 On December 8, 2012, USF announced the hire of Willie Taggart, who previously served as head football coach at Western Kentucky.Despite having the top rated recruiting class in the American Conference heading into the 2013 season, the Bulls struggled in Taggart's first year, posting a 2–10 record, the worst record in school history

USF once again had the top recruiting class in the American Conference heading into the 2014 season, and the Bulls showed improvement in Taggart's second year, finishing with a 4–8 record.In Taggart's third season, after having the second best recruiting class in the American Athletic Conference, the Bulls finished with an 8–5 record.