The Making of a Legend Part II "It's Miller Time".. CFB25

[Deuce2223]

Re: The Making of a Legend Part II "It's Miller Time".. CFB25

PANTHERS WIN AND LOSE AT THE SAME TIME

Florida International Golden Panthers at East Carolina Pirates
Nov 29, 2031	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
#1 Florida International Golden Panthers ((10-1))	14	14	14	7	49
East Carolina Pirates ((4-7))	0	0	3	0	3

Team Stats Comparison
	FIU	ECU
Total Offense	464	174
Rushing Yards	193	7
Passing Yards	264	146
First Downs	16	7
Punt Return Yards	100	0
Kick Return Yards	35	64
Total Yards	599	238
Turnovers
3rd Down Conversion	10/14	1/11
4th Down Conversion	2/2
2-Point Conversion
Red Zone Touchdowns/Field Goals	4-0-100%
Penalties	7-55	4-40
Possession Time	29:13	13:47

GAME RECAP

FIU dominated on the scoreboard blowing the Pirates as the Panthers spoil ECU's "Senior Day" with a 46 point victory, but the win didn't come without a cost.

Coach Miller made a interesting call as True Freshman Kevin Pounds got the start under center for a 2nd straight game and Pounds delivered what was probably the best outing by a FIU QB since Keyone Jenkins was under center.

Pounds would finish the game 17/19 (89%) throwing for 264 yds and 4 TD's without a single INT..

The victory didn't come without a cost though, in a similar flash back to the 2028 season, FIU fan's saw their Star RB go down as Shawn Boyce is carted off the field. The Doak Walker Award favorite was is leading the nation with 172 carries for 1411 yds and 16 TD's this season and those #'s will be his final as team doctors announce its a Dislocated hip that will likely keep him out of action for the remainder of the season.

With Boyce out of action one would think the FIU ground attack might struggle but JR RB Terrance Cantwell (18 carries 59 yds) and RS FR Jesse Agasiva (11 carries 42 yds) stepped in to combine for 29 carries and 101 yds but the true hero of the day was FR QB Kevin Pounds.

Pounds not only had almost a perfect day passing but the FR QB also showed he can make plays with his feet as he carries the ball 12 times for 93 yds well adding 2 rushing scores including a 65 yd run that made even Tavon Logan proud.

With back to back games like this, one would be crazy to think that Coach Miller would go back to Derek Hawkins in the ACC Championship game right??

GAME RECAP

QB K. Pounds 17/19 (89%) 264 yds 4 TD sacked 1 time, 12 carries 93 yds 2 TD
RB T. Cantwell-18 carries 59 yds, 2 rec 4 yds 1 TD
RB J. Agasiva-11 carries 42 yds
FB K. Strong-1 carry 1 yd 1 TD
WR C. Badet-6 rec 98 yds 2 TD
WR D. Meeks-3 rec 84 yds 1 TD
WR K. Newkirk-2 rec 35 yds
TE E. Godwin-3 rec 32 yds

[Deuce2223]

Re: The Making of a Legend Part II "It's Miller Time".. CFB25

CHAMPIONSHIP WEEK

ACC

Both Miami and Virginia Tech closed out their season with Week 14 victories leaving both teams tied with FIU with a (9-1) record in ACC play.

Miami won the tie breaker with the head to head win over FIU as the Canes get top billing leaving it coming down to FIU and V.T. who didn't meet during the regular season.

FIU dominated the PF (546 vs 409) and actually also beat the Hokies in PA (211 vs 220) giving the edge to the Panthers who will now rematch the Hurricanes in the ACC Championship with a Top-4 seed on the line..

#6 (10-2) Miami vs #1 (11-1) FIU

V.T. finishes the season (10-2) and ranked #9 meaning the odds are still very high that the ACC is sending 3 teams to the CFP this season.

** Current projections have Miami winning the ACC and earning the #3 seed, well FIU falls to the #5 seed and V.T. grabbing the #10 seed.**

AMERICAN

#17 (9-3) Buffalo will take on #14 (9-3) Northwestern for the AAC title. as it sits right now both teams are on the fringe of making the playoffs as the #12 seed, so the plan is simple.. Win and keep your playoff hopes alive.. Lose and your going bowling to some remote location for a chance at win #10 this season.

