It began as a joke between Florida Atlantic coach Lane Kiffin and Miami hip hop icon Luther Campbell. Earlier this year, Kiffin moved an FAU spring practice to Fort Lauderdale’s Carter Park. Campbell attended and ribbed Kiffin about the park’s location.
“I was joking with him, ‘Hey man, this is Carter Park,’ ” Campbell said. “ ‘This ain’t the hood. You need to come to the hood.’ ”
Campbell extended an invitation to Kiffin for his Owls to practice at Liberty City’s Hadley Park. On Saturday afternoon, FAU shuttled four buses 44 miles south and held a preseason practice at Hadley Park, within shouting distance of high school powerhouses like Miami Central, Miami Northwestern and Booker T.