College Football Rankings 2017: Projected AP Top 25 after Week 1

South Florida has two wins under its belt already this year. The Bulls started the new season a week early in Week 0, winning 42-22 on the road at San Jose State. Quinton Flowers threw for 212 yards and ran for another 70 yards while racking up three total touchdowns. D’Ernest Johnson also piled up 99 yards rushing and two scores on the ground. Darius Tice added another 94 yards and a touchdown of his own.

It was a balanced offensive effort that made the Week 1 clash with FCS Stony Brook that much more surprising. The Bulls were behind 10-7 at halftime against the Seawolves, but came through with a second-half surge to win by two touchdowns. The offense looked less lively with such a compacted schedule at the front of the season.

The calendar, though, could leave South Florida with space on the back end when the College Football Playoff takes over production of the most significant Top 25 poll. They open AAC play next week at Connecticut, the first of three games in 12 days. By the end of September, the Bulls will already have half of their regular-season games out of the way. If they keep winning, they’re in position to capitalize on others’ losses later.