Disaster in Ruston as FIU Gives up Lead Late to Bulldogs in Football Opener

RUSTON, LA – FIU Football opened up their season against the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs, and all looked well for the Panthers up until the second half, where everything went wrong.

A stagnant offense and a faltering defense kept the Bulldogs in this game, and despite having the lead for all but 1 minute left in the game, FIU could not close the game and LA Tech stole the win by a score of 23-17.

“We were doing some good things and then we weren’t able to do that as much in the second half,” said FIU head coach Mike MacIntyre. “We were trying to figure it out, but we will go back and keep working on it.”

Some Potential Early On

Out the gate, the Panthers came out swinging, and it felt evident early on that head coach Mike MacIntyre had this team ready to play.

On third down, the offense found some magic with a 67-yard house call from running back Shomari Lawrence to give FIU an early 7-0 lead.

After a pair of punts by the cats and the dogs, LA Tech looked to finally answer. However, an airmailed pass by Bulldogs quarterback Hank Bachmeier was intercepted by defensive back D’verik Daniel.

With good field position, the Panthers looked back to the running game. A few penalties by the Bulldogs kept moving FIU on offense, and a six-yard rush by running back Antonio Patterson to the end zone raised the lead to 14-0.

LA Tech’s offense, which was shaky to start, finally got some first downs thanks to wide receiver Smoke Harris and running back Keldric Moody.

FIU’s defense did stop them right at the red zone, forcing a 37-yard field goal which the Bulldogs kicker missed.

The Panthers once again relied on the run game – seven plays and only one of them was an (incomplete) pass by Grayson James.

Still, FIU kicker Chase Gabriel nailed a 45-yard field goal, and it looked as if the Panthers were ready to blow the Bulldogs out of the water. However, these were the last points scored by FIU all game.

The abnormal string of offensive possessions continued as one pass from Hank to Smoke was all it took for the first touchdown of the day for LA Tech – 64 yards off of blown coverage.

FIU’s offense was stagnant and was forced to punt. With two minutes to go in the first half, the Bulldogs did just enough to set up a converted 32-yard field goal to close out the first half – 17-13 in favor of the Panthers.

It all Comes Crashing Down

It’s worth noting that up to this point, Grayson had only completed one pass for two yards. The run game did more than enough to compensate, but it was clear that the Bulldogs made the right adjustments coming out of halftime.

The second half began with a LA Tech fumble that was recovered by FIU, but not turned into points. Instead, five straight punts by both teams ate up most of the third quarter.

Into the final quarter, it was all Bulldogs. Starting at near midfield, Hank and LA Tech did enough to set up one more field goal which only gave FIU a 17-16 lead. The offense had to get going if they didn’t want to blow the game.

Unfortunately, punter Daton Montiel had to continue his busy day with another punt. The Bulldogs had a chance with three minutes to go to nail a 43-yard field goal to take the lead, but another miss gave FIU life.

Facing a third and two, the Panthers could not convert off of the run game, which they had to rely on as James and the offense had no success, only earning four total yards.

What every Panther fan feared would happen exactly happened.

After the Bulldogs’ 30-yard run to take the lead with a minute to go, it was up to FIU’s offense, which only managed one first down all second half, to make something happen.

Two plays and, an intercepted pass sealed the deal, and the Bulldogs completed the comeback by a score of 22-17.

A Record-Breaking Day

In total, Grayson James completed five passes out of 14 attempts but only put up four total yards. That’s now an FIU record for the least amount of passing yards in a loss.

It’s unfair to blame all of this on James, as the play-calling and dropped passes, including the interception at the end, did not do him any favors. For LA Tech, Hank Bachmeier threw for 34 completions and 333 yards.

On the ground, Shomari Lawrence did rack up 139 yards off of 15 carries, including a touchdown. A very great night of work, though most of it came in the first half.

Overall, the Bulldogs earned 447 total yards, 27 first down, and 38 minutes of offense, all of which were significantly better than the Panthers.

Not everybody in Conference USA played in Week 0, but regardless, the Panthers have a 0-1 record in a game that was theirs to win until the end.

Moving on. FIU will head back home to host the Maine Black Bears on Saturday, September 2nd at 6:30pm.