South Florida men’s basketball team hears from Bills legend before NCAA game in Buffalo
South Florida Bulls head coach Bryan Hodgson feels right at home for his team’s NCAA Tournament opener on Thursday, March 19. That’s because he is home. Hodgson and the No.
11-seeded Bulls are set to face No. 6-seeded Louisville Cardinals in Buffalo, N. Y.
The South Florida coach was born in nearby Olean, N. Y. , played and coached at Jamestown Community College and was an assistant for four years with the Buffalo Bulls, per ESPN .
So Hodgson has plenty of western New York connections. That’s how Buffalo Bills legend Thurman Thomas ended up addressing the South Florida squad on Wednesday night. MORE: March Madness games on today, Round of 64 for March 19 The Pro Football Hall of Fame running back led the Bills to four consecutive Super Bowls in the early 1990s.
He encouraged the Bulls to seize their opportunity to do something special. “It’s time for you guys to make your history tomorrow. … We’re trying to get to Saturday,” Thomas told the team in a video released by the team’s X account .