South Florida @ Tulane preview

No. 13 South Florida has had the luxury of learning while piling up mostly easy victories this season and looks to establish the best start in school history when it visits Tulane on Saturday night for an American Athletic Conference battle. The Bulls can top the 2007 team that began the season 6-0 with a victory after knocking off Cincinnati 33-3 last week to win their school-record 11th straight contest.

“We can improve, we can get much better. We haven’t arrived yet,” USF coach Charlie Strong told reporters. “I think sometimes that’s what we think and we have to get rid of that attitude. … We don’t know how far we can go. We haven’t put together a complete game on offense, on defense and in the kicking game.” Senior quarterback Quinton Flowers has still led the Bulls to at least 30 points in 23 straight games, which is tied with Oregon (2011-12) for the longest such streak since 1936. Tulane might not be able to end that impressive run Saturday, but the Green Wave’s triple-option offense will give South Florida a new challenge in the first meeting between the two teams. Senior running back Dontrell Hilliard leads Tulane with 607 yards and eight TDs on the ground, averaging 125.8 over the last four games, and the Green Wave are 3-0 at home.

TV: 7 p.m. ET, ESPN2. LINE: USF -11.5

ABOUT SOUTH FLORIDA (6-0, 3-0 AAC): The Bulls lead the nation with 15 interceptions and have held two AAC opponents to single digits in the last three games, but gave up 606 yards against Navy’s triple-option attack in 2016. USF can match most teams in the nation offensively, averaging 492 yards and 42.8 points, with Flowers throwing for 1,118 yards and 10 TDs while rushing for another 475 and six scores. Flowers is one of three seniors who have rushed for at least 400 yards as running backs Darius Tice (493) and D’Ernest Johnson (485) have combined for 12 touchdowns on the ground.

ABOUT TULANE (3-3, 1-1): The Green Wave put up 62 points in their last AAC game against Tulsa, but struggled last week in a 23-10 loss at Florida International as they possessed the ball for 13:40 less than the Golden Panthers. Junior quarterback Jonathan Banks runs the show, accumulating 267 yards rushing with three touchdowns and 502 through the air with four scoring strikes, while senior Sherman Badie (244) and sophomore Darius Bradwell (223) have also been productive on the ground. Junior wide receiver Terren Encalade is four receiving yards from 1,000 in his career (218 this season on 15 catches).

EXTRA POINTS

1. Hilliard needs 53 rushing yards to move past Bill Banker (2,516) for fifth on the school’s all-time list.

2. South Florida LB Auggie Sanchez moved into second on the school’s all-time list in tackles (342) and is 25 behind Kawika Mitchell.

3. Green Wave senior CB Parry Nickerson, who has three interceptions this season, is expected to make his 40th straight start.

PREDICTION: South Florida 42, Tulane 24