Lots of football notes coming in next few days, as I was able to spend nearly two hours this afternoon meeting with offensive coordinator Todd Fitch and defensive coordinator Mark Snyder, as well as special teams coordinator Vernon Hargreaves in USF's football office.

We now have a better sense of how the Bulls may line up on both sides of the ball, though coaches continue to evaluate the returning talent on roster and tweak their schemes to match strengths and weaknesses. I'll have a lot more detail, but here's a sneak preview:

-- Snyder is excited about installing a new defense, which he said will look more like the defense he ran at Ohio State than what he had as a head coach at Marshall.

"Defense is all about enthusiasm," he said when asked about his philosophy. "What gets kids excited the most? Negative yardage plays, sacks, turnovers, interceptions. How do you create those? Most of the time, with pressure. That's who we want to be."

Snyder will coach his defense like a 4-3, but calls it an "under" defense -- like a "52" defense with a five-man front and two conventional linebackers, with the fifth man on the line a linebacker, often the strongside linebacker. USF has used a variation of this at times in past years. Snyder has two distinct defensive ends -- one is an "end" and the other a "rush," with the former typically bigger and ready to face double-teams, the latter more of athletic speed rusher.

-- Fitch had lots of good notes on offense -- asked to name his scheme, he said "multiple" and "spread," but it'll have a lot of different looks and wrinkles. A few new wrinkles that fans will be excited about -- expect to see some Wildcat-type looks. Fitch calls a base Wildcat the "Jet" formation, and if the quarterback is lined up as a receiver (and they like the idea of B.J. Daniels in such a role) it's called "Mix." Another new look: The "Pistol" variation on the shotgun, with the quarterback about four yards back and a running back directly behind him.

-- Lots more to get to -- Fitch said he expects both Zach Hermann and Jake Sims, who missed the end of last season with neck and concussions problems, to be fully available for spring football. I've got a Little League opener to get to, but will have much more over the weekend. ...