Building A Career: A NCAA Football Coaching Dynasty

[kblu54]

Week 15 (Championship Week) Results

MAC Championship

#24 Toledo 52, Bowling Green 28

SEC Championship

#13 LSU 31, #5 Tennessee 17

Big 12 Championship

#3 Texas 20, #4 Nebraska 10

ACC Championship

#11 Clemson 25, #20 Georgia Tech 24

Conference USA Championship

UCF 24, Rice 21

New Top 25 Coaches Poll
Note: Previous Rank in ()

1 (1) Ohio State (33)
2 (2) USC (28)
3 (3) Texas
4 (6) UCLA
5 (7) Florida State
6 (8) Boise State
7 (4) Nebraska
8 (9) Auburn
9 (10) Oklahoma State
10 (13) LSU
11 (11) Clemson
12 (5) Tennessee
13 (12) TCU
14 (14) Texas A&M
15 (15) West Virginia
16 (16) Florida
17 (17) UNLV
18 (18) Miami
19 (19) Michigan State
20 (21) Arkansas
21 (22) Missouri
22 (23) Oklahoma
23 (24) Toledo
24 (20) Georgia Tech
25 (25) Texas Tech

National Players of the Week

Offense:
Jonathan Peterson, RB, Toledo
17 att. - 100 yds, 4 TD; 2 rec. - 47 yds

Defense:
Jason Venson, FS, UCF
2 tkls, 2 INT, TD

FIU earns bid to Motor City Bowl, will take on #23 Toledo
FIU Football News

FIU's 2nd season under head coach Kyle Borland has been a wild but successful ride, ending in a nice 9-3 record and a Sun Belt championship. The ride continues into the postseason, as the Golden Panthers have earned a bid to play in the Motor City Bowl at Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan. The Panthers will have a challenge to get win #10 though, as they will face a surging Toledo Rockets team that just won the MAC Championship and is ranked #23 in the nation.

"We are unbelievably excited to to be playing Toledo in a bowl," Coach Borland said in a recent press conference. "They are a team very similar to us. They have a strong offense that can run and pass well and a middle-of-the-pack defense. It should be a great game."

The Rockets are 12-1 on the year and are led on offense by RB Jonathan Peterson and QB Josh Tellis. Peterson racked up nearly 1600 yards rushing this season and has scored 24 total TDs, while Tellis has been awesome in the passing game, throwing for over 3100 yards and 36 TDs, compared to only 10 interceptions. FIU and Toledo have defenses that are nearly identical in rank, so the teams are pretty evenly matched.

As for the rest of the bowl matchups, they are as follows. #1 Ohio State and #2 USC will battle it out for the BCS National Championship.

Non-BCS Bowl Game Matchups

Poinsettia Bowl: Penn State (6-6) vs. #17 UNLV (10-2)

New Orleans Bowl: Wake Forest (4-8) vs. Syracuse (5-7)

Papajohns.com Bowl: Pittsburgh (7-5) vs. Miami (OH) (6-6)

New Mexico Bowl: Colorado State (7-5) vs. Middle Tennessee State (6-6)

Las Vegas Bowl: Oregon (6-6) vs. #13 TCU (11-1)

Hawaii Bowl: UAB (7-5) vs. Louisiana Tech (6-6)

Motor City Bowl: FIU (9-3) vs. #23 Toledo (12-1)

Holiday Bowl: #9 Oklahoma State (10-2) vs. Cal (8-4)

Champs Sports Bowl: #19 Michigan State (9-3) vs. North Carolina (8-4)

Texas Bowl: Rice (9-4) vs. #21 Missouri (9-3)

Emerald Bowl: #14 Texas A&M (9-3) vs. Navy (9-3)

Meineke Car Care Bowl: Virginia Tech (8-4) vs. Cincinnati (8-4)

Autozone Liberty Bowl: Western Michigan (6-6) vs. UCF (8-5)

Alamo Bowl: #22 Oklahoma (8-4) vs. Minnesota (9-3)

MPC Computers Bowl: #25 Texas Tech (8-4) vs. Wisconsin (7-5)

PetroSun Independence Bowl: Maryland (6-6) vs. South Carolina (5-7)

Armed Forces Bowl: Arizona State (7-5) vs. Utah (8-4)

Brut Sun Bowl: Arizona (8-4) vs. Rutgers (9-3)

Music City Bowl: #16 Florida (9-3) vs. Iowa State (6-6)

Chick-fil-A Bowl: Vanderbilt (6-6) vs. #24 Georgia Tech (10-3)

Insight Bowl: Nevada (7-5) vs. Iowa (8-4)

Outback Bowl: Alabama (7-5) vs. Michigan (8-4)

AT&T Cotton Bowl: #20 Arkansas (9-3) vs. #7 Nebraska (11-2)

Capital One Bowl: #12 Tennessee (11-2) vs. Illinois (8-4)

Gator Bowl: Louisville (9-3) vs. #18 Miami (8-4)

International Bowl: Bowling Green (10-3) vs. Connecticut (6-6)

GMAC Bowl: Temple (6-6) vs. UTEP (7-5)

BCS Bowl Game Matchups

Rose Bowl: #4 UCLA (11-1) vs. #5 Florida State (11-1)

Sugar Bowl: #10 LSU (10-3) vs. #6 Boise State (11-1)

Fiesta Bowl: #3 Texas (12-1) vs. #8 Auburn (9-3)

Orange Bowl: #11 Clemson (12-1) vs. #15 West Virginia (11-1)

BCS National Championship: #2 USC (12-0) vs. #1 Ohio State (12-0)

[kblu54]

FIU stars fall short on awards but make All-American teams
FIU Football News

After a great 9-3 season, FIU was honored in several ways following the end of the regular season. 3 FIU players and head coach Kyle Borland finished as semifinalists for national awards, but 3 Golden Panther players were named to the All-American team.