BIG 12

The Big 12 currently has 3 teams in the Top-12 of the rankings as #8 (10-2) K-State will take on #11 (10-2) BYU for the title, the real winner might be #10 (9-3) TCU who instead will stay home and likely earn a At-large bid..

*Projections actually have BYU winning the game and earning the #4 seed well K-State drops to the #9 seed and TCU nabbing the #11 seed.. We will see if that holds true. If so we could see potentially 6 of the 12 teams in the playoffs coming from the ACC and Big 12 in what looks like a down year for the SEC*

BIG TEN

Like the ACC and Big 12, the real winner of these conference could be #4 (10-2) Penn State who won't be playing in the title game as #5 (11-1) Oregon will take on #3 (10-2) USC in a battle we havn't seen since their Pac-12 days..

Current projections have Oregon winning the game and securing the #2 seed well USC lands at #6 and Penn State at #7 giving the Big Ten 3 teams in as well, leaving just 3 spots left to play for.

CUSA

#4 James Madison's loss to Coastal Carolina in Week 14, killed the Dukes chances at a Top-4 seed and likely ended their playoff dreams all together.

With the loss the (11-1) Dukes drop to #15 in the rankings setting up a rematch with #7 (11-1) Kentucky.

*Current projections have the Wildcats getting revenge for their (21-14) loss earlier in the season and securing the #8 seed with the win leaving a (11-2) James Madison squad broken hearted as they settle for unknown Bowl game.

MWC

Like James Madison, #5 Wyoming saw their perfect season end with a loss to Air Force in Week 14 and with it any dreams of a Top-4 seed.

Now the #12 (11-1) Cowboys will rematch against #18 (9-3) Air Force in the Mountain West title game, making it a must win if Wyoming is going to make the playoffs.

*Projections have Wyoming getting their revenge and earning the #12 seed in a matchup with FIU

PAC-12/16

For a 3rd straight year, the Pac-12/16 Champion has zero chances of making the playoffs.

(8-4) Colorado State has secured it's 2nd title matchup in the past 3 years and will take on #20 (9-3) Washington State..

**BSU,UNLV, Louisiana, and UCF all finished 7-5 this year and 6-4 in conference play

SEC

#2 (11-1) Alabama won the Iron Bowl beating Auburn (34-10) as the Tide look to not only win their 2nd straight SEC title but also a 2nd straight Natty as well.

#16 (8-4) Texas took care of business beating TAMU in Week 14 (42-30) to keep their SEC title hopes alive but a (41-37) victory by (7-5) South Carolina over Clemson propels the Gamecock'z into the #2 spot despite both teams going 7-3 in SEC play and neither team facing each other in a head to head game.

*South Carolina lost to Alabama (38-17) in the regular season. Alabama is projected to win and claim the #1 seed in the playoffs.

SUN BELT

(9-3) Jacksonville State vs (8-4) Troy

MAC

(9-3) Ohio vs (9-3) Toledo

[xboxxerx]

Re: The Making of a Legend Part II "It's Miller Time".. CFB25

Funny, you bring up possibly being the last straw about Miller leaving Miami. I was going to go alum style and say how Miller has the record he has against Miami after Pitbull and fellow albums dropped $$$ into the school and it's football team and getting them to move to the ACC. Just thought maybe it was too far and unrelealistic. [emoji2369]

Your probably not wrong. Could this be the controversy that leads Coach Miller out of Miami? We will see.. But I have to admit I was a little shocked with how well Pounds played.. He did show off his ability to be alot like Hawk (or maybe it's just me on the sticks) cause we had alot of missed wide open WR's in the 2nd half and he got luck with a couple balls thrown straight to the Defense but they dropped the INT's.

