Jim Leavitt
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"Jim Leavitt" is a former American football player and current defensive coordinator for the University of Colorado. He served as the head coach at the University of South Florida from the football program's inception in 1997 until 2009, compiling a record of 95–57.

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I called it then, but our guys didn't get the signal. They were leaving both of our stingers uncovered and it was there, but we didn't see it.

He's going to go right in and play quarterback. We'd be crazy not to watch him. I won't know until I let him get in there and let him play. He knows if he doesn't play quarterback here he would go to safety. I know he can play there. He's a natural leader. He's a heck of an athlete. I've liked Nate for two years now.

At defensive end we thought we just hit the gold mine. On our board at end, we about hit on everybody we really wanted.

We got 99 percent of the guys we wanted, so it didn't affect me that much.

We had a gold mine this year. We got almost everybody we wanted. We needed help on the line and big, physical receivers, and we got them.

They won't appreciate it as much now as they will 20 years from now. It's impossible. They'll appreciate it years from now, when they're looking back and wondering who was that first [USF] team that went to a bowl game.

I really like this group. Every single guy is very serious and very focused and, knowing my personality, that's big. They all work hard, almost like blue-collar workers, no nonsense, they get after the task and get it done.

I thought we should've gotten here sooner and was surprised we did not go in 2002. But to go to a bowl game as part of a BCS conference is a pretty big deal. A lot of things came together to make this happen.