Seniors on defense were the players nominated for player awards. MLB Lorenzo Townes was named a semifinalist for the Bednarik Award, DE Adrian Mason was a semifinalist for the Lombardi Award and CB Julian Anderson was a semifinalist for the Thorpe Award following some great individual seasons. Coach Borland was a semifinalist for the Coach of the Year award.

The actual national award winners are as follows.

National Award Winners

Maxwell Award: Rocky Hinds, QB, UNLV
Bednarik Award: Nick Crum, OLB, Texas Tech
Davey O'Brien Award: Rocky Hinds, QB, UNLV
Walker Award: C.J. Spiller, RB, Clemson
Best WR: Ian Siegel, WR, Texas
Best TE: Michael Van, TE, UCLA
Best OL: Kevin Harrison, C, Ohio State
Rimington Trophy: Kevin Harrison, C, Ohio State
Lombardi Award: Eric Johnson, DE, Texas
Best LB: Nick Crum, OLB, Texas Tech
Thorpe Award: John Jones, SS, USC
Lou Groza Award: Matt Szymanski, K, Texas A&M
Best P: Craig Benjamin, P, Nebraska
Best RET: Jamaal Charles, RB/KR, Texas
Best Coach: Toledo Coach

Despite not winning any national awards, FIU still pulled in 3 All-American nominations. DE Mason and senior SS Joel Razzano were named to the All-American 1st Team, while CB J. Anderson was name to the All-American 2nd Team. Mason led the nation in sacks with 18, while Razzano led the nation in interceptions with 8, taking two of them back for TDs. Anderson was also a ball hawk, nabbing 5 picks and returning 2 for TDs.

The rest of the All-American squads are as follows.

1st Team All-American (Offense)

QB: Rocky Hinds, UNLV
RB: Chris Wells, Ohio State
RB: C.J. Spiller, Clemson
WR: Ian Siegel, Texas
WR: Darrell Turner, UCLA
TE: Michael Van, UCLA
C: Kevin Harrison, Ohio State
OG: Sergio Render, Virginia Tech
OG: Greg Isdaner, West Virginia
OT: Aleksey Lanis, UCLA
OT: Michael Peterson, UCLA

1st Team All-American (Defense)

DE: Eric Johnson, Texas
DE: Adrian Mason, FIU
DT: Antonio Dixon, Miami
DT: Eric McFadden, South Carolina
MLB: Brent Chance, Miami (OH)
OLB: Nick Crum, Texas Tech
OLB: Terence Thomas, Cincinnati
CB: Rocky Collier, Bowling Green
CB: Jared Clark, Texas
FS: Steve Rogers, Louisville
SS: Joel Razzano, FIU

1st Team All-American (Special Teams)

K: Jermaine Workman, Nebraska
P: Craig Benjamin, Nebraska
RET: Jamaal Charles, RB, Texas

2nd Team All-American (Offense)

QB: Joel Stevenson, LSU
RB: Jonathan Peterson, Toledo
RB: Arian Foster, Tennessee
WR: Brent Casteel, Utah
WR: Keith Ryan, UTEP
TE: Robby Thomas, USC
C: Brian Carroll, Texas
OG: Barrett McBride, Ohio State
OG: Rashaud Armstrong, Texas
OT: Jared Gaither, Maryland
OT: Adam Ulatoski, Texas

2nd Team All-American (Defense)

DE: Tyson Jackson, LSU
DE: Julius Cox, USC
DT: Donald Allen, Clemson
DT: Todd Denlinger, Ohio State
MLB: Jon Terrell, Georgia Tech
OLB: Cedrick Barrow, Arizona
OLB: Erin Henderson, Maryland
CB: Julian Anderson, FIU
CB: Jon Roberson, Nebraska
FS: Ryan Holbert, TCU
SS: John Jones, USC

2nd Team All-American (Special Teams)

K: Andrew Thomas, Maryland
P: John McDonald, USC
RET: Antwain Parker, WR, Bowling Green

Freshman Team All-American (Offense)

QB: Austin James, Michigan
RB: Chris Armstrong, Wisconsin
RB: Dane Williams, Oklahoma State
WR: Adam Beard, Virginia Tech
WR: Sergio Burley, Cincinnati
TE: Brandon Scott, Louisville
C: Conrad Hampton, Boise State
OG: Jeremy Harrington, Clemson
OG: Matthew Winston, Georgia Tech
OT: Andrew Nugent, Oklahoma State
OT: Michael Peterson, Tennessee

Freshman Team All-American (Defense)

