--- Time to open up another season at Florida International. This is a season full of questions. Will our offense be able to perform without Wesley Carroll at quarterback? Without Darriet Perry at halfback? Without T.Y. Hilton at WR and returner? Will our defense remain tough even with a couple key losses scattered throughout? We were going to find out the answers to those questions quickly as we headed on the road to take on Duke, who we had pulled the miraculous upset against last year. Time to see if we could make it two in a row. Duke enters the contest 0-1 on the season, losing 31-28 to Notre Dame in week 1. Weather was calm, skies partly cloudy as the sun started it’s slow descent behind the press box. We lost the coin toss, Duke elected to kick.
Apparently, Duke forgot what we did to them last year, as they did not seem even remotely ready on defense. A couple of quick audibles at the line after Duke showed blitz, leading to a couple big gains through the air, followed by a couple of rushes by Darrian Mallary and Jeremiah Harden to get us down to the Duke 5 yard line, resulted in Mallary finding the end zone for a 5 yard touchdown run the very next play. Could history be repeating itself? I suppose we’d find out when our defense took the field for their first time of the season. For a moment, it appeared this was nothing but a dream. A facemask penalty on the defense, followed by consecutive passes for 21 and 25 yards, and Duke was inside our 20 yard line with only 20 seconds ticked off the clock. Fortunately for us, a fumble by a Duke wide receiver would be pounced on by DT Jerrico Lee, giving us the ball back on our 10 yard line.
Despite starting off slowly, no thanks to a horribly thrown pass by Jake Medlock on 2nd down that missed the WR by a mile, our offense eventually found a rhythm of passing and rushing that enabled us to move down the field seemingly at will, as well as being able to convert 5 third downs along the way. In the end, we once again found our way inside the Duke 10 yard line after going on a 17 play drive that ate over 5 minutes off the clock. We would convert our final 3rd down on the drive, as Medlock found Lee Robinson open on 3rd and 5 for a 6 yard touchdown pass to put us up 14-0 with 57 seconds left in the first quarter. Duke’s offense this time would respond, thanks yet once again to our defense for a facemask penalty, as well as a 35 yard pass that get them inside our 25 yard line. 5 rushes later by Josh Snead, and our lead was cut in half just one minute into the second quarter. That successful drive by the Blue Devil offense apparently awakened their defense, as our running and passing game suddenly faceplanted into concrete, going 3 and out, while going backwards 9 yards thanks to a sack, forcing our first punt of the game and season. Just to make things a little worse for us, our punt team false started, putting the ball on our 5 yard line and the punter up against the back of the end zone.
Duke’s offense got great field position, starting their drive at our 47 yard line, which they promptly acted on, as Sean Renfree connected on a pass for 27 yards to get down to our 20 yard line. Snead would pick up 9 yards on two rushes, and Renfree would complete a pass for one yard, but it wasn’t enough as Duke faced a 4th and inches situation. Rather than risk failing to convert, they settled for the 28 yard field goal. Things would get even worse for us. On the kickoff return, Jonathan Cyprien proceeded to fumble the ball on our 36 yard line, which Duke promptly recovered, setting the Blue Devils offense with yet another very short distance field position. Duke only needed three plays to find the end zone and take the lead. Our offense came out ready to respond, and after picking up a pair of first downs on the ground and through the air, found themselves facing 3rd and inches. We came out ready to pass. Duke came out ready to bring the house on a blitz. Medlock found Glenn Coleman open on a post route along the left hash. Medlock barely got the ball out before the blitz got to him, Coleman was able to haul the ball in, and raced 56 yards down the left side of the field before being brought down from behind at the Duke 1 yard line. One quick dive later by Mallary, and we had regained the lead with 3 minutes left in the half.
Duke, despite starting on their own 20 yard line for a change, was not ready to go down. Renfree hit passes of 20, 14 (on 3rd and 12) and 7 yards, Snead added multiple rushes of 4 and 5 yards, one 10 yard rush, and then finally an 11 yard rush to find the end zone with 1;10 left in the 1st half. Taking over with only 59 seconds left in the 2nd quarter and the ball on our 28 yard line, we abandoned the run game and focused entirely on the pass. Unfortunately, we learned the hard way that Medlock does NOT perform under pressure. Two incomplete passes and a 12 yard sack, and we were punting the ball away after taking only 15 seconds off the clock. Renfree would manage to hit passes of 16 and 15 yards to get the ball down to our 20 yard line, but Duke’s kicker, Rodney Coley, would miss the 37 yard field goal as time expired on the half.
