rooted in irrationality or in parental is to defend that group at all costs, other is assuming a lesser and invalid authority instead of in strongly held including the bad apples within the opinion. values or logic and it is insulting. crowd.

When people feel like they In a viral post to Twitter In order for conservatism can’t engage in fair and genuine commenting on the results of Texas’s to progress, conservatives need conversations, they will inevitably most recent Senate election, leftist the space to criticize their own. choose to not participate in them. activist Alexis Isabel criticized white This becomes inherently more Politics is supposed to be about women for “valu[ing] their whiteness difficult when the environment is talking and we shouldn’t engage over their womanhood”. encouraging tribalism. in behaviors that hurt people’s The reduction that white women, Elitism from any side or any one willingness to get involved in the as a group, view all of their opinions person will always be harmful. What discussion. through the paradigm of their we stand to gain from approaching On that same note, it is patronizing whiteness is a prime example of this political discussions in an opento assume that conservative ideas are elitism. The opinion holds that it is minded way, from the interactions all sourced to the same experiences. impossible for these women to have with new ideas to the reduction of It erases the reasons behind the simply preferred Sen. Ted Cruz’s tribalism, would leave us far better opinions of conservatives and right- (R-TX) policies or preferred to vote off. wingers and assumes that individuals for an incumbent. cannot reach those conclusions on Lastly, and perhaps most Aida Vazquez-Soto is a senior their own. importantly, is what liberal elitism majoring in political science and It presumes that everyone’s encourages. The reflexive reaction economics.

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Where is ‘The Art of the Deal’ when the country needs it most?

By Sam Newlon A S S O C I A T E

E D I T O R

In the 19th day of the U.S.’s partial government shutdown, President Donald Trump tweeted after abruptly leaving discussions to reopen the government.

“Just left a meeting with Chuck and Nancy, a total waste of time,” Trump tweeted Wednesday. “I asked what is going to happen in 30 days if I quickly open things up, are you going to approve Border Security which includes a Wall or Steel Barrier? Nancy said, NO. I said bye-bye, nothing else works!”

Trump is referring to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA).

Trump asked Pelosi if she would agree to build his wall, she said no and Trump responded with “Then we have nothing to discuss,” reports say. Schumer called Trump’s actions a “temper tantrum.”

They were.

However, Trump should not take all the blame. Actions from each side of the aisle are proving to be ineffective and even more irresponsible.

It seems that the author of “The Art of the Deal” is having quite a bit of trouble negotiating his border policy into existence.

Reading even a short part of his book can give some insight to why the government is suffering.

“In most cases I’m very easy to get along with,” Trump wrote in his book from 1987. “I’m very good to people who are good to me. But when people treat me badly or unfairly or try to take advantage of me, my general attitude, all my

life, has been to fight back very hard.”

But this fight has gone too far.

Trump is certainly sticking to his guns, but the shutdown isn’t a one-sided problem. As stubborn as Trump may be, the Democratic opposition has proven to be equally determined to get their way.

Sure, leaving in the middle of a discussion is rude, especially when the discussion concerns many federal employees who are missing pay because of the shutdown. Name calling and taking public jabs at someone, like Pelosi did after Trump left Wednesday’s meeting, is also unprofessional and won’t fix the stalemate.

Pelosi said Trump was being “insensitive” to employees affected by the shutdown and make a reference to Trump’s past.

“He thinks maybe they could just ask their father for money, but they can’t,” she said.

Perhaps the Speaker of the House decides to bend on this issue. Perhaps the President of the United States takes another page out of his own book.

“I never get too attached to one deal or one approach,” Trump wrote. “I like to keep a lot of balls in the air, because most deals fall out, no matter how promising they seem at first.”

This “deal” doesn’t seem promising, but the solution starts with fully reopening the federal government, not with discussions between immature leaders.

Sam Newlon is a senior majoring in mass communications.

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Men’s Basketball

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Collins, Yetna lead Bulls to second conference win

By Jeremy Johnson C O R R E S P O N D E N T

Alexis Yetna and David Collins led the way as USF men’s basketball topped Tulane 66-48 on Wednesday at the Yuengling Center.

Yetna scored 15 points and 11 rebounds as he recorded his AACleading eighth double-double of the season, while Collins scored a game-high 17 points to lead the Bulls (12-3, 2-1) to their second conference win this season.