Sent from my SM-S928U using Operation Sports mobile app

[Deuce2223]

Re: The Making of a Legend Part II "It's Miller Time".. CFB25

TURNOVERS SPELL DOOM

Florida International Golden Panthers at Miami (FL) Hurricanes
Jan 1,	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
#1 Florida International Golden Panthers ((11-1))	7	7	0	14	28
#6 Miami (FL) Hurricanes ((10-2))	7	17	7	14	45

Team Stats Comparison
	FIU	MIA
Total Offense	481	431
Rushing Yards	89	57
Passing Yards	392	366
First Downs	25	19
Punt Return Yards	11	0
Kick Return Yards	79	62
Total Yards	571	493
Turnovers	3	0
3rd Down Conversion	5/10	6/10
4th Down Conversion	1/1	0/0
2-Point Conversion	0/0	0/0
Red Zone Touchdowns/Field Goals	2-0-40%	1-1-33%
Penalties	2-16	0-0
Possession Time	19:55	20:05

Scoring Summary
FIRST QUARTER SCORING		FIU	MIA
6:38	(FIU) D. Meeks 31 yd pass from K. Pounds (PAT)	7	0
3:40	(MIA) L. Tolson 66 yd INT return (PAT)	7	7
SECOND QUARTER SCORING		FIU	MIA
6:11	(MIA) I. Gaskin 5 yd run (PAT)	7	14
1:57	(FIU) D. Meeks 6 yd pass from K. Pounds (PAT)	14	14
0:49	(MIA) D. Yancey 48 yd pass from L. Coffee (PAT)	14	21
0:00	(MIA) M. Sepulveda 21 yd FG	14	24
THIRD QUARTER SCORING		FIU	MIA
7:30	(MIA) D. Yancey 38 yd pass from L. Coffee (PAT)	14	31
FOURTH QUARTER SCORING		FIU	MIA
9:29	(FIU) D. Meeks 9 yd pass from D. Hawkins (PAT)	21	31
7:13	(FIU) D. Meeks 58 yd pass from D. Hawkins (PAT)	28	31
6:05	(MIA) G. Finneran 60 yd pass from L. Coffee (PAT)	28	38
2:52	(MIA) E. Waiters 87 yd INT return (PAT)	28	45

Florida International Golden Panthers PASSING C/A YDS TD INT K. Pounds 13/26 199 2 1 D. Hawkins 10/14 193 2 2 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD T. Cantwell 17 94 5.5 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD D. Meeks 11 207 18.8 4 K. Newkirk 6 89 14.8 C. Badet 2 31 15.5 W Abiamiri 2 29 14.5 S. Trapasso 2 36 18.0

Miami (FL) Hurricanes PASSING C/A YDS TD INT L. Coffee 21/30 366 3 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD I. Gaskin 13 69 5.3 1 R. Flowers 5 18 3.6 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD D. Yancey 7 159 22.7 2 R. Powe 6 65 10.8 G. Finneran 5 123 24.6 1 I. Gaskin 2 6 3.0 R. Flowers 1 13 13.0 DEFENSE TACK SACK INT TD E Waiters 12 .05 1 1 L. Tolson 6 1 1

GAME RECAP

Could this be the end of a era at FIU for Coach Matt Miller.. For the first time since his 1st season, Miller was unable to capture a Conference Championship as FIU falls to Miami leaving Coach Miller 1-6 lifetime against the Canes.. To make matters worse Miller hasn't exactly won the recruiting battle against them either...

With a lifetime record of (89-16) and with 3 CUSA Championships, 2 ACC Championships and 2 National Championships on his resume, one would think any school in the nation would want this young coach who has proven he can be a program builder, who has led the Panthers to 6 straight playoff appearances.. Miller still has 1 year remaining on a 5-year extension he signed in 2028 after guiding the Panthers to their first National Championship in just his 3rd season at the school.

Coach Miller made the call that pretty much everyone wanted going with True Freshman QB Kevin Pounds under center with SO Derek Hawkins on the sideline, but was it the right call?

FIU opened up the scoring with a Jet Sweep pass to Dom Meeks and the Cincinnati transfer did the rest taking it 31 yds for the score. (7-0)

The Panther D then help Miami to a punt as it looked like maybe the Panthers could jump out to a early 2 score lead but Pounds is picked off SR CB Lionel Tolson (85) who takes it back 66 yds for the "Pick 6" INT to tie the game (7-7).

Miami would open up the 2nd Quarter scoring taking the lead (14-7) as JR RB Isaac Gaskin (92) takes it in from 5 yds out. FIU would tie the game though with just under 2 minutes to play as Pound finds Meeks for his 2nd TD of the day to make it (14-14)..

