One day after announcing the team’s starting quarterback, USF head coach Willie Taggart sent ripples through the Bulls’ fan base, confirming that players will not have their names on the back of their jerseys this season. Replacing names will be “THE TEAM” listed above the numbers.
The “TEAM” photo, courtesy of @USFFootball spokesman Brian Siegrist pic.twitter.com/y1hPMhxr1E
— Joey Knight (@TBTimes_Bulls) August 18, 2014
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“We’re going to represent the Bulls,” Taggart said in the Tampa Bay Times on Monday. “That’s not to say that (the names) won’t come back some time, but our football team is focusing on the team. That’s where it needs to be.”
Twitter reaction to the announced change was fast and furious and varied from approval to embarrassment. Taggart said the change is an attempt to create team unity following the Bulls’ disappointing 2-10 record a season ago.
“That was one of the things we thought as a coaching staff that we could do better, is becoming a team,” Taggart said. “If we became a football team that was all about USF and not individuals, good things can happen for us. And we’ve seen that throughout the offseason and I feel like it’ll translate into the season as we get going.”
The move by Taggart to replace players’ names is reminiscent of the short-lived XFL, the extreme football league led by WWE’s Vince McMahon. For those old enough to remember, the XFL printed nicknames of players on the backs of jerseys during the league’s lone season in 2001.
Among the more popular and entertaining monikers belonged to Rod Smart of the Las Vegas Outlaws. Smart, coincidentally a former college teammate of Taggart’s at Western Kentucky University, went by “He Hate Me.”
It will obviously require more than an attention-grabbing new treatment on jerseys to exact a turnaround in play on the field, but Taggart’s out-of-the box method of motivating his players is to be applauded. Whether or not the unorthodox move actually maximizes the team’s potential and brings them closer together as a unit, remains to be seen.
UPDATE: On Tuesday, WDAE620.com reported that after consulting with the NCAA, USF has opted to remove “THE TEAM” from the jerseys, instead leaving the space blank.
The NCAA has strict rules governing uniforms and it was determined that USF would be in violation of Rule 1-4-5, which pertains to the design of jerseys. The rule indicates that aside from a player’s number, the jersey may only contain the player’s name, school name, NCAA logo, sleeve stripes, the American and/or state flag and a logo for the school, conference, mascot, postseason game, memorial or military.
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