Richard Gibson/ Staff Writer
FIU is set to host the Florida Atlantic Owls in the annual Shula Bowl on Friday, November 13th at 7 p.m.
Both schools have faced COVID-19 in the form of game cancellations and postponements. The Owls have maintained a 3-1 record, however, the Panthers haven’t won a game yet this season.
However, this rivalry between the Panthers and Owls is known for producing great games. Regardless of the records, the rivalry has seen either overtime thrillers, complete blowouts, or tickets to a bowl game for either school.
The rivalry between both schools is personal for the players, as the two universities are less than an hour apart. A lot of the players who attend either school have played together in high school, or are still friends. The same can be said for the students and fans who attend the games.
The rivalry in football is known as the Shula Bowl. It’s named after the legendary head coach of the Miami Dolphins, Don Shula. The head coaches for both schools in 2002 had ties to Shula – Howard Schnellenberger for the Owls, and Don Strock for the Panthers.
When FIU joined college football in 2002, they were an independent team, meaning they weren’t tied to any conference. The Owls, who joined college football just a year earlier, were also independent. Both schools agreed to play on November 23rd, 2002. FAU won that game, and a new tradition was created.
The two schools have played the Shula Bowl every year in college football since 2002. Even when both schools moved to the Sun Belt Conference in 2005, and then to Conference-USA in 2013, there was always one week in the season schedule for the rivalry.
The Shula Bowl has been played 18 times in total. The Owls have won 13 of those meetings, including the last three matchups. The last time FIU won a Shula Bowl was in 2016.
Last year, the Owls won by a score of 37-7 in Boca Raton. For FIU, quarterback James Morgan threw for 192 passing yards. Running back Napoleon Maxwell rushed for 95 yards and scored the only touchdown of the game for the Panthers.
FAU finished the 2019 season with a 9-3 record. They reached the Conference-USA championship game, defeating the Alabama-Birmingham Blazers. They then won the Boca Raton Bowl, beating the Southern-Methodist Ponies by a score of 52-28.
This season, the Owls have a 3-1 record. They’ve beaten the Charlotte 49ers, Texas-San Antonio Roadrunners, and Western Kentucky Hilltoppers, but lost to the Marshall Thundering Herd. Five different games for FAU have been either canceled or postponed due to COVID-19, including games against the Minnesota Golden Gophers and Stony Brook Seawolves.
In 2020, the Panthers have lost to the Liberty Flames, Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders, and Jacksonville State Gamecocks. Their game last week against the Texas-El Paso Miners was canceled due to a spike in COVID cases and injuries. Their October games against Charlotte and Marshall have been moved to December.
A big change for FAU this season was the departure of Lane Kiffin. He was the Owl’s head coach for three years but left in 2019 to coach the Ole Miss Rebels. Now, FAU’s head coach is Willie Taggart, who was fired from the Florida State Seminoles last year.
For the Owls, Quarterback Nick Tronti has thrown for 490 yards and three touchdowns but has been sacked 10 times due to a newer offensive line. Their offense relies more on their rushing game to score, earning five rushing touchdowns. Running back Malcolm Davidson is their leading rusher with 195 yards. FAU’s defense has also had mixed results, recording 14 sacks but only two interceptions.
Whoever FIU starts as their quarterback needs to make an impact. Their offense as a whole needs to improve their play calling, red zone efficiency and converting third downs, and it starts with who’s throwing the ball.
The Panther’s defense also needs to improve. They need to hold FAU on third downs, prevent the long ball, and pressure Tronti all game. The Panthers have struggled in all of these categories, but if they succeed, they have a good chance to turn their season around.
If you can’t make it to the Ricardo Silva Stadium, you can still watch it on CBS Sports Network. After the game, FIU will head to Bowling Green, Kentucky, to take on the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers on Saturday, November 21st at 2 p.m.
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