College Sports NCAA

Hurricanes Open Season Against Charleston Southern

First game for Hurricanes at Dolphin Stadium

Freshman QB Jacory Harris starts for suspended QB Robert Marve

MIAMI (CBS4.com) ― Miami Hurricanes football kicked off the 2008 season on Thursday night against the Buccaneers from Charleston State. While the game looks like a glorified scrimmage for the Hurricanes, part of the focus will be on the new home for the Hurricanes, Dolphin Stadium.

The move to Dolphin Stadium from the Orange Bowl has split the fan base of the Canes. Many fans feel like the Orange Bowl, which has since been torn down, carried a certain personality with it that helped build the team's mystique during the glory days from the 1980's to 2001.

But, the new stadium brings with it technology the Orange Bowl couldn't match. Instant replay will be available to Canes fans for the first time. A new 3,000 square-foot locker room, luxury suites, and plenty of parking are just some of the amenities Dolphin Stadium offers.

The game itself is not without controversy as well.

7 Hurricanes were suspended by Hurricanes head coach Randy Shannon for Thursday's game against Charleston Southern. One of those players, redshirt freshman quarterback Robert Marve, was expected to be the starting quarterback for the team.

Marve was suspended for an incident involving his girlfriend in October of 2007, but was not informed of his suspension until Monday that he would be sitting out the first game. This has led to rumors that Marve was not at all happy about the long delay before being informed of the suspension by Shannon.

In Marve's place, true freshman Jacory Harris will take the first snap of the season, and the first for the Hurricanes at Dolphin Stadium. Harris was a highly sought after recruit from Miami Northwestern High School. Harris has never taken a snap in a college football game. The last freshman to start at quarterback for the Canes was Bernie Kosar in 1983.

The Hurricanes are in rebuilding mode after a dismal 2007 season. The last game for the Canes at the Orange Bowl served as a model for what would happen to the stadium, as the Virginia Cavaliers demolished the Canes.

For his part, Shannon hit the recruiting trail and struck gold several times including CB Brandon Harris and LB Arthur Brown. The acquisition of Brown also helped land a verbal commitment from his brother, who is a top recruit in the 2008 class.

While the team that takes the field on Thursday may not resemble the one that ended the season in 2007, they can probably put it in cruise control from the opening kickoff.

Charleston Southern is a Football Championship Series (formerly Div. I-AA) school that finished with a 5-6 record in 2007. Some will point to the Appalachian State upset of Michigan to open the 2007 season as reason for concern with playing a FCS school. However, App. State was a defending national champion in the FCS when they took out a Michigan team that could not defend against the spread offense, due to the speed of App. State's players.

Miami has never had to worry about speed and will again field a team with enough athletes to match up well with most teams across the country. The only question is can enough of the freshman get quality experience as the Canes begin to focus on their opponent for week two, the Florida Gators.

(© MMVIII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)

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