DE: Jim Moody, Idaho
DE: Deon Davis, UCLA
DT: Demetrius Harrell, Arkansas
DT: Donnie McGill, USC
MLB: Tyler Miller, Nebraska
OLB: Brian Mason, Nebraska
OLB: Caleb Ellerbee, USC
CB: Trevor Young, Michigan
CB: Jim Stephens, Hawaii
FS: Bo Bell, Arkansas
SS: Steven Brown, TCU

Freshman Team All-American (Special Teams)

K: Andrew Thomas, Maryland
P: Stephen Young, Toledo
RET: Nathan Bonner, WR, Air Force

HEISMAN TROPHY RESULTS

*Rocky Hinds, QB, UNLV* --- 1749 pts (382 1st-place votes)

Joel Stevenson, QB, LSU --- 1355 pts (202)
Bobby Reid, QB, Oklahoma State --- 1065 pts (139)
Colt McCoy, QB, Texas --- 465 pts (53)
Darrell Turner, WR, UCLA --- 40 pts (4)

[kblu54]

FIU dominates All-Sun Belt squads with 15 nominations
FIU Football News

To the winner goes the spoils.

Sun Belt champions FIU added more good news to their impressive 2nd year under head coach Kyle Borland, as 15 Golden Panther players were named to the All-Sun Belt squads. Four Panthers were named to an offensive team, 8 were named to a defensive squad and 3 others were nominated to the special teams honors.

The nominations are highlighted by Sun Belt Player of the Year senior RB Casey Simmons, who led the Sun Belt in rushing with over 1600 yards and scored 23 total TDs. Simmons was named to the All-Sun Belt 1st Team, and is joined on offense by junior WR Donald Anderson (1st Team), TE Mike Hamilton (1st Team) and surprisingly, injured G Fred McNeal (2nd Team).

Leading the defensive nominations are All-Americans DE Adrian Mason, SS Joel Razzano and CB Julian Anderson. Those three seniors were named to the 1st Team squad and are joined by other defense nominations MLB Lorenzo Townes (1st Team), sophomore CB Corey Sutton (1st Team), defensive captain DT Dwayne Nicholson (2nd Team), senior CB Andre Paul (2nd Team) and junior FS Mark Owens (2nd Team).

For the special teams units, junior K Terence Woodard earned his 2nd straight 1st Team nomination after another near-perfect year as placekicker. Returners WR Shannon Ernst (1st Team) and senior RB Justin Peterson (2nd Team) took both returner nominations.

The remainding spots on the All-Sun Belt teams are as follows.

All-Sun Belt 1st Team (Offense)

QB: Bill Tyler, Middle Tennessee State
RB: Casey Simmons, FIU
RB: Reggie Arnold, Arkansas State
WR: Donald Anderson, FIU
WR: Steve Lemon, Middle Tennessee State
TE: Mike Hamilton, FIU
C: Jonathan Smith, North Texas
OG: Jason Thurman, Middle Tennessee State
OG: J.J. Lowe, Arkansas State
OT: Brian Pugh, Middle Tennessee State
OT: Dan Campanella, Florida Atlantic

All-Sun Belt 1st Team (Defense)

DE: Adrian Mason, FIU
DE: Junior Sparks, Middle Tennessee State
DT: Erik Zeppuhar, UL-Lafayette
DT: Cedric Graves, Troy
MLB: Lorenzo Townes, FIU
OLB: Willie Evans, UL-Lafayette
OLB: Terence Jones, Middle Tennessee State
CB: Julian Anderson, FIU
CB: Corey Sutton, FIU
FS: Anthony Gaines, UL-Monroe
SS: Joel Razzano, FIU

All-Sun Belt 1st Team (Special Teams)

K: Terence Woodard, FIU
P: Ricardo White, Troy
RET: Shannon Ernst, RB, FIU

All-Sun Belt 2nd Team (Offense)

QB: Ken Coleman, North Texas
RB: Jordan Winston, Middle Tennessee State
RB: Aaron Lundy, North Texas
WR: Matthew Schroeder, Middle Tennessee State
WR: Albert Meyer, UL-Lafayette
TE: Micah Williams, Middle Tennessee State
C: Lance Ross, Middle Tennessee State
OG: Fred McNeal, FIU
OG: Grant Fagan, North Texas
OT: Joe Kane, Arkansas State
OT: Victor Mackey, Middle Tennessee State

All-Sun Belt 2nd Team (Defense)

DE: Chip McKeon, Arkansas State
DE: Dustin Davis, Troy
DT: Michael Snyder, North Texas
DT: Dwayne Nicholson, FIU
MLB: Alex Bernard, Troy
OLB: Deon Evans, Arkansas State
OLB: Corey Schmidt, Florida Atlantic
CB: Andre Paul, FIU
CB: Ryan Chavis, Florida Atlantic
FS: Mark Owens, FIU
SS: Richard Gilliam, Troy

All-Sun Belt 2nd Team (Special Teams)

K: Xavier Alston, North Texas
P: Jordan Anderson, UL-Monroe
RET: Justin Peterson, RB, FIU

The Golden Panthers prepare for their upcoming Motor City Bowl game with #23 Toledo.

[kblu54]

Ferguson's mistakes prove costly as #23 Toledo upends FIU
FIU Football News

Sometimes the ball doesn't roll your way. Sometimes you accidentally throw it to the other team.

