USF senior quarterback Matt Grothe talked with the media Tuesday for the first time since he suffered a season-ending injury to his left knee in Saturday's win against Charleston Southern. Grothe was upbeat about the torn ACL, saying he wants to be an active part of this team, getting a head start on what he hopes is a future in coaching after his playing days are over.

"I've got to look at it positively. I can't get down about things I can't change. It's just a new chapter in my life," Grothe said.

Grothe said he has an appointment for surgery in two weeks with one of USF's team doctors, and he'll have a second opinion Wednesday from another doctor about a different surgery with a shorter recovery period of three to six months.

Grothe said he felt his knee pop out of place when he was tackled in the second quarter of Saturday's game and knew he had suffered a significant injury. Realizing that right away helped him emotionally with dealing with Sunday's official prognosis that his college career was over.

"I think I got it all off on the field," Grothe said. "I laid there for a few minutes. I could have gotten up after 30 seconds, but I just didn't want to get up, because I kind of knew what was coming."

Grothe will remain a captain on the team, traveling with the Bulls for all games and helping USF's quarterbacks before and during games.

"I was telling the guys you can't call me Matt or Grothe anymore. It's Coach Grothe now," he said. "Hopefully I'll be coaching one day, so this is good experience now for a little bit."

You can watch video of Grothe's 10-minute interview at GoUSFbulls.com.