The Hurricanes were not done though as SO QB Legend Coffee (85) hits SO WR Dillion Yancey on a 48 yd bomb with 49 seconds to play in the half as Miami retakes the lead (21-14). A quick 3 and out give the Canes the ball back and only a touchdown saving tackle by FS Anthony Cookus kept Miami from a 2 touchdown lead at the half as Miami settles for a 21 yd FG as time expires (24-14).

FIU opened up the 2nd half with the ball, but Pound struggles throwing 3 straight incomplete pass's as FIU is forced to punt and Coffee and Yancey make the Panthers pay as the duo hooks up for TD #2 as Miami extends their lead to (31-14)..

Pound still in at QB would continue to struggle against the Hurricane rush just 1 week after having a career high 92 yds on the ground against ECU, Pound is sacked 3 times as FIU again is forced to punt..

Still down (31-14) at the start of the 4th Quarter, Coach Miller makes a change inserting Derek Hawkins at QB and the move looked solid as Hawkins finds Meeks for the Hat trick with a 9 yd score to cut the lead to (31-21).. Then after a huge defensive stop by the Panthers, Hawkins and Meeks hook up again this time on a 58 yd strike over the middle as FIU cuts the lead to (31-28) with still over 7 minutes to play in the game.

Miami would answer though as Coffee finds JR WR Geoff Finneran (89) on a 60 yd bomb to extend the lead back to (38-28) with 6 minutes to play.

The Hurricanes then would force a big decision from Miller with Panthers facing a 4th and 2 at the 48, Miller leads the offense on the field as Hawkins hits Newkirk for the 1st down.. Hawkins continued to play well, as he completes 3 more pass's to set up a 1st and Goal, but after back to back runs for no gain by Cantwell, Hawkins is forced to throw for the score and JR MLB Eric Waiters is there for the INT.. But to make matters worse, Waiters takes it back 87 yds to the house for a "Pick 6" return as Miami extends their lead to (45-28) with 2:52 to play.

Still armed with all 3 timeouts, Coach Miller knew they needed a quick score if they had any chance for a comeback.. They got the matchup they wanted on the outside with Newkirk sprinting down the sideline, but Tolson leaps up and tips the ball away from Newkirk and into the open arms of SR SS Jamie Shoate who comes out of nowhere for the game sealing INT...

With the loss, FIU's #1 seed is gone and with it maybe their coach as Miller is left to wonder just what happened..

[Deuce2223]

Re: The Making of a Legend Part II "It's Miller Time".. CFB25

PLAYOFFS

With Championship Week in the Books we get a look at this year's Final 12...

With FIU's loss and Alabama's win the Defending Champs jump to the #1 seed with their (59-31) win over South Carolina in the SEC Championship game.

We had a error in our reporting.. Earlier it was announced that USC and Oregon would be playing for the Big Ten Championship, but it was announced this week there was a error in the tie breakers and it was indeed Penn State playing the Ducks for the title as USC is left out and the Nittany Lions made the most of it by defeating the Ducks (31-7) to secure the #2 seed.

With Miami's 45-28 win over FIU, the Hurricanes jump to #4 in the final rankings and secure the #3 seed in the playoffs..

K-State secured the Big 12 title with a (51-17) win over BYU and with it the #4 seed in the playoffs securing a 1st Round Bye.

That left USC who finished #3 in the standings are the error as the #5 seed.

With a (27-25) win over Air Force in the Mountain West Championship, Wyoming secured the #12 seed as the Cowboys are headed to the playoffs for the first time in school history.

With the loss FIU dropped from #1 to #5 in the final rankings and with are given the #6 seed in the playoffs as they will play in the 1st Round for just the 2nd time in 6 trips. The Panthers will face a familiar opponent as they will take on #11 (12-1) James Madison who secured a CUSA Championship with a (30-27) win over Kentucky..

With the loss (11-2) Kentucky drops to #9 in the rankings as they secure the #9 seed in the playoffs.

The Wildcats will play (11-2) Oregon as the Ducks drop from #5 to 8 after the loss to PSU..

That left #7 (10-2) Virginia Tech and #10 (9-3) TCU to grab the final spots as the #7/#10 seed matchup.

