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Photo by Sam Lewis FIU's Chandler Williams dodges FAMU defenders on his way to a 58-yard touchdown catch and run Saturday night. The Golden Panthers' 23-6 win over the Rattlers was the first win of the year for FIU.

Despite monsoon rains in the second half that drenched a paid crowd of 16,512 at FIU Stadium, running back Ben West ran for 214 yards and quarterback Josh Padrick completed 15 of 23 passes for 226 yards and two touchdowns in the Golden Panthers 23-6 Orange Blossom Classic victory over Florida A&M (2-3), Saturday night.

West, replacing Julian Reams, a late scratch due to a neck stinger, became just the third Golden Panther ever to rush for 200 yards in a game, in his first collegiate start. Only Rashod Smith, with 262 yards in 2002 against Jacksonville, and 230 yards last season at New Mexico State, had more.

FIU (1-3) jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first quarter, thanks to a 24-yard field goal by Adam Moss. But despite dominating statistically, the Golden Panthers weren’t able to put points on the scoreboard.

That changed in the second quarter; however, when Padrick went to work, first hitting Chandler Williams for a 58-yard touchdown pass and then finding Cory McKinney with a 20-yard scoring pass. Williams ended as the leading receiver for FIU with five catches for 122 yards while for McKinney, it was his 36th-straight game with a reception.

Moss’ second field goal, this time from 26 yards, gave FIU at 20-6 lead after three quarters.

The Rattlers cracked the scoreboard early in the fourth quarter when FAMU backup quarterback Albert Chester hit Roosevelt Kiser with a short pass along the sideline. FIU defensive backs believed that Kiser was pushed out of bounds and stopped their pursuit. But the Ft. Lauderdale, junior continued his run 77 yards into the end zone. After a conference by the referees, it was decided that Kiser had remained in bounds and the score counted. The extra point was missed.

Moss’ third field goal of the night from 37 yards, and his fifth of the season, ended the night’s scoring and ensured the Golden Panthers with their first win of the season, snapping a four-game losing streak. The team’s last win occurred on Nov. 27 of last season against Florida A&M, 40-23, at the Orange Bowl.

“We started slow in the game, and then made some big plays at the end of the half that really turned the game around,” said FIU head coach Don Strock.

“We ran the ball effectively and made first downs,” Strock said. “Ben West did a tremendous job hanging onto the football in very poor weather conditions.”

FIU’s much-maligned defense came through in a big way limiting FAMU to just 154 total yards and 28 on the ground. Junior Linebacker Keyonvis Bouie led the way with seven tackles and his second interception of the year, while defensive end Antwan Barnes was credited with three tackles for losses of minus-16 yards and two of FIU’s four quarterback sacks on the night.

“Defensively, we played a whale of a game,” thought Strock. “[Florida A&M] has some talent on their team but we got to the quarterback early and ended up stopping them.

“Other than that one play where we thought the receiver was knocked out of bounds, our defense did a tremendous job, got a bunch of sacks and kept pressuring the quarterback. They couldn’t throw the ball downfield and we stopped their running game. Overall, the defense really stepped up to the table.”

The Golden Panthers enjoy another bye week before returning to their Sun Belt Conference schedule against four-time defending champion North Texas on Saturday, Oct. 15 at FIU Stadium. For information and tickets, call toll free (866) FIU-GAME or (305) 348-4263 in Miami-Dade County.