2009 Florida International Golden Panthers NCAA Football Predictions
Written July 1, 2009 by Jason Lowry
The Florida International Golden Panthers are still looking for their first winning season since starting football seven season ago. The Panthers nearly pulled off a .500 season for the first time last year, as they finished up the season at 5-7. The Golden Panthers have reason to believe that 2009 will be the year this school turns things around, as they have 16 returning starters coming back for the upcoming season.
The offense has the majority of the starters coming back, as 10 starters return to this unit in 2009, including senior quarterback Paul McCall, who threw for 2,332 yards and 15 touchdowns in 2008. McCall has plenty of weapons on the outside, as the top six receivers return for the upcoming season. The Golden Panthers are young but very good at the receiver position, including the sophomore duo of T.Y. Hilton and Junior Mertile. Hilton was not only the leading receiver with 41 catches for 1,013 yard and 7 touchdowns, he was the teams top kick returner and punt returner last season, adding two more touchdowns in the return game. The Golden Panthers also brought in junior college transfer Dudley LaPorte to start at tight end, adding yet another weapon in the receiving game. The concern with the offense comes in the running game, as the Golden Panthers lost their top two runners from 2008, and will have to count on sophomore Darriet Perry and senior Daunte Owens to pick up the slack on the ground. One reason to think the ground game will be just fine in 2009, is the Panthers return all five starters on the offensive line, including one of the best tackles in the Sun Belt Conference in senior Joe Alajajian. If the Golden Panthers can get something working on the ground to go along with the solid passing game, they should have no problems keeping up with the top offenses in the Sun Belt Conference this season. Bet the Golden Panthers this season at Sportsbook.com.
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On defense the Golden Panthers return 6 starters from 2008, and up front is where this unit could have the most problems. Senior defensive end Armond Willis is the only returning starter of the front four, but the team does get back senior defensive end Reginald Jones who redshirted last season after seeing plenty of action the previous season. The Golden Panthers are hoping that senior Jonas Murrell and sophomore Reginald Jones are capable enough to take over the two defensive tackle spots. The defense gets stronger once you get past the defensive line, as the Golden Panthers return seniors Scott Bryant and Tyler Clawson at linebacker, and bring in a standout talent in redshirt freshman Winston Fraser to take over at weakside linebacker. The secondary is also pretty strong for the Golden Panthers, as they return three starters, including one of the best corners in the Sun Belt Conference in junior Anthony Gaitor, who led the Golden Panthers with 5 interceptions last season. Joining Gaitor at the open corner position is most likely junior Jarrell McGee, but senior Dezaariah Johnson will battle for the spot as well. At safety the Golden Panthers return senior strong safety Jeremiah Weathersppon and along side him is the very talented junior free safety Ashlyn Parker. If the front four can keep the opposing Sun Belt teams from pushing them around, this unit should be even stronger than it was a year ago. Bet the Sun Belt Conference this season at Sportsbook.com.
My 2009 Prediction: tie for 6th in Sun Belt Conference. This might seem low with the talent this team has coming back in 2009, but this conference is very well balanced with the exception of North Texas and Western Kentucky. That means if the Golden Panthers surprise some teams this season, they could finish a lot higher than I have them picked, but don’t expect this team to have much luck at all on the road in non-conference play against the likes of Florida, Alabama, and Rutgers.
With another exciting season of NCAA football picks right around the corner, make sure you stop back for our expect college football predictions and the latest NCAA football betting odds at Betfirms.
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