Watch CBS News

FIU Set To Battle Mean Green Thursday Night

MIAMI (CBSMiami.com) – There's only one football team in South Florida coming off a successful postseason in 2010 and they kick off their season Thursday night.

It's been four years since the Florida International University Golden Panthers welcomed in the North Texas Mean Green to Miami. Thursday's meeting will be the first between the two teams at FIU Stadium; the previous meeting was at the Orange Bowl.

But FIU's game against the Mean Green at FIU Stadium will also be the team's first home-opener since the program started in 2002. FIU is also favored to win the game by two touchdowns after winning a share of the conference championship last season and a Papa John's Bowl victory over Toledo.

FIU is set to ride the arm of senior quarterback Wesley Carroll and utilize electric wide receiver T.Y. Hilton in a variety of ways. Still, college football is a "what have you done for me lately" monster and FIU starts the season 0-0 just like everyone else.

"We got together a long time ago and said this is our team, this is what we've got to do and this is what we want to be remembered for," Carroll told CBS4 news partner the Miami Herald. "That 2010 class left their mark; now we want to exceed that."

FIU's game against North Texas is set for 7:00 p.m. at FIU Stadium.

(TM and © Copyright 2011 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2011 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Miami Herald contributed to this report.)

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.