Junior QB Will Ferguson, filling in for the still-injured DeMarcus Jean, threw three costly interceptions, including two that were returned for TDs, that ended up being the difference in #23 Toledo's 47-34 win over the Golden Panthers.

Ferguson, who didn't have to do much down the stretch thanks to the solid running of senior RB Casey Simmons and a great few weeks of defense, was forced to pass more often than asked and did not perform well. Ferguson finished 10-of-20 for only 139 yards, threw 2 TD passes but his 3 interceptions ended up being the difference in the game.

After Toledo scored on their 2nd interception return to put themselves up 34-13 late in the 3rd quarter, FIU head coach Kyle Borland pulled Ferguson in favor of 3rd-stringer Ian Wright. Wright, who filled in for the final 2 games of the year last season due to injuries, almost led FIU back with 2 TD passes. But Toledo's 2nd Team All-American RB Jonathan Peterson put the game out of reach with a 25-yard TD scamper late in the 4th, his 2nd TD run of the day.

"It was another tough game," Coach Borland said after the loss. "I thought we came prepared for this team but apparently it wasn't enough. Their defense came out fired up and shut down out offense for three quarters, and by the time we started to move the ball and score it was too late. Hats off to Toledo, they played a good game. We had a good season, but we really wanted to go out with a win."

FIU finishes 9-4 overall. The Panthers spotted the Rockets 20 1st-quarter points, but Ferguson's 2 TD passes cut the lead to 20-13. Unfortunately, Toledo responded with 3 consecutive scores to put themselves up 40-13.

Senior RB Casey Simmons, playing in his final FIU game along with 14 other seniors, went out with a bang. Simmons totaled 185 yards rushing on 37 carries, including a 61-yard TD run early in the 4th quarter to spark FIU's comeback attempt. Simmons also took a screen pass 40 yards to the house to account for 2 TDs on the day.

Junior WRs Jason Morgan and Donald Anderson had solid games in the loss. Morgan caught both of Wright's TD passes and finished with 120 yards, while Anderson finished with 50 yards receiving and caught Ferguson's 1st TD pass.

As for the FIU defense, the senior All-Americans were non-factors in the loss, even though as a unit the defense held the All-American Peterson to only 64 yards rushing, but they allowed him to score 2 TDs. Junior OLB Roderick Anderson had a huge day for the Panther D, collecting 12 tackles (4 for a loss), 1 sack, an interception and blocked 2 extra points.

For Toledo, QB Josh Tellis threw for 298 yards and accounted for 3 TDs (1 rushing), while WR J.J. Thorne had 123 receiving yards and a TD catch.

FIU will now look to regroup and prepare for the offseason. They have big shoes to fill with the graduating seniors, and they will look to the recruiting period to get those completed.

Box Score

TOL 20 0 14 13 - 47
FIU 0 6 7 21 - 34

1st --- TOL --- Miller 60 pass from Tellis (Edwards kick)
1st --- TOL --- McKnight 22 INT return (kick blocked)
1st --- TOL --- Tellis 1 run (Edwards kick)
2nd --- FIU --- D. Anderson 11 pass from Ferguson (conversion failed)
3rd --- FIU --- Simmons 40 pass from Ferguson (Woodard kick)
3rd --- TOL --- Peterson 1 run (Edwards kick)
3rd --- TOL --- Williams 78 INT return (Edwards kick)
4th --- TOL --- Thorne 33 pass from Tellis (kick blocked)
4th --- FIU --- Simmons 61 run (Woodard kick)
4th --- FIU --- Morgan 66 pass from Wright (Woodard kick)
4th --- TOL --- Peterson 25 run (Edwards kick)
4th --- FIU --- Morgan 12 pass from Wright (Woodard kick)

Team Stats

1st Downs: TOL --- 14 ... FIU --- 18
Total Offense: TOL --- 335 ... FIU --- 380
Rushing: TOL --- 28-37 ... FIU --- 43-151
Passing (C-A-I): TOL --- 14-28-2 ... FIU --- 13-25-3
Pass Yards: TOL --- 298 ... FIU --- 229
Sacked: TOL --- 3 ... FIU --- 4
3rd Down Conversions: TOL --- 2-10 ... FIU --- 4-14
Turnovers: TOL --- 2 ... FIU --- 4

Individual Stats

TOLEDO

Josh Tellis, QB --- 14 - 28 - 298 yds, 2 TD, 2 INT; 9 att. - (-27) yds, TD

Jonathan Peterson, RB --- 19 att. - 64 yds, 2 TD

J.J. Thorne, WR --- 5 rec. - 123 yds, TD
Terrance Miller, WR --- 3 rec. - 97 yds, TD

Bo Castillo, OLB --- 10 tkls (6 TFL), 2 sacks
Jack Gause, CB --- 6 tkls, INT
John Williams, CB --- 5 tkls (1 TFL), 78-yd INT ret TD
Doug McKnight, MLB --- 5 tkls, 22-yd INT ret TD

FIU

Ferguson, QB --- 10 - 20 - 139 yds, 2 TD, 3 INT; 3 att. - (-25) yds
Wright, QB --- 3 - 5 - 90 yds, 2 TD; 1 att. - (-10) yds

Simmons, RB --- 37 att. - 185 yds, TD; 1 rec. - 40 yds, TD
Peterson, RB --- 1 att. - 1 yd
Harris, FB --- 1 att. - 0 yds