#17 (10-3) Buffalo is first out. The Bulls won the American Conference Championship with a (37-10) win over #14 Northwestern but they moved up only 2 spots to #15 in the final rankings as (8-4) Notre Dame finished #13 and Big 12 runner up (10-3) BYU landed at #14.

Here is a look at the entire seeding

#12 (12-1) Wyoming vs #5 (10-2) USC.. Winner will take on #4 (11-2) K-State

#9 (11-2) Kentucky vs #8 (11-2) Oregon. Winner will take on #1 (12-1) Alabama

#11 (12-1) James Madison vs #5 (11-2) FIU. Winner will take on #3 (11-2) Miami

#10 (9-3) TCU vs #7 (10-2) Virginia Tech.. Winner will take on #2 (11-2) Penn State.

BOYCE CLAIMS DOAK WALKER

Despite getting hurt and missing the rest of the season JR RB Shawn Boyce claims the Doak Walker Award (Best RB) as he finishes with a nation high 1411 yds and 16 TD's. It now makes 4 straight year's a Panther has finished the regular season as the nation leader in rushing. Boyce also finished #10 in the voting for the National POY Award and still received enough votes to finish #2 in the Heisman losing to SR WR Alex Sawyer (Alabama) who also won the National POY and "Best WR" award..

Sawyer had 73 rec for 1225 yds with 19 TD's through the air and added 119 yds and 2 scores on the ground.


RUMORS ARE HEATING UP

Reports are Coach Matt Miller had a contract on table that would make him one of the Top-5 highest paid coaches in football. We are being told that Ohio State coming off a (6-6) season is prepared to give Coach Miller a 5 year contract. The offer is said to contain a base salary of 3 million but with potential media rights and services as well as Apparel and Brand Exposure, the deal is worth over 10.5 million per season.

Coach Miller

"If you had asked me 10 years ago if I ever thought I would have a chance to be the Head Coach of the Ohio State Buckeyes i would've laughed.. Even after guiding FIU to 2 National Championships, it's still unreal that schools like Michigan, USC, Washington and Ohio State see me as the guy they want leading their school"

[xboxxerx]

Re: The Making of a Legend Part II "It's Miller Time".. CFB25

Ohio St. as a possible location? Man. Let's go Coach Miller!!!!


Sent from my SM-S928U using Operation Sports mobile app

[Deuce2223]

Re: The Making of a Legend Part II "It's Miller Time".. CFB25

Ohio St. as a possible location? Man. Let's go Coach Miller!!!!


Sent from my SM-S928U using Operation Sports mobile app

So funny story.. Earlier in the week I simmed ahead to see if I would get any offers.. Again it was mostly stupid DC offers (my coach has a offensive background) but I had 2 offers Michigan and UTSA.. Just thought it was funny cause that was your school of choice for Miller.. But yeah this time around, I have reloaded like 10 times and I keep getting DC at FSU, DC at LSU, OC at Boise State OC at Florida and HC at "The Ohio State University".. I am still 50/50 on what I want to do.. Part of me loves FIU and I could honestly just see myself staying here for my whole career, but then there is part of me that is like Ohio State could be fun.. They got a 5* QB I recruited who is going into his Junior year.. They got a decent RB and a couple solid WR's but their 0-Line sucks (4 of the 5 starters are graduating) and they don't have that great of a Defense.. They are coming off a (6-6) season and the the Big Ten is tough. Oregon, USC, Penn State, Notre Dame, Wisconsin, Michigan plus Washington was Top-10 to start the year. so it would be a battle not only to get them back among the nation's best but even to start winning Big Ten Titles but I have a feeling the expectations are high.. They have only been to the playoffs one time in my 7 years of playing.

[xboxxerx]

Re: The Making of a Legend Part II "It's Miller Time".. CFB25

It's funny on the UTSA offer. Considering everything that you are saying about Ohio St. I say go for it. Will be a challenge at 1st to get them back. Won't just be walking in and having the keys handed over. Build OSU to your style. Only concern really would be the wins and the teams you would have to face to get those wins.

