Encouraging progress on the ticket-sales front, as USF announced Thursday that only about 1,500 tickets remained out of the school's initial allotment of about 10,000 tickets for the inaugural St. Petersburg Bowl on Dec. 20 at Tropicana Field.

USF said the remaining tickets are a combination of regular $30 tickets available to the general public, and $10 student tickets, subsidized by USF athletics and USF's student government. The seating capacity at the Trop will be 33,000 tickets for the bowl game, so there will be additional tickets available beyond USF's initial allotment.

By selling out the allotment, USF is removing what has been one of its largest expenses in previous bowl budgets. Schools must pay for unsold tickets from their allotments -- USF had budgeted for $333,000 to pay for unsold tickets to the Sun Bowl last year, after about $380,000 for unsold tickets to the Meineke Car Care Bowl in 2005. Can't find numbers from the Birmingham trip ...

-- Coaching update: ESPN.com is reporting that Doug Marrone, the offensive coordinator/offensive line coach of the New Orleans Saints, will be the new head coach at Syracuse. Marrone is a Syracuse graduate.