HUNTINGTON, W.Va.—There’s no doubt the FIU football program has improved since last year’s dismal 1-11 campaign. The question, is has it improved enough to slow down the Thundering Herd.
The Panthers’ defense certainly has the ability to slow down Marshall, but its offense will struggle to keep up with the Herd.
“We’ve played guys that are as athletic up front as they are. We’ve play guys that are as athletic on the back end as they are. We haven’t played anybody that is as athletic from top to bottom as they are,” said offensive coordinator Bill Legg.
The Panthers’ defense runs well, swarms to the ball, and is aggressive. Their defensive line has the mentality that it is going to rush the passer on every play and stop the run on the way to the quarterback. Outside linebackers Jordan Guest and De’Shawn Hazziez are very aggressive and athletic. Cornerbacks Richard Leonard and Jeremiah McKinnon are the best two defensive backs Marshall has seen this year.
“Throw all that into one big hopper and they create confusion, they create disturbance, they get penetration. The result is they get the turnovers they’ve been getting.
The Panthers have forced 24 takeaways this year, five more than anyone else in college football. FIU is +11 in turnover margin, which is fourth in the country.
The man to watch out for is cornerback Richard Leonard. He already has four interceptions this season, two interception returns for touchdowns. He also has three fumble recoveries and forced two fumbles.
“I recruited him out of high school,” said Doc Holliday. “Not only can he play man coverage extremely well, but he’s good with the ball in his hands. He’s a guy that will play on Sundays some day.”
Leonard has a history with the Herd. He picked off Cato in the 2011 Beef ‘O’ Bradys Bowl and returned it 34 yards for FIU.
“Going against the best everyday. Going against A.J. Leggett, Swagg (Daryl Roberts), Corey Tindal, James Rouse, to prepare us as an offense at a high level. Getting a few reps with the ones and performing everyday in practice against the best defense our offense will be ready,” says quarterback Rakeem Cato.
While FIU’s defense has been one of the best in Conference USA so far this year, the offense has struggled.
True freshman Alex McGough is completing just 48.2 percent of his passes for 953 yards and eight touchdowns. He’s also been picked off twice.
McGough’s best target is his sophomore tight end Jonnu Smith. Just this week, Smith was named Mid-Season All-America by CBSSports.com. Smith, who is on the John Mackey Award Watch List, leads the Panthers with 34 catches, 411 yards and four touchdowns.
“What other people do by changing personnel, they do out of one personnel group, which has some complications to it,” says defensive coordinator Chuck Heater.
Smith can line up as a fullback, a second tight end, a third wide receiver and Marshall must be able to deal with all those scenarios.
FIU is looking to make a statement about the progress the program has made in Ron Turner’s second year as head coach. However, it is going to need to play a perfect game, force turnovers and Marshall will need to make mistakes if FIU is going to pull the upset.