It took USF football 59 minutes of game time to score on Saturday. 

That touchdown – a 13-yard pass from junior quarterback Bryce Archie to graduate receiver Michael Brown-Stephens – helped USF evade what would’ve been its first shutout loss since 2021. 

Turnovers, penalties and drops littered USF’s 28-7 loss against Navy, snapping a two-game winning streak. 

USF’s offense appeared to have life early, as Archie hit sophomore receiver JeyQuan Smith, who took the pass 37 yards deep into Navy territory. 

It was the first opening drive the Bulls took into the red zone since their matchup against Alabama – a game played over two months ago.  

The early offensive fireworks would soon be extinguished when Archie threw an interception two plays later that led to a Navy touchdown. 

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Before its last-minute touchdown, USF moved the ball into the red zone three times on Saturday – yet walked away from those possessions with zero points. The Bulls’ biggest play of the game, a 56-yard run by senior running back Ta’Ron Keith, was negated by a holding penalty. 

Bulls coach Alex Golesh said mistakes limited the Bulls’ ability to make explosive plays.

“It took us two drives to settle in, and two drives cost us 14 points at the same time,” Golesh said. “Offensively, it was just opportunity lost after opportunity lost.”

Archie made his fourth start of the season with junior starter Byrum Brown still sidelined with an injury. He completed 26 of his 43 pass attempts for 282 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. 

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Despite the offensive stagnation, Golesh said he didn’t want to bench Archie. He said  Archie gives the Bulls “the best chance to win.” 

“I felt like, for Bryce’s confidence’s sake, that wasn’t going to be good to sit him down,” he said. 

Archie said his confidence wasn’t an issue on Saturday, but “self-inflicted wounds” were behind the Bulls’ loss

“We shot ourselves in the foot, and that’s on me,” Archie said. 

USF needs to win two of its remaining three games to reach bowl eligibility. Two of those – Charlotte and Rice – are road matchups. 

Last season, the Bulls clinched bowl eligibility in their last regular season game against Charlotte. Golesh said he wants the Bulls to progress more on offense compared to last season. 

“We got three left. We got to go execute at a high level,” he said. “It looks like we’re in year one. There’s a bunch of young cats out there, and it doesn’t look like what you want it to look like in year two.”

USF will take on Charlotte on the road at 3:30 p.m. Nov. 16. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+ and Bulls Unlimited.