USF veteran Mike Lofton at the center of the Bulls’ resurgence

TAMPA — A breakthrough season nearly sabotaged before it even began. Alex Golesh remembers watching center Mike Lofton go down in his first training camp for USF.

The morale of his entire offensive seemed to collapse with him.

“That was really the first time I realized what this young guy means not only to the (offensive) line room, but to the entire offense,” said Golesh, who did not specify the injury Lofton sustained that day.

“He went down, and when I told you, everyone looked around. … You could see the whole offense was thinking, ‘Man, what’s about to happen here?’ They lost a lot of confidence right away, so you know what he means.”

The epilogue is equal parts irony and irony. The Colossus, injured in the fall camp, narrowly missed a descent the rest of the way.

Lofton grimaced despite spraining his left shoulder, sore hips and sore ankles. He played 1,050 snaps as a center, according to Pro Football Focus — more than any other player in the Football Bowl Subdivision in 2023. As he recalls, he played two games at Navy and three at Memphis. Otherwise, he was a mainstay in a Mach 3 offense that led the nation with 82.1 offensive plays per game.

“It’s just a matter of mental toughness,” said Lofton, who spent most of his childhood in New Port Richey and attended Mitchell High until his sophomore year. “You have to persevere and play for the guys too. … win as many games as possible and I just wanted to be a part of that.”

The chances of Lofton approaching that number this fall — as one of 20 graduate students on USF’s roster — seem slim. The Bulls have many more players on the offensive line than they will in 2023, and Golesh might be inclined to pull back his starters and rest them in blowout scenarios. On Wednesday, Golesh highlighted the offensive line as one of the best stories of camp so far.

“I’m really happy with this group,” he said.

At the literal center of his resurgence is Michael Connor Lofton, who transferred to USF in 2022 after two disappointing seasons at UCF. After making three starts at guard in 2022, his career seemed to gain new momentum with Golesh’s arrival.

He followed the “process” that Golesh preached, not to mention every teammate he encountered at the Selmon Athletics Center. To improve his endurance, Lofton gave up his favorite fast foods (namely McDonald’s and Chick-fil-A) and followed the advice of the team’s nutritionists. He developed into a beast in the weight room (he could squat 600 pounds) and a teddy bear in the meeting rooms.

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“The same guy every morning,” Golesh said. “He shows up, hugs everybody, wishes everybody a great morning. You can tell he’s tired sometimes; he creates the most artificial energy you’ve ever seen. But he understands, ‘I have to bring the energy, I have to bring the juice.’ Just a guy you appreciate.”

In the 2023 season opener at Western Kentucky, Lofton played all 95 offensive snaps on a sweltering afternoon, marking the first major call-up at center of his college career. He remained a fixture in the next 12 games despite playing half the season with a shoulder injury.

“It got to a point where you don’t really pay attention to the number of reps during the season,” said Lofton, the oldest of four children. “It’s just like, ‘Wow.’ Especially at Western Kentucky, you’re like, ‘Wow, I really just played (95) snaps?’ But as the season went on, it was kind of like, you just focus on the opponent and keep going until you couldn’t go any further.”

Or until you lose the trust of your quarterback or coordinator. That never happened to Lofton, who by his own estimation took just 10 errant snaps for 3,000-yard passer Byrum Brown.

“Mike makes it easy. You trust the guys and believe in their approach,” Golesh said.

“You trust him to give you the right thing. As a playmaker, you know when you might be a little off and you feel like he’s going to put you in the right spot. … The running call might not be perfect for what you’re getting; he’s going to give you the right thing. The same thing is true in the guard world.

“He’s so focused on what’s going on, but that’s how he prepares. And of course, that’s how he prepares physically.”

The result is the rock of USF’s offense, tireless – and indispensable.

“He’s just a hard worker,” said veteran defensive tackle Doug Blue-Eli. “He also sticks to his job and refines it just like I do. So it’s good to go against a guy who’s willing to work and doesn’t shy away from anything, and that makes us better.”

Contact Joey Knight at [email protected]. Follow @TBTimes_Bulls

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