Box Score
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Photo by Geoff Anderson
Running
back Ben West races down the sideline
for a pickup of seven yards against
Texas Tech. West, making his first appearance
of the season, rushed the ball 15 times
for 49 yards. |
Playing their first ranked Division I-A opponent,
on enemy soil, in front of the largest crowd
ever to witness an FIU football game, the
Golden Panthers got a good look at how they
measure up.
Take away two first-half fumbles that nullified
possible scoring drives and gave No. 19 Texas
Tech’s high-powered offense more time
to operate, the Red Raiders jumped out to
a 28-3 half time lead, en route to a 56-3
victory in Lubbock, Texas, Saturday night
before a crowd of 50,156.
TTU senior quarterback Cody Hodges, making
his first collegiate start, completed 29 passes
for 454 yards and four touchdowns, and Tech
ran up 653 yards of total offense—the
most ever in the short history of the FIU
program.
But the Golden Panthers defense, who forced
four Kansas State turnovers last week that
helped produce 21 points, couldn’t duplicate
that effort. In fact, Texas Tech scored points
on all but three possessions—one of
those was the end of the first half.
But FIU knew coming in that Texas Tech could
put points on the board (the Red Raiders averaged
36.2 points per game in 2004) and that the
Golden Panthers offense would have to use
the clock, and score, if they hoped to stay
competitive.
The Golden Panthers moved the ball, but either
fumbled or couldn’t make the big play
when it counted. Twice on fourth-down situations
inside the Texas Tech 20, FIU came away empty.
Another time, at the Red Raider three, a fumble
ended the possession and started a 97-yard
scoring drive for Tech.
"Obviously, this was a very tough offense
to defend. We had some poor tackling and it
became a combination of them breaking tackles
and us missing tackles. Offensively, we fumbled
twice but had 26 first downs and two times,
inside the 10, we dropped balls that should
have gone for touchdowns," said head
coach Don Strock.
"You can’t have those things,
especially playing on the road against the
caliber of team as Texas Tech. Overall, there
were a lot of bright spots as far as the game
was concerned. The final score is not indicative
of the way we played in a lot of areas but
obviously we need a lot of work in some areas,
too."
FIU quarterback Josh Padrick completed 21
of 32 passing attempts for 172 yards and no
touchdowns. He was relieved by redshirt freshman
Tommy Kendrick who made his collegiate debut
early in the fourth quarter and completed
his first pass for four yards to running back
Adam Gorman.
Kendrick ended 5 of 10 for 42 yards and engineered
a 64-yard drive that ended at the Texas Tech
one-yard line when the game ended. FIU's only
score was a 36-yard field goal by Adam Moss,
midway through the second quarter.
"We had opportunities tonight. We had
a 12-play drive, an 11-play drive, a 13-play
drive, a 10-play drive and could only get
of field goal out of them. They took advantage
of every opportunity they had. But Texas Tech
is ranked No. 21 in the country. It wasn’t
like we were playing a bad football team,
Strock said.
"My hat’s off to them. The coaching
staff does a great job and we appreciate the
opportunity of coming here to play. And the
more times we are exposed to this scenario,
the better off we will be as a football team."
Julian Reams was the leading ground gainer
for FIU with 85 yards on 16 carries. Chandler
Williams and Samuel Smith had seven catches
each for 74 and 45 yards respectively.
The Golden Panthers now go into a bye week
before opening their Sun Belt Conference schedule
on Saturday, Sept. 24 at Arkansas State. That
game will be televised as part of the SBC's
ESPN Regional package.
The Golden Panthers play their home opener
on October 1 against Florida A&M in the
69th annual Orange Blossom Classic at FIU
Stadium, featuring a halftime performance
by the FAMU's "Marching 100" Band.
For information and tickets, call toll free
(866) FIU-GAME or (305) 348-4263 in Miami-Dade
County.