Or... stay at FIU for now and get over the Canes hump. [emoji2369]

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[redsox907]

Re: The Making of a Legend Part II "It's Miller Time".. CFB25

Whew, turning down THE Ohio State University would be tough. Especially with you still struggling to steal recruits from Miami despite the success nationally, albeit not against the Canes. I wish you could make the decisions on the coaches after the bowl season, because if you bow out early in the CFP you may not WANT to leave on that note, or vise versa choosing to leave on a Natty win instead of turning down the offers...

I think after building up Boise, TTU, and now FIU going to Ohio State where the expectations are high, but so are the resources, would be a fun change

[Deuce2223]

Re: The Making of a Legend Part II "It's Miller Time".. CFB25

Whew, turning down THE Ohio State University would be tough. Especially with you still struggling to steal recruits from Miami despite the success nationally, albeit not against the Canes. I wish you could make the decisions on the coaches after the bowl season, because if you bow out early in the CFP you may not WANT to leave on that note, or vise versa choosing to leave on a Natty win instead of turning down the offers...

I think after building up Boise, TTU, and now FIU going to Ohio State where the expectations are high, but so are the resources, would be a fun change

Totally agree.. I hate the Coach Hiring process so much. I really hope they fix it in the next game. It needs to go back to the NCAA14 days and be after the season is over. It's fine of still want to have some kind of standards to the way schools hire teams, But a previous OC who becomes a HC and wins 2 National Championships should not get just 1 HC offer in a season and yet get 5 DC job offers.. That would never happen IRL

Here is a list of the schools that fired their HC
Old Dominion
West Virginia
Arizona State
LSU
Minnesota
Florida
Missouri
Iowa State
Florida State
Tennessee
Syracuse
Nebraska
Texas Tech
Tulane
NC State
Rice
Sam Houston State
Texas A&M
Ohio State

and the Clemson HC went to the NFL.

Yet I get 1 job offer... I also see way to many schools firing their HC after 1 season and then the hiring process makes no sense. Like Florida fires their HC but hires the HC fired by Florida State, then Tennessee hires the fired Florida State and then Florida State hires the fired Tennessee Coach. I am so frustrated by the Coach Carousel that I don't even post it in my recaps. Like my old OC T.Y. Hilton left for Indiana, okay I get that they were 1-11 and looking to hire a OC who just helped a RB break every national rushing record. They go 3-8 the first year with him and fire him and now he is at Georgia Tech were he went 6-6.

[Deuce2223]

Re: The Making of a Legend Part II "It's Miller Time".. CFB25

HAWKINS LEADS FIU TO ROUND 1 VICTORY

James Madison Dukes at Florida International Golden Panthers
Dec 20,	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
#11 James Madison Dukes ((11-1))	0	10	7	0	17
#6 Florida International Golden Panthers ((10-2))	0	10	7	14	31

Team Stats Comparison
	JMU	FIU
Total Offense	294	438
Rushing Yards	133	56
Passing Yards	147	360
First Downs	12	19
Punt Return Yards	5	13
Kick Return Yards	67	39
Total Yards	366	490
Turnovers	0	1
3rd Down Conversion	1/12	9/13
4th Down Conversion	4/6	0/1
2-Point Conversion
Red Zone Touchdowns/Field Goals	0-1-100%	3-0-100%
Penalties	6-65	7-65
Possession Time	17:14	22:46

GAME RECAP

With only 1 game left of eligibility before his redshirt season would be voided, Coach Miller made the decision to start Derek Hawkins at QB with Kevin Pounds ruled in active as RS SO Grey McCrae was officially listed as QB2.

A early INT by Hawkins drew some boo's from the crowd but the Panther's D held strong forcing back to back punts as the 1st Quarter comes to a close still tied (0-0).

FIU got on the scoreboard first as the Panthers settle for a 41 yd FG by T. Dozier to make it (3-0).. James Madison would do the same tying the game up (3-3) midway through the 2nd... FIU was forced to punt after a failed 3rd and 2 run by Cantwell and the Dukes respond with the first touchdown of the game as SR QB Jamerson Sisk (83) keeps it himself for a 34 yd run to make it (10-3) with 3:12 to play in the half. FIU wasted little time tying the game back up though as Hawkins hits RS SO Carlos Badet (82) on a 51 yd bomb to make it (10-10) with 2:32 to play. James Madison had a chance to take the lead in the final seconds but a missed 42 yd FG leaves the game tied (10-10).