Morgan, WR --- 5 rec. - 120 yds, 2 TD
D. Anderson, WR --- 4 rec. - 50 yds, TD

R. Anderson, OLB --- 12 tkls (4 TFL), 1 sack, INT, 2 blks
Alexander, CB --- 5 tkls (2 TFL), 1 sack

[kblu54]

Bowl Week 1 Results

Poinsettia Bowl --- Penn State 34, #17 UNLV 14
New Orleans Bowl --- Wake Forest 31, Syracuse 28

Bowl Week 2 Results

Papajohns.com Bowl --- Pittsburgh 34, Miami (OH) 27
New Mexico Bowl --- Colorado State 36, Middle Tennessee State 14
Las Vegas Bowl --- #13 TCU 34, Oregon 7
Hawaii Bowl --- UAB 31, Louisiana Tech 6
Motor City Bowl --- #23 Toledo 47, FIU 34
Holiday Bowl --- #9 Oklahoma State 38, Cal 14
Champs Sports Bowl --- #19 Michigan State 56, North Carolina 49
Texas Bowl --- #21 Missouri 48, Rice 14
Emerald Bowl --- #14 Texas A&M 41, Navy 29

Bowl Week 3 Results

Meineke Car Care Bowl --- Cincinnati 28, Virginia Tech 7
Autozone Liberty Bowl --- UCF 52, Western Michigan 35
Alamo Bowl --- #22 Oklahoma 27, Minnesota 22
MPC Computers Bowl --- Wisconsin 45, #25 Texas Tech 35
PetroSun Independence Bowl --- South Carolina 29, Maryland 17
Armed Forces Bowl --- Arizona State 45, Utah 17
Brut Sun Bowl --- Arizona 26, Rutgers 21
Music City Bowl --- #16 Florida 32, Iowa State 7
Chick-fil-a Bowl --- #24 Georgia Tech 25, Vanderbilt 21
Insight Bowl --- Nevada 34, Iowa 27
Outback Bowl --- Michigan 27, Alabama 12
AT&T Cotton Bowl --- #20 Arkansas 31, #7 Nebraska 28
Capital One Bowl --- #12 Tennessee 38, Illinois 15
Gator Bowl --- Louisville 36, #18 Miami 26

Bowl Week 4 Results

International Bowl --- Connecticut 35, Bowling Green 21
GMAC Bowl --- UTEP 38, Temple 28

BCS Bowl Results

Rose Bowl --- #4 UCLA 31, #5 Florida State 13

Sugar Bowl --- #10 LSU 59, #6 Boise State 17

Fiesta Bowl --- #3 Texas 45, #8 Auburn 33

Orange Bowl --- #11 Clemson 34, #15 West Virginia 31

BCS NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP --- #1 Ohio State 42, #2 USC 39

[kblu54]

FIU Individual Stats

Passing

DeMarcus Jean --- 131 - 217 - 2253 yds, 21 TD, 15 INT
Will Ferguson --- 63 - 121 - 967 yds, 9 TD, 10 INT
Casey Simmons --- 1 - 1 - 5 yds, 1 TD

Rushing

Casey Simmons --- 347 att. - 1643 yds, 16 TD
Justin Peterson --- 46 att. - 247 yds, 3 TD
Patrick Harris --- 14 att. - 42 yds
Ray Brooks --- 1 att. - 0 yds
Will Ferguson --- 17 att. - (-114) yds
DeMarcus Jean --- 66 att. - (-150) yds, 2 TD

Receiving

Donald Anderson --- 68 rec. - 1229 yds, 5 TD
Jason Morgan --- 37 rec. - 601 yds, 7 TD
Casey Simmons --- 23 rec. - 425 yds, 7 TD
Shannon Ernst --- 19 rec. - 305 yds, 3 TD
Mike Hamilton --- 17 rec. - 166 yds, 5 TD
Chris Hendrix --- 16 rec. - 258 yds, 2 TD
J.J. Smith --- 12 rec. - 228 yds, 2 TD
Patrick Harris --- 1 rec. - 2 yds
Justin Peterson --- 1 rec. - 4 yds
Eddie Poole --- 1 rec. - 7 yds

Defense

Corey Sutton, CB --- 56 tkls (5 TFL), 1 sack, 4 INT, 3 passes def., 1 FF
Joel Razzano, SS --- 55 tkls (7 TFL), 8 INT, 4 passes def., 2 FR, 4 blks, 2 TD
Lorenzo Townes, MLB --- 51 tkls (29 TFL), 15 sacks, 3 passes def., 1 FF, 2 FR, TD
Julian Anderson, CB --- 51 tkls (4 TFL), 5 INT, 9 passes def., 3 FR, 2 TD
Mark Owens, FS --- 46 tkls (2 TFL), 2 INT, 5 passes def.
Roderick Anderson, OLB --- 40 tkls (9 TFL), 6 sacks, 1 INT, 3 passes def., 1 FF, 2 FR, 5 blks
Andre Paul, CB --- 40 tkls (2 TFL), 5 INT, 6 passes def., 1 FF
Adrian Mason, DE --- 35 tkls (25 TFL), 18 sacks, 2 INT, 2 passes def., 3 FF
Alfred Moore, OLB --- 33 tkls (3 TFL), 1 sack, 1 INT, 2 passes def., 3 FF
Dwyane Nicholson, DT --- 33 tkls (12 TFL), 5 sacks, 1 pass def., 1 FF
Tyree Alexander, CB --- 31 tkls (7 TFL), 3 sacks, 3 INT
Mark Hill, DE --- 27 tkls (14 TFL), 8 sacks, 1 FF, 1 blk
Derek Valentine, DT --- 15 tkls (10 TFL)
Jeff Allen, SS --- 13 tkls
Lonnie Houston, MLB --- 11 tkls
Tyrone Kellner, OLB --- 6 tkls
Kyle Sanders, DT --- 4 tkls (1 TFL), 1 sack, 1 FR
Gabe Moore, DT --- 2 tkls (1 TFL), 1 sack
Mike Goins, DE --- 1 tkl (1 TFL), 1 sack
Will Gray, MLB --- 1 tkl
Harvey Diggs, DE --- 1 tkl
Eric Doyle, FS --- 1 tkl, 1 FR

