LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (Nov. 26, 2014) – FIU Defensive Coordinator Josh Conklin has been named one of 40 nominees for the 2014 Broyles Award, the Rotary Club of Little Rock announced on Wednesday.  
 
The Broyles Award honors the top assistant college football coach in America and was established in 1996 to honor legendary Arkansas Head Coach Frank Broyles. Coach Broyles had a track record of producing some of the most successful assistant coaches in college football history.
 
FIU's tenacious defense set the tone for the team this season, taking the opposition out of its game plan. Holding teams to 20-or-fewer point six times this season (zero in 2013), the Panthers lead the nation in turnovers forced (33), including 19 fumble recoveries. Of those 19 fumble recoveries, eight took place in the red zone. The 33 turnovers rank No. 3 all-time at FIU, while the 19 fumble recoveries rank No. 2 all-time. FIU recorded multiple turnover games eight times, including a school-record six turnovers twice (vs. Wagner; at UAB). Those turnovers ultimately led to 105 points for the Panthers.
 
The Panthers' defense also did their part to score points this season, recording six defensive touchdowns (No. 2 in the nation). FIU had five pick sixes (school record) and one fumble recovery for a touchdown.
 
FIU ranks No. 40 in the nation in total defense, allowing 363.8 yards-per-game. That is a 54-spot improvement in national ranking from last season, as the team allowed 791 fewer yards. Opponents average 203.3 yards on the ground versus the Panthers (36^th in the nation) and held teams to under 100 yards rushing three times, including the Louisville Cardinals (12 total yards on the ground). The Panthers allowed an average of 24.8 points-per-game (No. 56 nationally); an improvement from last year's 37.0 points-per-game (No. 110 nationally). 
 
The team's sack total nearly doubled, going from 15 in 2013 to 31 this past season. The Panthers rank No. 34 nationally in sacks-per-game with 2.58. The pressure that FIU put on the opposing quarterbacks gave the Panthers a pass efficiency defense ranking of 54 nationally (122.50), improving 62 spots from the previous year. 
 
The 2014 Broyles Award winner will be announced on Tuesday, December 9th at 11:30 a.m. at the Marriott Hotel in Little Rock, AR. The Broyles Award is presented by The Rotary Club of Little Rock and Delta Dental.
 
Below is the complete list this year's nominees.
 

• Alabama - Lane Kiffin,   Offensive Coordinator
• Appalachian State - Dwayne Ledford, Co-Offensive Coordinator
• Arizona - Jeff Casteel,   Defensive Coordinator
• Arkansas - Robb Smith, Defensive Coordinator
• Arkansas State University - Walt Bell, Offensive Coordinator
• Boise State University   - Mike Sanford, Offensive Coordinator
• Boston College - Don Brown, Defensive Coordinator
• Brigham Young University - Nick Howell, Defensive coordinator
• Clemson - Brent Venables, Defensive Coordinator
• Colorado State - Dave   Baldwin, Offensive Coordinator
• Duke University - John Latina, Run Game Coordinator/OL
• East Carolina University - Lincoln Riley, Offensive Coordinator
• FIU - Josh Conklin, Defensive Coordinator
• Georgia Southern University - Doug Ruse, Offensive Coordinator
• Louisiana – Marquase Lovings, Running Backs
• Louisiana Tech - Manny Diaz, Defensive Coordinator
• Louisville - Todd Grantham, Defensive Coordinator
• Memphis - James Shibest, Special Teams Coordinator/Tight Ends
• Miami   - Mark D'Onofrio, Defensive Coordinator
• Michigan - Greg Mattison, Defensive Coordinator
• Michigan State University - Dave Warner, Co-Offensive Coordinator
• Minnesota - Tracy Claeys, Defensive Coordinator
• Mississippi State - Geoff Collins, Defensive Coordinator
• Missouri - Dave Steckel, Defensive Coordinator
• NC State - Desmond Kitchings, Running Backs/Recruiting Coordinator
• Ohio State University     - Tom Herman, Offensive Coordinator
• Ole Miss - Dave Wommack, Defensive Coordinator
• Oregon - Scott Frost, Offensive Coordinator
• Penn State University    - Bob Shoop, Defensive Coordinator
• Stanford - Lance Anderson, Defensive Coordinator
• TCU - Doug Meacham, Co-Offensive Coordinator
• Temple - Phil Snow, Defensive Coordinator
• UCF - Brent Key, Offensive Line Coach/Recruiting Coordinator
• UCLA - Noel Mazzone, Offensive Coordinator
• Utah - Kalani Sitake, Defensive Coordinator
• Utah State University - Todd Orlando, Defensive Coordinator
• UTSA - Neal Neathery, Defensive Coordinator
• West Virginia University - Tony Gibson, Defensive Coordinator
• Western Michigan University - Kirk Ciarrocca, Offensive Coordinator
• Wisconsin – Dave Aranda, Defensive Coordinator

 
The Broyles Award is a member of the National College Football Awards Association (NCFAA) which encompasses the most prestigious awards in college football. The 21 awards boast 678 years of tradition-selection excellence. Visit www.NCFAA.org to learn more about our story.
 
For more information, visit www.BroylesAward.com or search for Broyles Award on Facebook and Twitter. Use #BroylesAward to follow along with the event.
 
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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 FIU Arena and Ocean Bank Field at FIU Stadium.
 
About FIU: Florida International University is recognized as a Carnegie engaged university. Its colleges and schools offer more than 180 bachelor¹s, master¹s and doctoral programs in fields such as engineering, international relations, architecture, law and medicine. As one of South Florida¹s 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. FIU has awarded 200,000 degrees and enrolls 54,000 students in two campuses and three centers including FIU Downtown on Brickell and the Miami Beach Urban Studios. FIU is a member of Conference USA and has 400 student-athletes participating in 18 sports. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu