Bulls ready for ‘respite’ game

USF coach Charlie Strong hopes Friday’s game against Illinois at Raymond James Stadium will provide Tampa residents a brief respite from the aftermath of Hurricane Irma.

He invited first responders and their families to attend the game to thank them for their service.

“There are so many people that are to be commended,” Strong said Tuesday after the school announced the game with the Illini would be played as scheduled. “The first responders, the police department, the sheriff’s department … everyone got involved to make this a safe community and to get us back on track.

“We would like to say thank you for their tireless effort. There’s going to be a whole lot of effort cleaning this up.”

When Irma, which became a Category 5 storm, made landfall in Florida, it carved a destructive path throughout the state, leaving millions homeless and without power.

Local residents saw the power of Irma when Tampa Bay was drained of water briefly Sunday afternoon before it was replenished during ferocious storm-induced sea surge.

“After consulting with university leadership and the Tampa Sports Authority, we are confident that Friday’s game can proceed safely as scheduled without impacting the recovery efforts,” USF athletics director Mark Harlan said in a news release. “Our thoughts remain with all of those impacted by the hurricane in Florida and elsewhere, and we express sincere gratitude to all first-responders for their efforts.”

Many of the schools in the state remained closed, including high schools that normally would be playing Friday night games. Strong would love to see those teams to attend the USF game as well.

“I told Mark Harlan to invite everyone to the game. It’s not going to hurt us and at least it will give us a packed house,” Strong said.

With most of the players on the USF roster from various locations Florida impacted by the storm, Strong said USF allowed players to leave to be with their families. He said others remained on campus, including a dozen or so who waited for the storm to pass in the football facilities.

“We came up here actually Saturday night and some of our players were here in this building. We had a chance to sit around here and really bond before the storm hit. It was all about us making sure everyone was safe and in a secure place,” said Strong, who is in his first season leading the Bulls.

Players away from campus were instructed to be in contact with the coaching staff in case of emergencies.

USF was forced to cancel its road game against UConn on Sept. 9 when it was clear the storm could hinder the Bulls’ ability to return home safely.