Stampeding Through the 2025 USF Football Roster: #80 WR Joshua Porter
Today we meet a breakout performer from the 2024 season.
It is time to discuss the most critical USF athletics news of the month: the next member of our season countdown series.
PLAYER: Joshua Porter
POSITION: Wide receiver
YEAR: Sophomore
HEIGHT/WEIGHT: 6'0", 188 lbs.
HOW DID HE GET HERE? Porter went to high school just an hour or so from USF, at Fort Meade High School. The recruiting services rated him as a low three-star prospect, but his recruitment heated up when he secured a Colorado offer in early 2023. USF came in with an offer in June, and Porter committed soon after, over the likes of the Buffs, Temple, WKU, and Coastal Carolina. He made it official on early signing day and enrolled early.
HOW WAS HIS 2024 SEASON? About as good as it gets for an incoming freshman. Porter received great reviews from Alex Golesh in fall practice and carved out a decent chunk of playing time right off the jump as the backup slot receiver behind Sean Atkins. The Bulls schemed up ways to get the ball into Porter’s hands throughout the season, frequently using him on screens and other quick passes (per PFF, he was targeted the second-most of any USF receiver on passes behind the line of scrimmage, behind only Atkins). His numbers were modest at first, but as the season went on and the Bulls’ offense started humming a little bit, Porter was able to turn some of those short gains into highlight plays. Check out his impressive 30-yard catch and run in the Hawaii Bowl for a good example of his speed and shiftiness.
He finished the season with 25 catches for 230 yards, both fourth among Bulls receivers. He fittingly earned the fourth-most snaps at receiver (behind Atkins, Michael Brown-Stephens, and Keshaun Singleton), and ran about 68% of his plays from the slot. He played in all thirteen games, making one start against UAB.
WHAT SHOULD WE EXPECT IN 2025? Sean Atkins was the unquestioned star of the USF receiving corps for the past two seasons, finishing as the Bulls’ single-season and career leader in receiving yards. His departure leaves a huge hole in the offense, and at the slot receiver position in particular. Naturally, all eyes would be on the player who occupied the #2 spot on the depth chart behind Atkins in 2024.
That’s not to say that Porter is going to be counted on to be a like-for-like replacement for Atkins, or even that he’ll be the first name on the depth chart at the slot in the fall. USF brought in a trio of transfer receivers in the offseason, and the most intriguing of the bunch, Tennessee transfer Chas Nimrod, has played mostly in the slot in his college career. USF also returns a pair of young receivers in Brandon Winton and JeyQuan Smith who have played some slot receiver in the past, and have had impressive springs. But the Bulls are going to need someone - probably multiple someones - to step up at receiver to fill the void that Atkins left behind, and Porter is undoubtedly going to get a shot at doing so. One way or another, he should be a big part of the Bulls’ receiving corps in 2025.