MURFREESBORO, Tennessee (Oct. 26, 2019) – FIU couldn't hold off a third-quarter surge from Middle Tennessee on Saturday afternoon, as the Panthers dropped a rain-soaked road contest 50-17 to the Blue Raiders.
FIU led 17-14 at halftime, but a 23-point third quarter by MT propelled the Blue Raiders to a win. With the loss, FIU falls to 4-4 overall and 2-3 in C-USA play. MT improves to 3-5 overall and 2-2 in league action with the victory.
James Morgan threw two touchdowns to lead FIU on offense, finishing with 208 passing on a very wet day. Morgan connected on throws of 18 and 23 to
Maurice Alexander and
Tony Gaiter IV for scores. Alexander finished the day with 87 yards receiving.
After falling behind 14-7, the Panthers scored 10 unanswered points to retake the lead heading into the locker room. Morgan's 23-yard strike to Alexander evened it up at 14-14, before
Jose Borregales nailed a 33-yard field goal to make it 17-14 just before halftime.
Coming out of the break, MT took its opening drive 60 yards for a touchdown to jump ahead 21-17. Following a fumble on the ensuing kickoff, the Blue Raiders were set up with a short field and cashed in with a 30-yard field goal to make it 24-17 midway through the third quarter. The Blue Raiders would score two more times before the end of the quarter, as MT scored on a pair of two-yard runs to go up 37-17. The Blue Raiders added two more touchdowns in the fourth quarter to close out the game and earn the victory at home.
UP NEXT
The Panthers return home on Nov. 2 to host Old Dominion at noon, before closing out the home slate against Miami at Marlins Park on Nov. 23. For those interested in purchasing tickets, click
here.
GAME NOTES
- With his two scores,
James Morgan passed
Alex McGough for second-most touchdown passes as a Panther QB with 36.
SOCIAL MEDIA
Get all the latest information on the team by following @FIU.Football on Instagram and @FIUFootball on Twitter and Facebook. General athletic news can also be found at @FIUSports on Facebook and @FIUAthletics on Twitter and Instagram.
