This week's Sporting News has an eight-page section on spring football, and USF has a cameo in there as writer Dave Curtis names Jim Leavitt as one of six "big-name coaches entering spring in need of a turnaround." Notre Dame's Charlie Weis is the headliner, and Louisville's Steve Kragthorpe made the list as well. Here's what Curtis writes about Leavitt:

"When will the Bulls be champions? USF leads the Big East in talent and land mine losses. A couple more sorry Saturdays this year will signal the need for change in Tampa."

Even with four straight bowl appearances, USF is coming off a 2-5 season in the Big East, and has gone from the top 10 to unranked with second-half collapses in each of the last two years. With quarterback Matt Grothe and defensive end George Selvie returning as arguably the most well-known offensive and defensive players in the conference, Leavitt would face heavy scrutiny if the Bulls didn't improve on last year's league record.

USF likely won't make a bowl game with a 2-5 league mark this season because Florida State and Miami are looming on the nonconference schedule, and only one of the Bulls' potential two wins against I-AA opponents can count toward the six wins needed for bowl eligibility. It would take at least four conference wins -- or three and one against FSU or Miami -- for the Bulls to return to a bowl.

I'll ask you readers then: Is there a level of disappointment in 2009 at which you'd call for a coaching change with the Bulls?

Again, logistically, any talk of USF making a change at head coach should include the financial consequences of doing so. Under the seven-year contract signed last year, Leavitt is entitled to 75 percent of his remaining compensation if fired without cause (again, not winning enough games qualifies as "without cause"). That would work out to a $7.1 million buyout from USF after the 2009 season, though USF would be reimbursed for any income Leavitt would take from any football-related job through 2014. It's hard to imagine him not coaching elsewhere in the unlikely event that a change was made.

-- ESPN.com blogger Brian Bennett has a good Q&A with Mike Canales -- lots of X's and O's in there.
Bennett also names USF defensive tackle Cory Grissom as one of his five candidates for breakthrough seasons in the Big East in 2009. USF looks to have a ton of depth on the defensive line, so I don't know if any one player (outside of Selvie) will put up huge numbers, though the unit as a whole should be strong.