The Miami Touchdown Club also joins forces with FIU
For years there were only a couple of places in town to catch a good football game – things just got better for South Florida football fans.

When FIU’s football team hits the field on Aug. 29 a new football tradition will begin for its fans and the community and helping to start that tradition, the Miami Touchdown Club has joined forces with FIU.

The Miami Touchdown Club, which was formed in 1959, was created for the purpose of supporting and promoting football in Miami-Dade County. In addition to supporting high schools, universities and professional football programs, the club manages “Operation Scholarship,” a football scouting database, which lists South Florida athletes and their statistics. The lists are shared with universities and colleges throughout the United States to help these
student-athletes get selected for football programs throughout the nation.

“The Miami Touchdown Club is a fixture in the South Florida community,” said FIU Athletic Director Rick Mello. “We are very happy to be working closely with them as we get set to start our inaugural football season.”

FIU and Bethune-Cookman annouce plans
for 2002 South Florida Classic

FIU and Bethune-Cookman College will meet each other on the gridiron for the first time at the South Florida Classic football game, scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 21 at Ft. Lauderdale’s Lockhart Stadium.

“With the excitement surrounding the first-year program at FIU and the tradition of Bethune-Cookman, not just in football but also with its outstanding marching band, we’re looking for our first sellout at Lockhart Stadium,” said B-CC Athletic Director Lynn Thompson. “The spirit of competition between these two schools is something I am proud of. We’ve played against one another in so many of our other sports, playing in football is a natural.”

Bethune-Cookman has hosted the South Florida Classic, on and off, since 1989. On Sept. 9, 2000, the Wildcats beat Norfolk State, 24-6, in front of 15,847 fans — the largest attendance ever for the event.
B-CC was scheduled to play Savannah State at Lockhart Stadium last Sept. 15, but the game was canceled after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

“This concept of the South Florida Classic is exciting to us,” said FIU Athletic Director Rick Mello. “The Broward County/Ft. Lauderdale area is important to FIU. This is a great opportunity to showcase our new program and it was one of the reasons we started football, for events just like this.”

Marching to the beat

FIU’s La Banda del Sol is still looking for talented musicians to be part of the inaugural marching band.

Marching band audition dates are:
Saturday, May 11 10 a.m. – 12 p.m.
Saturday, June 8 10 a.m. – 12 p.m.
Saturday, July 13 10 a.m. – 12 p.m.

For more information on the band
or for audition information, email
Greg Martin at gmartin@fiu.edu, call
305-348-1137 or visit www.fiu.edu/~music/gpb/.

StrockTalk Live
Don’t forget to join Don Strock for the StrockTalk radio show. StrockTalk airs every Wednesday, 6-8 p.m., on WAXY 790 AM. You can also watch the show live at Shula’s Steak 2 at Don Shula’s Hotel on Main Street in Miami Lakes. For more information, call 305-820-8047.

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STROCKTALK Editor Todd M.-P. Simmons, simmonst@fiu.edu * Associate Editor Aileen Izquierdo, izquierd@fiu.edu * Design FIU Publications * For comments or questions call 305-348-2232