Kicking

Terence Woodard --- 8/9 FG, 58/58 XP, 82 total pts

Punting

Austin Carroll --- 35 punts - 1535 yds (43.8 avg), 4 in 20

Kickoff Returns

Shannon Ernst --- 33 ret. - 778 yds (23.6 avg), 1 TD
Justin Peterson --- 37 ret. - 816 yds (22.1 avg) 1 TD

Punt Returns

Shannon Ernst --- 19 ret. - 197 yds (10.4 avg), 1 TD

FIU Team Stats & Rankings

Offense

Total YPG: 407.0 (26th in NCAA)
Pass YPG: 268.7 (18th)
Rush YPG: 138.3 (59th)
PPG: 37.1 (14th)
Pass TD: 31 (30th)
Rush TD: 21 (29th)
1st Downs: 227 (25th)
Redzone Scoring %: 75% (61st)
3rd Down Conversions: 51% (12th)
Turnover Differential: -1 (64th)

Defense

Total YPG: 369.4 (63rd)
Pass YPG: 251.4 (94th)
Rush YPG: 117.9 (31st)
Pts Against: 33.3 (97th)
Sacks: 60 (1st)
Interceptions: 32 (2nd)
Fumble Recoveries: 11 (15th)
Redzone Scoring %: 66% (13th)

[kblu54]

FIU loses one to transfer, will welcome 9 new Panthers
FIU Football News

Following an incredible 9-3 season and a Sun Belt championship, FIU head coach Kyle Borland was looking ahead to the recruits to come flocking. Instead, Coach Borland left the recruiting period a little confused.

"We assumed the interest across the board who see a major increase," Coach Borland said. "Instead, all we saw was a lot of players jump ship and join other rivals. It was a very disappointing recruiting year."

The poor recruiting results were amplified by a transfer, as highly-ranked FB Tyrone Cannon decided to leave FIU after only redshirting for one season. Cannon was unable to be reached for comment. The freshman redshirt out of Kennesaw, Georgia will return home and play for the Georgia Bulldogs.

Coach Borland needed to replace 15 graduated seniors but came up short, pulling in only 9 recruits total. Most of his recruits came from the in-season recruiting period, as FIU just couldn't seem to make a mark yet despite their awesome season.

"I guess we're just going to have to take what we got and turn it into another Sun Belt championship," Coach Borland said. "Recruits can't turn down a back-to-back championship program, can they?"

Needing to replace a lot of big names on defense, Coach Borland did pull in a big number of defensive players, led by SS Tim Sykes and MLB Nathan Jenkins.

Sykes, out of Texas, is a 3-star prospect ranked #23 at his position. Sykes brings that hard-hitting mentality to replace graduated All-American Joel Razzano, and is expected to start as a freshman. Joining him at the SS spot is fellow recruit Matt White out of North Carolina. White, ranked #33 overall as a 2-star player, brings some speed to the SS position and is expected to play in dime and quarter situations.

Jenkins is a 3-star backer out of Florida and is expected to be the long-term replacement for graduated senior Lorenzo Townes. Jenkins has some big shoes to fill, as Townes collected 30 sacks the past two seasons in FIU's blitzing defense, but he will get some help from a slew of returning senior linebackers.

Rounding out the much-needed secondary recruits are CBs Chad Smith and Melvin Johnson, both out of Florida. Smith, a 3-star corner ranked #28, and Johnson, also a 3-star ranked #26, are expected to fill the nickel and dime corner spots right away. FIU switches to nickel and dime packages often, as seen by the stellar play of CBs Julian Anderson and Corey Sutton the past few years as the #3 corner. Smith and Johnson should get some great experience right away in FIU's depleted defensive backfield.

Rounding out the defensive recruits is DT Matt McMillan. McMillan, a 3-star lineman out of Florida ranked #62, brings some decent size and strength to the FIU defensive line. McMillan will help replace graduated senior Dwayne Nicholson, but is not expected to start.

Switching over to offense, TE John Tate joins the Golden Panthers to backup Chris Hendrix and Mike Smith. Tate, a 2 star out of Florida ranked #75, will redshirt this season, but he will provide depth to a position that combined for 33 catches and 7 TDs last season.

