TAMPA, FL - Cade Fortin has finally settled in at USF. The thing is, he’s been here for over 14 months. After a tumultuous 2020 season disrupted by a pandemic, and injuries, Fortin feels he’s better than ever.

“I like to look at it as more as adversity, and something that I can overcome,” Fortin said. “It wasn’t me being emotional or all frustrated or down. I just got to put my head down and keep working.”

That has been Fortin’s attitude since his days at UNC. He signed with the Tar Heels as a highly touted recruit out of Georgia. But just before his second season, Fortin decided the fit wasn’t right, and entered the transfer portal. It gave him a chance to re-do his recruitment with perspective.

“Really take time to learn about the school, and not make any rash, emotional decisions based off of whatever it may be – facilities, the hype around some of the programs,” recalled Fortin.

In December of 2019 - just days before the early signing period - Fortin thought he had made his choice. But then he got a phone call from new USF coach Jeff Scott.

“I called his dad on a Friday morning,” said Scott. “His dad said when he went to sleep that night, he was going to wake up that morning and plan to commit to a different Power 5 team. So I talked to him about 11 o’clock that morning, I talked him out of committing. Flew up there to Atlanta, went into his house about nine o’clock at night. I knew I had one shot, really, just to be myself and to lay out our opportunity.”

“I just remember him talking about the vision he had for the program,” said Fortin, who was set to choose Vanderbilt, Syracuse or Kansas prior to the phone call from Scott. “Honestly, that was kind of the big thing that influenced me to take a deeper look at it.”

Fast-forward to his second offseason with the Bulls, and Fortin is ready to earn the starting job, and his teammates’ trust.

“Building that foundation of ‘I’m coming to work, I’m going to give my 100%’ every single day in the weight room, the meeting room, the field, wherever it may be,” said Fortin.  

Fortin’s attitude has garnered high praise from the man who jumped on a plane to bring him to Tampa.

“The improvement that he has shown from last year to this year is really incredible,” said Scott, who remembered Fortin being on Clemson’s radar for the 2018 recruiting class when he was on staff. “Just his overall processing, understanding, where to go with the football, the timing and delivery of the ball.”

Fortin has even been dubbed the early spring MVP of the QB race. But for him, its not about winning in March, it’s about winning in the fall, and taking USF football to a new level.

“We have our goals, obviously, to win a championship, to do those things. Those big goals won’t happen unless we are doing the day-to-day goals, unless we are getting once percent better every day, it’s not just going to happen overnight,” said Fortin.

It’s been a long road for Cade Fortin. Perspective has brought him to a place of confidence and comfort. After a year of darkness, Fortin hopes to shine in the light for USF.