TAMPA, Fla. — First-year USF head football coach Alex Golesh enjoyed spending some time away from football during spring break. He and his wife closed on a house, spent some time together as a family and took in a little spring training baseball.
"I did grow up in New York… and am a Yankees fan. And that’s okay. Open to being recruited to being a Rays fan, as well. I don’t know how that’ll work," Golesh joked before Tuesday's practice.
Golesh said his staff is leaving no stone unturned when it comes to rebuilding a program that has had one FBS win over the past three seasons.
"We’re re-teaching what it means to be a student-athlete. We’re re-teaching how you wake up, how you come in, hydration testing every morning to make sure we’re hydrated. What my locker looks like, how I treat my teammates," Golesh said as he went down his list. "How I respond to questions. How we handle everything on a football field. When I tell you teaching every single aspect of our program, we are teaching every aspect of our program."
Golesh is holding his players accountable for their actions on and off the field. There's a "strike" system in place for when players break team rules. It includes everything from being late to a team meeting to missing a class. Punishment includes significant conditioning drills, and the fifth strike leads to a sit-down meeting with Golesh and the player's position coach.
Matthew Hill doesn't plan on getting in trouble anytime soon. He was quick to respond when asked how many strikes he has.
"Zero."
Hill, a senior, transferred from Auburn to USF. He's playing for his third head coach, and he likes Golesh's no-nonsense style.
"He’s a straight-to-the-point man. He’ll tell you straight up what’s wrong. He holds us to a high standard," Hill said Tuesday. "So, they’re aggressive in the field aspect, but off the field, they want you to be a better man."
Not everyone's slate is as clean as Hill's.
"I had [one strike]. I learned my lesson," Jayden Curry said with a grin. "I had missed a lunch, and that was it. But it won’t happen again. I definitely learned my lesson."
The junior defensive back said he's all-in for a program that puts more responsibility in the hands of the players.
"They kinda set up a plan for us, but you gotta stick to the plan and make it work for yourself at the same time," Curry said.
"You’re trying to preach the winning culture in every single thing you’re doing," Golesh added. "And the standard is to win."