Start of the third quarter, we would have to hope our defense could hold together as Duke got the ball first, already with a 3 point lead. Our defense would manage to do exactly that, giving up only 4 yards on a Snead rush before forcing two incomplete passes. The resulting punt and punt return gave us our best field position all game, as we took over on offense at our own 42 yard line. We unfortunately would only make it to the Duke 37 yard line before being forced to punt. Duke’s offense was able to find some quick success on the ground, advancing the ball 19 yards on 6 straight rushes by Snead, they would fail to convert on 3rd down however, and were forced to punt the ball back. Our offense was able to take advantage of some mistakes in coverage by the Duke secondary, and were able to work our way down the field, ending our drive with a touchdown as Medlock connected with Dominique Rhymes on a 25 yard pass. Unfortunately, Sir Shanks-a-lot made an appearance one again this season, missing the extra point to leave our lead at only 3 instead of 4. Duke tried to find an answer, but a sack on 3rd and 4 would quickly bring their drive to an end.
Our offense was able to finally start finding success again on the ground, as Mallary was able to start gaining some positive yards, coupled with a few key 2nd and 3rd down passes. We were able to move the ball 71 yards down the field over 12 plays, transitioning into the 4th quarter along the way, before Harden punched it in from the 1 yard line to give us a 10 point lead with 6:30 left to play in the game. Duke would waste little time answering. A 5 yard pass and a 5 yard scramble by Renfree gave the Blue Devils an early 1st down. Then they gave the ball to Snead. A couple jukes, two spins, a sidestep, and a stiff arm, and Snead was gone for a 65 yard touchdown rush in a 3 play, 45 second drive. Just like that, Duke was back within 3. We tried to keep it on the ground and chew up some clock, however, an incomplete pass on 3rd and 4, thanks to a heavy blitz, quickly ended our drive and gave Duke plenty of time to take back the lead. Despite giving up a 19 yard pass on 2nd down, our defense eventually buckled down at midfield, sacking Renfree for a 1 yard loss and forcing two incomplete passes to force the Blue Devils to punt the ball away with a little over 3 minutes left to play.
Hoping our offense would be able to drive the ball and either run out the clock or score another touchdown to put the game away, Medlock sure picked a great time to make his boneheaded play of the day, throwing his first interception of the day on 2nd and 9, giving Duke the ball at our 21 yard line. Thankfully for Medlock, who seemed destined to the bench after that play, the defense was able to force a fumble on the Blue Devils first play from scrimmage, which Kenneth Dillard pounced on, giving us the ball back on our 10 yard line with 2:15 remaining in the game. With Duke having three times out, we knew they’d be keying on the run game and would be ready to stop the clock in an instant. Also, being so deep in our territory, we couldn’t risk going three and out on the ground. It was time for Medlock to redeem himself and give us a much needed first down or two to seal the game. Medlock was ready to do just that, attacking the flats, which Duke left completely exposed, allowing us to pick up two quick first downs, and causing two Duke time outs, before hitting Mallary over the middle for an 8 yard gain, forcing Duke to burn their 3rd and final time out with 1:58 left in the game. A couple rushes and one more first down, and we would pull off a huge upset over the much favored Duke Blue Devils for the second year in a row.
Despite coming out in a goal line defense, Duke was unable to get to Mallary in time before he crossed the first down line, giving us a new set of downs with less than two minutes to play, virtually guaranteeing us the victory unless someone screwed up between now and the final 1:54 in the game. A 16 yard gain for a first down on 3rd and 6 with 10 seconds left, clinched the victory, and the upset for the second year in a row, once and for all for us, 34-31.
With the win, we improve to 1-0 on the season, getting a great victory to hopefully propel us into a successful season (if our defense doesn’t screw us over). With the loss, Duke falls to 0-2 to start their 2012 season. Next up for Florida International, UCF, who comes into the game 1-0 on the season following a 38-3 win over Akron.
Final Score
34,
31
Stat(s) of the Game:
FIU Offense – Despite mistakes and bad passes by Medlock, was able to gain 371 yards through the air. A perfect 4 for 4 in the Duke red zone.
FIU Quarterback Jake Medlock – Did good overall for his first start, but the interception in the 4th quarter, that never should have happened, almost cost us the game.