The enigmas that will join the Panthers are athletes Tony Pollock and Jason Hicks. Pollock, a 2-star out of Florida ranked #43, and Hicks, a 2-star out of Tennessee ranked #67, are expected to take up offensive positions for FIU but it is unclear which ones. Expect both of them to redshirt regardless.

Tim Sykes, SS --- *** --- Texas (#23)
Nathan Jenkins, MLB --- *** --- Florida (#34)
Melvin Johnson, CB --- *** --- Florida (#26)
Chad Smith, CB --- *** --- Florida (#28)
Matt McMillan, DT --- *** --- Florida (#62)
John Tate, TE --- ** --- Florida (#75)
Matt White, SS --- ** --- North Carolina (#33)
Tony Pollock, ATH --- ** --- Florida (#43)
Jason Hicks, ATH --- ** --- Tennessee (#67)

As for the rest of the country, Pac-10 powers USC and UCLA claimed the top 2 spots in the recruiting classes, following by up-and-coming Big 12 contender Oklahoma State. The defending national champs Ohio State fall at #4, followed by Tennessee to round out the top 5. FIU finishes better than last season but is still ranked in the triple digits at #108.

Top 10 Recruiting Classes

1) USC
2) UCLA
3) Oklahoma State
4) Ohio State
5) Tennessee
6) Michigan
7) Texas A&M
8) Arkansas
9) Texas
10) Clemson
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108) FIU

Can the Golden Panthers repeat and build up a solid recruiting base for next season, when they have to replace 23 seniors?

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Season Preview: Panthers looking for another shot at Sun Belt title
FIU Football News

FIU head coach Kyle Borland enjoyed some enormous success in his 2nd season at the helm as the Golden Panthers went 9-3, including 6-1 in Sun Belt play, to win the Sun Belt title and earn a trip to the Motor City Bowl. The bowl game was FIU's 1st bowl bid in program history, and despite a tough 47-34 loss to Toledo, the Golden Panthers are back and hungrier than ever to capture Sun Belt title #2. Let's take a look at the players for year 3 under Coach Borland.

OFFENSE (Returning Starters = 7)

Quarterbacks (Grade = C+)

Junior redshirt DeMarcus Jean returns to head up the best offense in the Sun Belt and one that nearly cracked the top 25 in total yards per game nationally. Jean was having a solid year before a broken jaw injury knocked him out for the final 5 games of the season, including the bowl game. Regardless, Jean showed great improvement from his freshman year and threw for 2253 yards and 21 TDs in only 8 games. Jean and his awesome collection of receivers are expected to dominate through the air again. Helping Jean out will be freshman redshirt Lamont Whitworth. Whitworth brings a lot of speed to the FIU quarterback position and should play in running/option situations. Senior redshirt Will Ferguson (967 yds, 9 TDs last season) will play the "passer" role if Jean suffers an injury.

Tailbacks (Grade = C+)

FIU has a big gap at running back, where they lost Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Year Casey Simmons to graduation. Simmons ran for 1643 yards and scored 23 total TDs for the Panthers, and his absence will be felt immediately. Filling in for him will be returning senior Ray Brooks. Brooks ran for 419 yards as a sophomore but only got 1 carry last season. Brooks is a speedster and is expected to get the bulk of the carries this season. Playing backup to him will be a battle between juniors Josh Chance and Alonzo Fisher, neither of whom got any playing time last season. Recruited athlete Tony Pollock was converted into a tailback but will redshirt this season.

Fullbacks (Grade = C+)

The fullback spot took a big hit when freshman redshirt Tyrone Cannon decided to transfer back home, but senior redshirt Patrick Harris returns. Harris hasn't gotten many carries the past two seasons (59 yards, TD as a sophomore, 42 yards last season) but still remains a nice blocking force out of the backfield.

Wide Receivers (Grade = B-)

The most talented and experienced group on the team fields 6 play-making seniors and a good group of understudies. 1st Team All-Sun Belt selection senior offensive captain Donald Anderson returns after another 1000-yard receiving year. Anderson led FIU with 1229 yards on 68 catches and also nabbed 5 TD catches. Anderson is expected to get some competition though, as fellow senior Jason Morgan emerged as a go-to threat down the stretch last season. Morgan, usually a slot guy, finished second on the team with 601 yards on 37 catches but tied for the team lead with 7 TD catches. Morgan returns to the slot again this year and should steal some catches from Anderson as FIU will probably look more to the passing game than usual. Seniors Shannon Ernst (305 yds, 3 TD) and J.J. Smith (228 yds, 2 TD) also return to help out. Ernst was a 1st Team All-Sun Belt pick for his returning, and he will continue to return punts and kicks this season as well.

Tight Ends (Grade = C)

The tight ends lost a big piece in graduating senior and 1st Team All-Sun Belt selection Mike Hamilton, but they return a very good crew of young ends. Sophomore Chris Hendrix takes over the starting spot after a great season as a freshman, where Hendrix emerged as a go-to guy with 258 yards and 2 TDs. Hendrix is expected to be a main target for Jean, and will be helped out by freshman redshirt Mike Smith. Smith is more of a blocking end but will see some action in the passing game. Freshman John Tate will redshirt.

Tackles (Grade = B-)

The tackles lost graduating offensive captain Kellen Marcus but got surprisingly better as a group. Senior Steven White returns and will be joined by counterpart senior redshirt David Griffin. Griffin saw some major action last year at the guard spot when Fred McNeal went down with injury, but he returns to his natural spot at tackle. Junior Jose Mackey and sophomore Jason Alvarez will provide backup.

