USF's Matt Grothe: The Man Who Would Be King

When the University of South Florida opens its 2009 football season on Saturday, it may not take long to crown a new king of offense in the Big East Conference.

The-man-who-would-be-king is senior quarterback Matt Grothe.

And it's all there for him on Saturday night at home against 1-AA Wofford in the friendly confines of Raymond James Stadium.

It is a year of opportunity for the Bulls and Grothe, a four-year starter at quarterback in USF's spread offense.

Grothe and USF's chances for success are bolstered by new offensive coordinator Mike Canales, who is a huge upgrade over former coordinator Greg Gregory and a man destined to be a college head coach sooner than later.

Grothe is a meager 288 yards short of breaking the venerable Pat White's mark for total offense in the Big East. White, now a Miami Dolphin, massed 10,529 yards during his spectacular career at West Virginia.

King-in-waiting Grothe sits at 10,242 and is a good first half away from coronation.

It's feasible he could do it in a half.

USF isn't facing Rutgers or Cincinnati or any other Big East contender. Instead, the Bulls have three "warm-up" games before they travel to Tallahassee on Sept. 26 to play FSU.

Before then, they'll chomp down on the appetizing lineup of Wofford, Western Kentucky, and Charleston Southern.

The Bulls have themselves their own little "preseason" schedule before they finally get down to the serious business of picking on guys their own size.

By then, they'll be led by the new King of the Big East.

He's 288 yards away.

And that's small potatoes in the world of Matt Grothe.