James Madison opened up the 2nd half with the ball and quickly added 7 to the scoreboard as SO WR Ethan Sahara takes a Jet Sweep handoff 75 yds for the score (17-10). FIU however would answer with a nice 13 play drive ending in a 13 yd TD run by Cantwell to tie the game (17-17) going into the 4th.

James Madison would fail to pick up a 4th down early in the 4th leading to FIU taking the lead as Hawkins finds RS FR Walter Abiamiri on a 29 yd strike to make it (24-17 ).. The Dukes still struggling with 3rd down pick up back to back 4th down conversions to keep a 16 play drive alive but facing a 3rd 4th down on a 4th and goal, FIU comes up with a huge defense stop taking the ball over on the 6 yd line.

FIU would then use their own 11 play drive to add to their lead capped by a 6 yd TD pass from Hawkins to Montrel Muamba leaving just 1:12 to play with a (31-17) lead.

James Madison left with just 1 timeout fails to add any points on the final drive as FIU advances on to their 2nd round matchup with #3 Miami..

KEY PANTHERS
QB D. Hawkins-26/34 (76%) 360 yds 3 TD 1 INT
RB T. Cantwell 16 carries 53 yds 1 TD, 4 rec 42 yds
WR C. Badet-7 rec 116 yds 1 TD
WR K. Newkirk-6 rec 59 yds
WR W. Abiamiri-2 re 53 yds 1 TD
WR M. Muamba-2 rec 27 yds 1 TD
TE E. Godwin-4 rec 58 yds

[Deuce2223]

Re: The Making of a Legend Part II "It's Miller Time".. CFB25

REVENGE TASTES LIKE ORANGES!!!!

Florida International Golden Panthers at Miami (FL) Hurricanes
Jan 2,	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
#6 Florida International Golden Panthers ((12-3))	7	10	3	7	27
#3 Miami (FL) Hurricanes ((11-2))	7	10		7	24

Team Stats Comparison
	FIU	MIA
Total Offense	476	373
Rushing Yards	97	138
Passing Yards	374	224
First Downs	13	13
Punt Return Yards	16	28
Kick Return Yards	52	28
Total Yards	544	401
Turnovers	3	0
3rd Down Conversion	5/14	5/14
4th Down Conversion	1/1	0/1
2-Point Conversion
Red Zone Touchdowns/Field Goals	0-1-100%	1-0-50%
Penalties	5-49	7-53
Possession Time	22:50	17:10

GAME RECAP

One would think the NCAA Playoff selection committee has something against FIU playing in their 6th straight playoff and going for a chance to play in their 4th straight National Championship game, the committee stacked the deck to setup a historic Orange Bowl matchup as Coach Miller and the Panthers take on #3 seed Miami for a 3rd time this season and on their own homefield..

Coach Miller "I am not sure personally how the committee feel's like this is fair. I am not complaining about having to play Miami but I just don't see how making us face them on their own field is a good look.. I personally am encouraging FIU to file a lawsuit.. It's not like they are letting USC play in the Rose Bowl"


Once again Derek Hawkins would get the start at QB and once again the Coach Miller could hear boo's from the stands as Hawkins throws a early INT but despite the INT and despite a fumble by RB Terrance Cantwell, FIU would manage to tie the game up (17-17) at the half as Hawkins hits Kris Newkirk on the longest pass play of the season (97 yds) for their 2nd TD of the day.

FIU would open the 2nd half with the ball and settle for a 46 yd FG by Taj Dozier as the Panthers take the lead (20-17).. A forced punt by the Canes gave the ball back to FIU with a chance to extend their lead but Cantwell would cough up a 2nd fumble on the day giving the ball back to Miami..

The Hurricanes turned he turnover into points early in the 4th as SR RB Lance Angel (82) scores on a 15 yd run to make it (24-20) with 8 minutes to play.

Both teams would then exchange punts as FIU takes with 4:12 to play still trailing by 4. Coach Miller knew that they needed a score but he also knew he didn't really want to leave the Canes much time for a chance at a FG to tie or another touchdown to win..

The problem was Hawkins had a different plan as the SO QB hits Walter Abiamiri with a 47 yd bomb to give the Panthers the (27-24) lead with 3:15 to play.

