Box Score ORLANDO, Fla. (September 15, 2012) – A furious comeback fell just short as the FIU Panthers fell 33-20 to the UCF Knights on Saturday at Bright House Networks Field in Orlando, Fla.
 
The Panthers were unable to stop the Knights in the opening stanza, with UCF racking up 249 yards of offense against just 26 for FIU. Though the offense was frustrated, a Jose Cheeseborough interception at 12:59 of the second quarter was able to slow down some of the Knights momentum. It was the first career interception for the redshirt senior from Jacksonville, and the only turnover for either team in the contest.
 
FIU decided to defer receiving the ball until the second half, and it would prove beneficial. The Panthers came out of the locker room ready to claw back into the contest with an impressive eight play, 96-yard drive to open their account. Quarterback Jake Medlock threw two big passes to Ya'Keem Griner (26 yards) and Darian Mallary (33 yards) to keep the march moving. Running back Kedrick Rhodes would find paydirt from five yards away for his second TD of the young season.
 
Though the Knights answered on the subsequent drive, the Panthers would again march down the field in stirring fashion. Mallary's 28-yard scamper caped an impressive seven play, 75-yard excursion down field. It would put the game back in question with 1:13 to play in the third quarter and the Panthers trailing only by two scores at 30-14.
 
FIU cut it even closer in the final stanza, showing great resolve to bring the game into doubt. Following a Medlock fumble inside the UCF 10-yard line that was recovered by the Knights, Giancarlo Revilla would force a second strip on the same play, one that was recovered by Panthers wide receiver Glenn Coleman. The extra set of downs would be all FIU would need to commence an eight play, 96-yard charge, which Mallary cashed in with a four-yard run to cut the lead to 30-20 with 9:16 remaining. Mallary's sixth touchdown of the season brought a hush to the 40,478 in attendance, realizing the victor was still to be decided.
 
A late field goal by the Knights with 2:26 remaining would all but seal the victory for UCF and tie the all-time series at 1-1.
 
It was a tale of two halves for the Panthers, as the second half adjustments were potent enough to see the Blue and Gold pick up a gaudy 280 yards of offense after the intermission, holding their hosts to just 182.
 
Senior safety Johnathan Cyprien etched his name in Panthers history, notching his 304th career tackle to become the Panthers all-time leader in ball stops. Tourek Williams notched FIU's first sack of the game to end third quarter, which gave the Miami native 12.5 for his career tying him for second behind former linebacker Antwan Barnes for the school's all-time lead.
 
The Panthers head back down the Florida Turnpike and into The Cage next Saturday at 7:00 p.m., as they take on the BIG EAST's Louisville Cardinals. The game will be telecast live on

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FIU once again has an exciting six-game home schedule in 2012, including non-conference games vs. BIG EAST Co-Champion Louisville, Akron, plus Sun Belt schools Arkansas State, Middle Tennessee, WKU and ULM.

The Panthers begin 2012 season with four-straight, non-conference games against Duke (Sept. 1), Akron (Sept. 8), UCF (Sept. 15) and Louisville (Sept. 22), which FIU went 3-1 against last year.

Season tickets are presently on-sale and start at just $42.  Single-game tickets to FIU's six-game home schedule at Alfonso Field at FIU Stadium are also on-sale. Tickets to the FIU-Louisville game on Sept. 22 will only be available as part of a season ticket plan. For more information or to place your order, please visit FIUSports.com or call 305-FIU-GAME (348-4263).

The first 500 NEW season ticket buyers will receive a limited edition Alfonso Field at FIU Stadium replica. Fans must purchase a minimum of two (2) sideline season tickets to qualify for this promotion. There is a limit of one (1) stadium replica per account.

About FIU Athletics: FIU Athletics is home to more than 400 student-athletes in 18 different sports. Athletic events are played in seven different venues on FIU's campuses (Modesto A. Maidique and Biscayne Bay), including U.S. Century Bank Arena and Alfonso Field at FIU Stadium.

About FIU: Florida International University is recognized as a Carnegie engaged university. Its colleges and schools offer more than 180 bachelors, masters and doctoral programs in fields such as engineering, international relations, architecture, law and medicine. As one of South Florida's anchor institutions, FIU is worlds ahead in its local and global engagement, finding solutions to the most challenging problems of our time. FIU emphasizes research as a major component of its mission and enrolls nearly 48,000 students in two campuses and three centers including FIU Downtown on Brickell and the Miami Beach Urban Studios. More than 140,000 alumni live and work in South Florida. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu/.