USF football hosted its annual Spring game on Sunday, April 19, at Corbett Stadium. ORACLE PHOTO / JEANELLE HENDERSON
The American Conference is bringing its annual Football Kickoff and Media Days to St. Petersburg for its preseason event in late July.
The two-day event will take place from July 23 to 24 at the Hilton St. Petersburg Bayfront, marking the first time the conference has hosted its preseason event in Florida.
USF joined the conference in 2013 after eight years in the Big East, and is one of 14 schools in the football conference.
All 14 conference team head coaches and 28 players will participate in media interviews, press conferences, content creation, fan interactions and other experiences on both days, according to a conference press release.
Other activities include photo and meet-and-greet opportunities for fans to interact with the teams. Last year, fans were also allowed to ask coaches questions.
Commissioner Tim Pernetti will provide opening remarks on July 24, before each coach holds an individual press conference.
Registration information and a full itinerary of both days will be available at a later date, according to a conference press release.
The event comes ahead of a transitional season for USF football.
The Bulls will begin their 2026 season on September 5 under first-year head coach Brian Hartline, who was hired after former head coach Alex Golesh departed for Auburn University in November.
USF finished 9-4, earned a third consecutive bowl appearance and appeared in the College Football Playoff Rankings for the first time in program history last season.
Nine American Conference teams reached bowl games in 2025, and three teams — Navy University, the University of North Texas and Tulane University — reached 11 or more wins last season.
The American was also the only conference in the U.S. to win non-conference games against teams from the Big 12, Big Ten, Southeastern Conference and Atlantic Coast Conference.
Additionally, the American Conference — alongside the Big 12, Big Ten and SEC was one of four conferences to have three teams with more than 10 wins.
Tulane won the American Conference championship on Dec. 5, 2025, and received an invitation to the College Football Playoff two days later.
This win made the Green Wave the second team in conference history to receive an invitation to the playoffs since December 2021, when the University of Cincinnati made it to the playoffs following a 13-0 season.
Still, Tulane ultimately fell 41-10 to the University of Mississippi in the first round of the playoffs on December 20, 2025.
The American Conference Kickoff will be streamed live on Friday, July 24 on ESPN+.