Alex Golesh's roller-coaster journey: From Russian immigrant to USF's College Football Playoff dreams

It's been a roller-coaster ride for South Florida Bulls football coach Alex Golesh, who was born in Moscow, Russia and immigrated to Brooklyn, New York at a very tender age. Golesh has been the talk of the town, especially in college football coaching circles, after USF started off the 2025 season with back-to-back upset wins against higher-ranked teams.

The Bulls opened the season with a dominant 34-7 victory over No. 25 Boise State followed with another fine victory over No. 15 Florida. USF's, which is now ranked No. 18, next game is against another top-ranked opponent No. 5 Miami this Saturday in Miami Gardens, where the Bulls are once again big underdogs.

Born in Moscow in 1984, Golesh left Russia back in 1991 with his family at the age of 7 when the Soviet Union was collapsing. His family all had $400 when they landed in the US after leaving everything else behind. Golesh, who has held nine coaching jobs over the past 20 years, now has a great and realistic opportunity to achieve something big for South Florida - winning a conference championship and competing for a College Football Playoff berth.



For his successive wins, Golesh was also named the Dodd Trophy National Coach of the Week by The Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Foundation and Peach Bowl, Inc. The award is meant for a football coach who led his team to a significant victory during the previous week.


USF hired Golesh in December 2022 as football coach, following his successful two-year stint as offensive coordinator at Tennessee. Golesh instantly made a name for himself, becoming the first coach to lead USF to bowl game victories in each of their first two seasons (2023 & 2024). Prior to Golesh's hiring, USF’s previous 12 seasons consisted of eight losing seasons, including five years with three wins or fewer.

"It was a cool, cool moment for us at the end," Golesh told On3.com after the historic win in Gainesville. "I’m just so happy for our kids, man. I’m so happy for our players. The ones that bought in. The ones that have stayed the course. The ones that have bought into this process driven program. I want them to enjoy it. I want them to reap the benefit of that."

"Leaving Russia and coming to America, I’m more proud of what it has represented for my family, the ability to live the American dream," On3.com quoted Golesh as saying after he was hired in 2023. "I mean, I coach American football, right? I have a great life. I make a great living and my family is secure. Like, man, what a crazy, crazy story."