MIAMI (September 1, 2021) – The FIU football team starts the 2021 season at FIU Stadium when the Panthers battle Long Island on Thursday, September 2, at 7 p.m.

The season opener can be streamed on ESPN3 where "Voice of the Panthers" AJ Ricketts will have the call with former NFL linebacker Cameron Lynch. Patrick Murray and Corey Brooks can be heard on the Panthers' new radio home, Univision's WQBA 1140 AM.

For this week's complete game notes, click here.

SCOUTING THE SHARKS
Long Island comes to the Sunshine State following a 2-2 record in 2020. The team was picked to finish sixth in the Northeastern Conference preseason poll. During just their second season at the FCS level in 2020, the Sharks averaged 19.8 points per game with 144.0 rushing yards per game and 136.8 passing yards per outing. Defensively, the team allowed 392.2 yards per contest.

LIU senior Joe Amalfitano was named to the 2021 Preseason All-NEC Team. Amalfitano started all four contests on the defensive side of the ball in LIU's shortened 2020 season. He posted six tackles on the year and defended four passes while notching three official quarterback hurries.

ONES TO WATCH
D'vonte Price, Richard Dames, Davon Strickland, Lyndell Hudson Jr. and Tommy Heatherly were named to the Conference USA football coaches' preseason watch list in 2021.

Price headlines the Panther squad heading into the 2021 season. The running back was names to the C-USA watch list, the Doak Walker watch list, and the Senior Bowl watch list prior to the season.In his first full season as the primary tailback, Price rushed for 581 yards on 85 carries with four touchdowns along the way to being named to 2020 Conference USA honorable mention team. Price's 6.84 yards per carry topped the league and ranked 11th-best in the country in 2020.

Serving as FIU's punter and kick-off specialist in 2020, Heatherly averaged a program-record 44.38 yards per punt and booted 10 that went 50-plus yards. Heatherly's kicking expertise landed him on the 2020 Conference USA honorable mention team. The punter was not only named to the 2021 Ray Guy Watch List, but he was also the only non-P5 punter to be named a Ray Guy Semifinalist in 2020.

Strickland enters the 2021 season on the C-USA and Rotary Lombardi Watch List after leading the Panthers with four tackles for loss in 2020. The defensive lineman was also named to the 2020 Conference USA honorable mention team for his efforts in 2020.

Hudson was one of two Panther offensive lineman to start all five games during the 2020 season. The Brooksville, Florida, native helped pave the way for five 100-yard rushing performances last season.

Dames had a team-leading 35 tackles during the 2020 season. The safety averaged 5.2 solo tackles per game, which ranked 33rd nationally and second in the conference to earn a Conference USA honorable mention team nod.
 
SOCIAL MEDIA
Get all the latest information on the team by following @FIU.Football on Instagram and @FIUFootball on Twitter and Facebook. General athletic news can also be found at @FIUSports on Facebook and @FIUAthletics on Twitter and Instagram.