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RALEIGH -- If you can lose 11 starters to injury in a month, you can allow two safeties in three minutes. Truth be told, this theory has never been tested with great regularity, but we now know it is possible.

That -- along with many other things -- happened to the N.C. State Wolfpack on a rainy Saturday night in Carter-Finley Stadium when the 13th-ranked South Florida Bulls amassed 354 yards of first-half offense in a 41-10 victory. A team with a Ford (running back Mike Ford) and a Taurus (wide receiver Taurus Johnson) was way too much for a club with its chief vehicles in the repair shop.

"I thought we had momentum coming into this game," State linebacker Robbie Leonard said, referring to last week's overtime win over East Carolina. "But they're a very good football team. I don't think we were prepared enough for them."

The Bulls run a spread offense with four -- and sometimes five -- wide receivers and an intuitive quarterback, Matt Grothe, who exploits the open spaces with swift legs and an accurate arm. Pack coach Tom O'Brien said his team played hard from start to finish but simply couldn't bridge the talent gap.

"We have seen a spread, five-wide offense, but not with the speed and skill that they have," he said.

Until a few inconsequential gains in the final minutes, State's rushing total was below zero. It was depressed -- but only slightly -- by two long snaps that failed to produce their desired results. One would have been right on target for Manute Bol, the 7-foot-7 retired basketball player who is not the Pack punter. Bradley Pierson, who is the Pack punter, had no option but to fall on the ball in the end zone, resulting in two points for the Bulls and an official loss of 27 yards in rushing. The second unfortunate snap slipped through the rain-slicked hands of quarterback Harrison Beck, who expressed his frustration by chasing the ball down and kicking it into the vicinity of the trombone section to avoid the possibility of a USF touchdown. That one went as a 17-yard loss and gave USF a 28-3 lead.

The standard for safeties in an NCAA game is three, attained most recently in 2005.

This time, N.C. State had to go without QB Russell Wilson (shoulder) and linebacker Nate Irving (ankle), arguably its most important players, but neither of those personnel losses explains the five false-start penalties the offense incurred, for example.

The Pack also declined to blame the elements.

"It's tough when (the rain) gets under your eyelids," wide receiver T.J. Graham said. "Other than that, you're expected to make the plays."

Beck suffered through a generally unpleasant evening. He completed only 9 of 32 passes, threw three interceptions and was knocked on his back side repeatedly.

The Bulls didn't need the help. Grothe operates the zone-read offense with remarkable efficiency, and he put this one away by completing 15 of 18 attempts in the first half. That effort, when combined with the steady rain, dispersed the red and white sea quickly.

"That quarterback, he's something special," O'Brien said. "He's the real deal."

Contact Rob Daniels at 373-7028 or rob.daniels@news-record.com

South Florida 14 17 0 10 -- 41

N.C. State 3 7 0 0 -- 10

USF--J.Taylor 1 run (Bonani kick)

NCSt--FG Czajkowski 32

USF--Mitchell 9 pass from Grothe (Bonani kick)

USF--Ford 1 run (Bonani kick)

USF--Safety

USF--Safety

USF--FG Bonani 20

NCSt--Brown 1 run (Czajkowski kick)

USF--FG Bonani 32, :00.

USF--FG Bonani 44

USF--Plancher 10 run (Bonani kick)

A--57,583.

South Florida N.C. State

First downs 29 13

Rushes-yards 48-245 27-26

Passing 275 239

Comp-Att-Int 21-33-0 9-32-3

Return Yards 29 0

Punts-Avg. 3-42.7 2-41.5

Fumbles-Lost 1-0 3-0

Penalties-Yards 10-100 11-69

Time of Possession 35:47 24:13

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING--South Florida, Grothe 9-68, Ford 11-64, Plancher 7-40, B.Williams 9-40, Kelly 3-16, Daniels 2-10, J.Taylor 5-3, Cannon 1-2, Gregory 1-2. N.C. State, Brown 9-39, Eugene 8-27, Underwood 4-17, Graham 1-(minus 1), Beck 3-(minus 24), Team 2-(minus 32).

PASSING--South Florida, Grothe 20-29-0-259, Gregory 1-3-0-16, Daniels 0-1-0-0. N.C. State, Beck 9-32-3-239.

RECEIVING--South Florida, Hester 7-68, Mitchell 4-41, M.Edwards 3-77, Hill 2-27, Ford 2-22, Love 2-17, Johnson 1-23. N.C. State, Spencer 3-94, Brown 2-85, Howard 1-41, Bryan 1-7, Smith 1-7, Graham 1-5.