Five takeaways from FIU football’s home loss to Kennesaw State on Tuesday
FIU has yet to win consecutive games this season.
The Panthers’ consistently inconsistent season continued on Tuesday night as they lost 45-26 to visiting Kennesaw State.
FIU, playing in its “Vice Night” uniforms, was looking for its first 2-1 conference start since 2018. Instead, the Panthers dropped to 3-4 overall and 1-2 in Conference USA.
Kennesaw State (5-2, 3-0) has won five straight games, and the Owls are tied atop the league.
FIU trailed 14-0 after three Owls possessions, and the Panthers never caught up.
“We had too many missed opportunities,” FIU coach Willie Simmons said. “We had the most dropped passes we’ve had all season. We left about 150 yards of offense on the field.
“Our guys are going to be sick after watching the film on Thursday.”
Here are your five takeaways:
1. DEFENSIVE ISSUES
One week after holding Western Kentucky to just six points, FIU got lit up by the Owls.
Two Owls quarterbacks – Amari Odom and Dexter Williams II – combined to complete 12-of-17 passes for 284 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions.
Among the big plays FIU allowed were a 52-yard over-the-top pass to Gabriel Benyard, which set up the Owls’ first touchdown; a 76-yard pass to running back Coleman Bennett, who tip-toed down the right sideline, evading several FIU defenders who were in position to shove him out of bounds; and a 70-yard pass to Christian Moss, whose double move left Panthers cornerback Ashton Levells on the turf.
“We gave up big plays galore,” Simmons said. “We have to figure out what caused that.”
The Owls also rushed for 214 yards, four TDs and a 5.2 average.
In addition, early on, FIU’s defense had trouble lining up correctly due to Kennesaw’s up-tempo offense, but Simmons seemed most bothered by the tackling.
“We can’t let a five-yard pass turn into a 70-yard touchdown,” Simmons said. “That’s unacceptable.”
2. OWENS’ UPS AND DOWNS
Panthers running back Kejon Owens – C-USA’s reigning Offensive Player of the Week -- rushed for 151 yards, a 7.6 average and one touchdown.
However, in the second quarter, he broke free for a would-be 48-yard run that was cut short because he was penalized for a stiff arm to the defender’s face-mask.
“I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a penalty called on a stiff arm,” Simmons said.
Later in that same drive, Owens would’ve had a first down had he kept running forward. Instead, he cut to his right and was stopped for no gain.
When he returned to the sideline, Owens got yelled at by an FIU assistant coach.
Then, on fourth down, Owens was stopped for no gain, and Kennesaw got the ball.
“We had a busted assignment,” Simmons said of the blocking on fourth down.
On FIU’s next possession, Owens got the ball on third-and-seven. This time, he broke two tackles near the line of scrimmage and ran for a 43-yard TD.
3. RED-ZONE WOES
Noah Grant, who went 4-for-4 on field goals last week – including a 51-yarder -- was not nearly as prolific on Tuesday. In fact, he missed a chip-shot 23-yarder wide right in the third quarter.
Twice in the second half -- including the Grant miss -- the Panthers got inside Kennesaw State’s 15-yard line, and FIU totaled just three points on those occasions.
Had those forays turned into TDs, this game might have been different.
4. BRIGHT SPOTS
Besides Owens, FIU got good performances from quarterback Keyone Jenkins (22-of-37 for a season-high 296 yards, one TD, no interceptions), and leading receiver Alex Perry (seven catches, 75 yards).
In addition, C’Quan Jnopierre had 137 all-purpose yards.
5. UP NEXT
FIU hits the road for the next two weeks, including its final mid-week game of the season next Wednesday at Missouri State. Then there’s a trip to Middle Tennessee before coming home to face Liberty on Nov. 15 and Jacksonville State on Nov. 22.
The regular season ends on Nov. 29 at Sam Houston. FIU needs to win three of its final five games to become bowl eligible.
Said Simmons: “We still have an outside shot (at the conference title).”