Guards (Grade = C)

Senior Arthur Cwik and junior Fred McNeal return to man the interior of the offensive line. McNeal missed some extensive time due to injury but still managed to earn 2nd Team All-Sun Belt honors. Freshman redshirts Scott Capers and Stewart Faulk will backup.

Centers (Grade = C+)

Graduating senior Dan Massey will be sorely missed, but he is replaced by junior redshirt Eric Hall. Hall and junior redshirt Tim Owens battled long and hard this preseason but Hall emerged as the starter.

DEFENSE (Returning Starters = 4)

Defensive Ends (Grade = C+)

The defensive ends took a huge hit with the loss of graduating seniors Mark Hill and 1st Team All-American Adrian Mason. Mason and his nation-leading 18 sacks will be the biggest thing missed as FIU will look to maintain the same pressure out of new guys. Highly-touted sophomore redshirt Harvey Diggs takes over Hill's spot while junior redshirt Mike Goins will replace Mason. Both saw limited action last season but Goins did pick up a sack. Freshman redshirt Brad Gutierrez and sophomore redshirt Pat Smith will backup.

Defensive Tackles (Grade = C+)

The interior defensive line lost a big piece with graduating defensive captain and 2nd Team All-Sun Belt pick Dwayne Nicholson, but junior redshirt Derek Valentine returns after collecting 10 tackles for a loss last year. Valentine will be joined by sophomore redshirt Gabe Moore, who beat out fellow sophomore redshirt Zack Whitworth for the starting job. Freshman Matt McMillan will backup as well.

Outside Linebackers (Grade = B-)

One of only 2 position groups on defense that return everybody brings some much-needed experience and talent to a depleted defensive unit. Seniors defensive captain Roderick Anderson and Alfred Moore come back to boost a very experienced linebacking corps. Anderson was a top defender for FIU, collecting 40 tackles (9 for a loss), 6 sacks, an interception and was a force on special teams with 5 blocked kicks. Moore saw more action last season than as a sophomore and responded well, picking up 33 tackles and forcing 3 fumbles. Senior Tyrone Kellner and sophomore redshirt Courtney Miller will backup.

Middle Linebackers (Grade = C)

The interior backers lost graduating senior Lorenzo Townes and his 15 sacks, but they return the others and pick up a big talented freshman in Nathan Jenkins. Jenkins will start as a true freshman, but he will be mentored by seniors Lonnie Houston (11 tackles) and Will Gray.

Cornerbacks (Grade = C)

The cornerbacks took a big hit this offseason with the loss of graduating seniors Andre Paul and Julian Anderson, who combined for 91 tackles, 10 interceptions and 2 defensive TDs last year. They won't get replaced by nobodies though, as junior Corey Sutton and senior Tyree Alexander step up to their starting jobs. Sutton actually led FIU in tackles last year with 56 and also recorded 4 interceptions, while Alexander played a bigger role than as a sophomore with 31 tackles (7 for a loss), 3 sacks and 3 interceptions. Filling in the nickel and dime spots will be untested freshmen Chad Smith and Melvin Johnson though, as FIU will look to overcome their inexperience in the secondary.

Free Safeties (Grade = C+)

Senior redshirt Mark Owens returns again after a solid year last season, in which he collected 46 tackles and 2 interceptions. Owens is expected to play a much bigger role for FIU due the inexperienced players in the secondary. Sophomore redshirt Eric Doyle will backup.

Strong Safeties (Grade = C)

The position group that took arguably the biggest hit had to be the strong safeties, as they lost everybody due to graduation. Senior and 1st Team All-American Joel Razzano (55 tackles, 8 interceptions, 4 blocked kicks, 2 TD) was one of the biggest defensive forces for the Panthers, but he will now be replaced by two true freshman in Tim Sykes and Matt White. Sykes, a hard-hitting type, will start and play in most of the defensive situations, while the quicker and faster White will likely play in dime and quarter packages.

SPECIAL TEAMS

Kicker (Grade = C+)

Senior redshirt Terence Woodard returns again after nailing 8-of-9 field goal attempts and all 58 of his extra point attempts to account for 82 total points. With the offense starting to find their way under Coach Borland, expect Woodard to get more extra point opportunities.

Punter (Grade = B-)

Senior Austin Carroll returns to the punting duties for the Panthers after recording a 43.8 average on 35 punts last season. Carroll was needed less due the improvement of the FIU offense, but his is still dependable when they needed him. Carroll's biggest punt of the season helped lift FIU to victory over their rivals in Florida Atlantic. Carroll dropped a punt down to the 3-yard line late in that contest, and after a great defensive stand by the FIU defense, the Panthers were able to put the game away with a 1-yard touchdown on the following drive.

OVERALL

Offense will be the name of the game for FIU, as the experience and talent running the spread option should overcome the inexperience on the defensive side of the ball. FIU finished 26th in the nation on offense but 63rd on defense and still managed to finish 9-3. The Panthers are hoping to finish the same or better thanks to improvement from the offense and should contend for the Sun Belt title again.

Predicted Finish: 9-3 overall (6-1 Sun Belt)