FIU Running – While we finished with 87 yards for the game on 37 carries, at one point only had 33 yards on 24 carries.
FIU Defense – Made some great plays to force turnovers, but gave up way too many big plays that ended in touchdowns.
FIU Returners – Set us up with some good field position throughout the day, but CANNOT be fumbling the ball on kickoff returns.
Scoring Summary
| Team |
1st Quarter |
2nd Quarter |
3rd Quarter |
4th Quarter |
Final Score |
| |
14 |
7 |
6 |
7 |
34 |
| |
0 |
24 |
0 |
7 |
31 |
| Time |
Team |
Result |
Play |
Score |
| First Quarter |
| 7:10 |
|
Touchdown |
D. Mallary, 5 yard run (J. Griffin kick) |
7-0 |
| 0:57 |
|
Touchdown |
L. Robinson, 6 yard pass from J. Medlock (J. Griffin kick) |
14-0 |
|
| Second Quarter |
| 8:08 |
|
Touchdown |
J. Snead, 5 yard run (R. Coley kick) |
14-7 |
| 6:06 |
|
Field Goal |
R. Coley, 27 yard field goal |
14-10 |
| 5:14 |
|
Touchdown |
J. Snead, 9 yard run (R. Coley kick) |
17-14 |
| 3:21 |
|
Touchdown |
D. Mallary, 1 yard run (J. Griffin kick) |
21-17 |
| 1:10 |
|
Touchdown |
C. Vernon, 9 yard pass from S. Renfree (R. Coley kick) |
24-21 |
|
| Third Quarter |
| 4:14 |
|
Touchdown |
D. Rhymes, 25 yard pass from J. Medlock (missed kick) |
27-24 |
|
| Fourth Quarter |
| 6:42 |
|
Touchdown |
J. Harden, 1 yard run (J. Griffin kick) |
34-24 |
| 5:44 |
|
Touchdown |
J. Snead, 65 yard run (R. Coley kick) |
34-31 |
| Florida International |
Stat |
Duke |
| 34 |
Score |
31 |
| 21 |
First Downs |
17 |
| 458 |
Total Offense |
457 |
| 37-87-3 |
Rushes - Yards - TD |
32-199-3 |
| 22-29-2 |
Comp - Att - TD |
17-24-1 |
| 371 |
Passing Yards |
258 |
| 3 |
Times Sacked |
1 |
| 9-13 (69%) |
3rd Down Conv |
6-11 (54%) |
| 0-0 (0%) |
4th Down Conv |
0-0 (0%) |
| 0-0 (0%) |
2-Point Conv |
0-0 (0%) |
| 4-4-0 (100%) |
Red Zone - TD - FG |
8-3-1 (50%) |
| 2 |
Turnovers |
2 |
| 1 |
Fumbles Losts |
2 |
| 1 |
Intercepted |
0 |
| 18 |
Punt Return Yards |
12 |
| 127 |
Kick Return Yards |
65 |
| 603 |
Total Yards |
534 |
| 4 - 42.3 |
Punts - Average |
4 - 41.8 |
| 4 - 47 |
Penalties |
3 - 20 |
| 21:03 |
Time of Possession |
14:57 |
| Fail Impact |
Goal |
Progress |
Pass Impact |
 |
500+ rushing yards in each season |
87 |
 |
|
Win 8 games in one season |
1 |
|
|
2000+ total offensive yards in each season |
458 |
|
| |
7+ passing TD in one season |
 |
|
|
10+ points per game in each season |
34 PPG |
|
| |
2400+ total offensive yards in one season |
|
|
 |
Win 4 games in one season |
|
 |
 |
2000+ total offensive yards in one season |
|
|
|
| Bonus Goal |
|
Beat a higher ranked team |
|
 |
Reply With Quote
Unplugged everything and left it unplugged for about 15 minutes while I did some other stuff, just plugged it all back in, and thank God my Xbox turns on again. Dear God I thought my power brick had just become a paper weight.
Originally Posted by SmoothPancakes
Oh, I'm good. While I have no opposition to the PS3 and even still own and occasionally play my old PS2 slim, pretty much 99% of my real life friends that I went to school with in high school or college, and other various friends from places like former jobs and whatnot, are all on 360. I probably have maybe 2 or 3 friends, maybe, who are on PS3, so 360 was pretty much my #1 choice regardless when it came to upgrading from my PS2 and original Xbox.
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