The South Florida Bulls are set to open the Brian Hartline era against FIU on Saturday, September 5th at 7 PM at Raymond James Stadium. The opener may appear to be a normal game one warm up, but it’s actually more dangerous than it appears on paper.
FIU finished 2025 7-6 in Willie Simmons’ inaugural season, reaching its first bowl game since 2019. The Panthers will look to keep building on that momentum against the Bulls in 2026. Here are the items destined to make or break Hartline’s debut.
Five Keys to Victory: FIU vs. USF
1. Establish the run, own the line of scrimmage
This should be the first test of Hartline’s new identity. Offensive coordinator Tim Beck has repeatedly emphasized physicality, effort and ball security, and USF is moving toward a more balanced attack after averaging 40.5 points per game last season under the Alex Golesh, Byrum Brown tandem. The 40.5 points per game was good for 5th nationally.
FIU allowed 161.6 rushing yards per game and 4.7 yards per carry in 2025. USF must attack in the run game to stay ahead of the chains and force FIU to load the box. This will allow for opportunities to take shots down field as well.
2. Make JJ Kohl extremely uncomfortable
FIU’s biggest offensive addition is 6’7, 250 pound quarterback JJ Kohl (Appalachian State). Kohl was very efficient in 2025, completing 61.6% of his passes for 1,465 yards, 12 TDs and just two interceptions on 216 attempts. Kohl is a former Top 10 pocket passer as a recruit in the class of 2023 (112th overall) and began his college career at Iowa State.
This will be a great first challenge for the newly rebranded Bulls defensive line under DC Josh Aldridge. Aldridge’s defense will need to pressure the quarterback and push Kohl out of the pocket. The Bulls must disguise pressure with different looks and force Kohl to speed up his decision making. Getting pressure up the middle will be particularly important against a quarterback his size. Time will be the Bulls’ achilles heal.
3. Don’t let FIU establish the ground game
Similar to my first key but reversed, the Bulls must bottle up the Panthers’ ground attack. This could prove to be the most crucial defensive strategy of the game.
FIU averaged 181.6 yards per game on the ground in 2025 (4.9 yds/car) and punched in 26 rushing TDs. Willie Simmons will aim to establish the run early through physicality at the line and will lean on the run game to keep to third and manageable.
USF needs to force FIU into 3rd and long as much as possible, which will allow Aldridge to unleash the Bulls’ pass rush. If not, the Panthers could dictate the game by dominating the time of possession.
4. Keep the new offense, Van Buren out of obvious passing situations
5. Play clean, penalty free football and don’t give FIU hope
Season openers under a new coaching staff coupled with massive roster turnover can become a slippery slope. There are many dangers like incorrect reads, wrong routes, missed blocks, crossed signals, and everything else that could go wrong. USF has the opportunity to take control early at home in the final opener at Raymond James Stadium.
But turnovers, penalties, blown coverages or special teams snafus could allow FIU to hang around into the second half. It would be a sour opening for Hartline and Co. Hartline has made fundamentals, toughness and consistency major themes throughout fall camp.
Time for the players to live the black shirt mantra. Pound the rock, pressure Kohl, stop the run, protect the QB and play clean. If USF can check four of the five boxes the Bulls should begin the Hartline era victoriously.