Despite the double-double, Yetna said he feels that he could have played better Wednesday.

“I still feel like I played a good game still,” Yetna said. “I got four turnovers, which is way too much and I only got two offensive rebounds. I just try to grind it out, I try to go hard and I found myself with a double-double. I would say I got lucky with it.”

A major issue this season for USF has been making free throws.

The Bulls entered the night 339th out of 351 Division I schools in free-throw percentage. However, Wednesday was an above average night from the charity stripe, as the Bulls made 65 percent of their free throws.

Redshirt senior TJ Lang started the Bulls’ success from the freethrow line after coming off the bench as he was able to convert two shots.

“I think our strength is our depth, if one guy is not playing well then someone has to step in and we did that,” coach Brian Gregory said.

“I thought TJ played very well for us, got us going in the first half with a couple threes.”

The Bulls displayed a sense of lock-down defense through most of the first half, allowing only 12 points through the first 10 minutes and also racked up seven defensive rebounds, two blocks, four steals and caused 10 turnovers. They also utilized these takeaways to score 10 fastbreak points.

Additionally, Mayan Kiir was

INJURIES

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Even with Ferreira out among the other injuries, five-star Latvian recruit Luize Septe can give the Bulls some hope as their season progresses, but the challenges she’ll face joining a team in the middle of the season could be difficult to work around.

“It’s kind of been a whirlwind because she hasn’t had the time and the necessary practice to be with our kids and learn the system,” Fernandez said. “She’s coming in and she feels pressure that she’s got to come in and be

BASKETBALL Continued from PAGE 8

USF coach Brian Gregory is content with Wednesday’s win against Tulane, but knows his team must play better to keep winning in the AAC. ORACLE PHOTO/BRIAN HATTAB

able to get the crowd roaring halfway through the first half when he dunked a ball through two Green Wave defenders. The cheers only got louder as Laquincy Rideau drove into the paint multiple times and Yetna drained a shot from downtown.

Even Collins, who is not known for dunking, got in on the action.

Collins connected on a hard dunk late in the second half that helped seal the deal for his team. Collins also contributed on the defensive side of the ball by recording five steals.

“Playing fast and in transition is always fun,” Collins said. “Getting everyone involved and everyone feels like they are involved, it is always fun.”

USF wasn’t successful just because of one or two players, however. The Bulls had nine different players cycle throughout

the game, and all nine were able to play double-digit minutes.

“We are nine or 10 strong and guys have to be ready to go, that gives us our best chance,” Gregory said. “When you build a type of program we want to build, when guys don’t play well they still feel good when someone else does.”

Up next for the Bulls is a trip to Philadelphia to face Temple on Saturday afternoon. The Owls are 12-3 after defeating No. 17 Houston on Wednesday night.

“We will have to play better on Saturday, no question about it,” Gregory said. “But we have guys who come to work every single day, I love the guys and they are great to be around. It makes coaching fun, it is frustrating sometimes, but we are going to build it the right way. The process is moving forward and in the right direction.”

in for a rough season with or without a loss to USF on their resume — but it was still a milestone win for a USF program that’s being rebuilt from the ground up.

What’s perhaps even more exciting and buzz-worthy is this is likely just the beginning of a new era for USF men’s basketball. This season is, after all, what Gregory called year “negative one” in the process of rebuilding the program.

“When you step back, you still look at the future of where we could get to and how big the buzz could be,” Gregory said. “We’re going to get there.

We’ve just got to make sure that we’re doing it along the right process, along the right patch — because what you want to make sure you do is it’s built on solid rock and not sand.”

This team is young — there are only five upperclassmen on the Bulls’ roster this season — so there’s no reason to

great.”

Even with several players missing for different reasons, Fernandez is finding a silver lining in the way he can coach his team through teachable moments.

“I think there’s a lot of life lessons that these guys have learned this year, but I’m really proud of how they’ve attacked every day, every practice and how they continue to prepare to fight,” Fernandez said.

“Opportunities are going to come. You can’t get ready when an opportunity comes, you’ve got to be ready already when that opportunity comes.”

think that USF won’t be able to continue building on the success with largely the same team next season, as well.

Who knows how this season will end. There are still 15 AAC games left to play, and a lot can happen between now and the end of the season.

An NIT bid would be monumental for where this program was before Gregory took over less than two years ago. An invitation to the third-tier College Basketball Invitational would be cause for celebration, even.