Miami would waste little time getting the ball down the field as RS FR Roy Flowers breaks a 50 yd run on the 1st play putting the Hurricanes in FG position with just under 3 minutes to play, but the Panthers Defense comes up huge getting back to back sacks on QB Legend Coffee knocking the Canes out of FG range and setting up a huge 3rd and 22.. Coffee's next pass was incomplete as Garrison Falah comes up with a huge swat at the last minute..

Now facing 4th and 22 Miami was left without a choice as the Hurricanes go with a 5 WR set.. But Coffee's pass to Yancey is short of the 1st down marker as Falah again comes up with a huge play tackling the SO WR 2 yds shy of the 1st down.

Still armed with all 3 timeouts, Coach Miller knew he had to trust his run game despite the fact Cantwell already had 2 Fumbles. Hawkins had a different plan as the SO QB calls his own # keeping it for a 8 yd gain. The Panthers then let the clock roll down to the 2 minute warning. FB Kwabena Strong would take the handoff and run 4 yds up the middle picking up the 1st down as Miami is forced to use their 1st timeout. Cantwell would take the handoff and get around the corner for a nice 6 yd gain as Miami calls timeout #2.. Then it was Hawkins again with the QB keeper as he picks up the 1st down with a 4 yd gain as Miami calls their last timeout. FIU new 1 more 1st down and this ball game was over, as Cantwell takes the handoff and gains 6 more yds before Hawkins for a 3rd time on the drive takes the zone read up the middle for a 12 yd gain as he slides to the turf. All the Hurricanes could do is watch as FIU lines up in the victory formation to kneel off the final seconds.

KEY PLAYERS

QB D. Hawkins-20/30 (66%) 374 yds 3 TD 1 INT, 8 carries 33 yds
RB T. Cantwell-20 carries 65 yd 2 Fumbles, 5 rec 25 yds
FB K. Strong-1 carry 4 yds
WR K. Newkirk-7 rec 216 yds 2 TD
WR W. Abiamiri-1 rec 47 yds 1 TD
WR M. Muamba-2 rec 19 yds
WR C. Badet-2 rec 18 yds
TE E. Godwin-3 rec 49 yds

QB L. Coffee-15/33 (45%) 224 yds 1 TD, 18 yds 1 TD
RB R. Flowers-12 carries 102 yds, 3 rec 32 yds
RB L. Angel-5 rec 22 yds 1 TD
WR D. Yancey 5 rec 121 yds 1 TD
WR G. Finneran-5 rec 51 yds

[xboxxerx]

Re: The Making of a Legend Part II "It's Miller Time".. CFB25

What a stand for the defense against the Canes on that last possession. Great game. Honestly, I'm surprised you trusted Hawkins with the keepers. I'm kind of surprised he didn't cough the rock up, to be honest. Great showing, Deuce.

Sent from my SM-S928U using Operation Sports mobile app

[redsox907]

Re: The Making of a Legend Part II "It's Miller Time".. CFB25

Hawk with the redemption tour against the Canes.

To be fair, I did play in my fair share of Rose Bowls with my USC dynasty, BUT I stand with Coach Miller, this is BS.

[Deuce2223]

Re: The Making of a Legend Part II "It's Miller Time".. CFB25

ROUND 1 AND 2 RESULTS

**I realized I forgot to post the other Round 1 results


#5 USC beat #12 Wyoming (38-17) to advance to a Round 2 matchup vs #4 K-State in the Cotton Bowl and the Trojans Defense came through as USC defeats the Wildcats (21-13).

#9 Kentucky had a fireworks display against the Ducks beat #8 Oregon (56-28) in Round 1 earning a shot at #1 Alabama in Round 2 in the Sugar Bowl. The Wildcats come through with the upset as they pull off a (37-34) victory to advance to take on the Trojans in the Fiesta Bowl.

#7 Virginia Tech beat #10 TCU (20-17) in Round 1 and then the Hokies continued the trend of upsets in Round 2 beating #2 Penn State (27-17) in the Rose Bowl to set up a ACC/ACC Semi Finals..


V.T. and FIU didn't meet in the regular season this year and the Hokies are still upset with how the tiebreaker went down so I guess we get the ACC Part II..