But for now, let’s just enjoy the ride of a team that has finally given its fans something to cheer about. Fans are happy, players are happy and Gregory, when asked if he was happy, was all smiles.

“I’m a happy guy. I’m a positive guy, a happy guy,” Gregory joked. “I’ve got to fight it every day.”

What a difference a year makes.

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Women’s Basketball

Fernandez teaches USF women’s basketball life lessons amidst injuries

By Sam Newlon A S S O C I A T E

E D I T O R

In a season that has already been somewhat of an uphill battle in terms of injury, USF women’s basketball faces losing its lead scorer to an undisclosed circumstance.

Silvia Serrat, Kitija Laksa, Elisa Pinzan and Beatriz Jordao have all been sidelined with injuries this season. In the Bulls’ 62-49 loss to UCF on Tuesday, Laura Ferreira, who is averaging 15.8 points per game, joined them courtside due to an unspecified illness.

The team’s uncharacteristic 10-6 start — USF started 12-4 and 14-2 each of the last two seasons — and how it got there is important to coach Jose Fernandez.

“This is the kind of stuff that prepares you for life and

the real world,” Fernandez said Monday. “There’s going to be things that happen in your life that are unexpected and it’s how you deal with it, you’ve got to wake up and go to work the next day.”

Laksa, who had hopes of an all-American campaign in her senior year, led the Bulls in scoring the past two seasons. Her injury sparked conversation of how the team would have to find more scorers.

The very next game after Laksa’s injury, Ferreira scored 34 points and had six assists.

The Bulls found their new leading scorer.

“When [Laksa] got injured, I knew I’d have to step up to score more,” Ferreira said Monday. “But it’s a team effort. There’s five people

gameplan. She was averaging 11.3 points and 5.7 rebounds per game. Jordao’s season was cut short when an injury to her left leg progressed. Now down a scorer and a strong presence in the paint, Ferreira was in position to continue leading the team.

“It’s not really pressure,” Ferreira said. “I just feel that I’m a role model to [the team] and they follow me, so I need to be at my best, but it’s a good pressure.”

But now, after Ferreira sat out against UCF on Tuesday, Fernandez said he didn’t anticipate having her Jose Fernandez’s team has been injured from the beginning of the season. back anytime soon, that The list of ailed Bulls grew when Laura Ferreira sat out against UCF with an Ferreira was dealing with undisclosed inujury. ORACLE PHOTO/BRIAN HATTAB something “much bigger than on the floor, it’s not only up As the season progressed, basketball.” to me. We have to play as a Jordao, a freshman, emerged n See INJURIES on PAGE 7 team.” as an important piece in USF’s

Commentary

Looking at USF men’s basketball one year ago

By Brian Hattab A S S I S T A N T

S P O R T S

E D I T O R

On Jan. 10, 2018, USF men’s basketball was 7-10 and 0-4 in the AAC. The Bulls were coming off an ugly 95-57 loss at Wichita State over the weekend and preparing for what would be another blowout loss the following weekend at home against Cincinnati.

“It’s been a tough stretch with who we’ve played, where we’ve played, how well the

team has played,” coach Brian Gregory said one year ago.

“Our guys understand the big picture. They understand where we’re at and why they came here.”

What a difference a year makes.

On Jan. 10, 2019, USF is 12-3 and 2-1 in the AAC. The Bulls’ 10 wins at the end of 2018-19 non-conference play matched their cumulative win total from 2017-18 — achieving

the feat in 18 fewer games.

USF’s first conference win this season — a 76-68 thriller over UConn on Jan. 2 at the Yuengling Center — came in its first AAC game instead of game No. 8 in 2017-18.

Positive results are nice, especially after years of negative results. But what’s even more encouraging is something that’s a tad harder to quantify with numbers.

There is a buzz around this

program for the first time in years.

Anyone who was at the Yuengling Center for the UConn game certainly felt that buzz. There was something stirring in the arena that wasn’t even there for the Dec. 29 game against Fairleigh Dickinson. It almost felt like a coming out party for a team that many had heard a lot about, but not actually seen in person yet.

There was just something

oddly satisfying hearing USF fans singing “Nah nah nah nah, hey hey hey, goodbye” as UConn fans — who were quite loud during the first half, only to be silenced by a 51-point second half by USF — left the building.

True, this was not the UConn team that won the 2014 national championship, and the Huskies may have been

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