2011 Florida International Football Predictions

Written by Steve Janus

The Florida International Golden Panthers surprised everyone with a remarkable 2010 season. The Golden Panthers, who just started their football program in 2002, capped off their season with a 34-32 win over Toledo in the Little Caesars Bowl to finish the year 7-6. They tied Troy for the top spot in the Sun Belt Conference with a 6-2 mark, but beat the Trojans 52-35 on the road to win the Sun Belt Title. It was the first winning season for the Golden Panthers in school history. With 15 starters back for the 2011 season, head coach Mario Cristobal has a great shot at leading FIU to an even better finish in 2011. Here is a quick look at what the Golden Panthers will send to the field on both sides of the ball, plus my prediction on where they will finish the year in the Sun Belt.

Offense:

The Golden Panthers couldn’t have expected a much better season out of Mississippi State transfer Wesley Carroll. In his first season as the starting quarterback, Carroll completed 61.6% of his passes for 2,623 yards and 16 touchdowns. Carroll will be one of the top quarterbacks in the Sun Belt this season, and a big reason why FIU is thinking they can repeat as Sun Belt champs.

While Carroll deserves a lot of the credit for the Golden Panthers incredible turnaround, this team wouldn’t have been as good as it was if it wasn’t for their ability to run the football. FIU averaged 188 yards a game on the ground last year, and should be even better in 2011 with the top three back. Darriet Perry figures to have a monster senior season after leading the team with 839 yards and 16 touchdowns in 2010.

FIU also brings back their top receiving threat in senior T.Y. Hilton, who caught 59 passes for 848 yards and five touchdowns. With big improvements expected from Carroll, I expect to see even bigger numbers out of Hilton in 2011. Rounding out the receiving corps will be juniors Jacob Younger and Wayne Times.

With three starters back on the offensive line, including both starting tackles, FIU figures to remain strong up front. Junior left tackle Cylin Hauptmann should be one of the top tackles in the conference. The expectation is that sophomore Ceedrick Davis will step in at center, while junior David Istanich takes over at left guard.

Defense:

The Golden Panthers made some big strides on the defensive side of the ball in 2010. They went from giving up just over 35 ppg in 2009 to holding opponents to just over 27 ppg last year. With a young core of players expected back for the 2011 season, I will call for FIU to continue to show improvement.

FIU loses star defensive end Jarvis Wilson, who led the team with 9.5 sacks last year, but have plenty of talent coming back. In the middle junior Joshua Forney should be one of the best defensive tackles in the conference, and will form a solid duo at defensive tackle with sophomore Isame Faciane. On the outside, junior Tourek Williams is coming off a monster sophomore season, where he finished with six sacks and 7.5 tackles for loss.

At linebacker FIU returns one of the top linebackers in the conference in junior Winston Frazier. As a sophomore, Frazier finished third on the team with 72 tackles and had 8 tackles for loss. Frazier is the only starter back, but the Golden Panthers like what they have in sophomore Larvez Mars and junior Jordan Hunt.

In the secondary the Golden Panthers bring back three more underclassmen with starting experience. In 2010 sophomore Jose Cheeseborough started all 13 games as a freshman, and former wide out Junior Mertile showed he has what it takes to start and be effective on this side of the ball. At safety the Golden Panthers bring back one of the top safeties in the conference in junior Jonathan Cyprien, who had a team-best 113 tackles in 2010.

2011 Prediction: 1st Sun Belt – While some might consider 2010 a fluke season for FIU, this was a very young and inexperienced group that won the Sun Belt. With the confidence they gained from not only winning the conference but also beating Toledo in their bowl game, I think they could run away with the Sun Belt this season. Troy figures to be the one team that could knock off FIU, but after watching the Golden Panthers score at will on the Trojans defense in 2010, I don’t see them losing at home to Troy in 2011.

Sun Belt Football Predictions by Team
Troy Football Predictions	Florida International Football Predictions
Arkansas State Football Predictions	Louisiana Monroe Football Predictions
Middle Tennessee State Football Predictions	North Texas Football Predictions
Western Kentucky Football Predictions	Louisiana Lafayette Football Predictions
Florida Atlantic Football Predictions

College Football Predictions
ACC Football Predictions	Big 12 Football Predictions
Conference USA Football Predictions	Independents Football Predictions
PAC 12 Football Predictions	SEC Football Predictions
Big East Football Predictions	Big Ten Football Predictions
MAC Football Predictions	Mountain West Football Predictions
Sun Belt Football Predictions	WAC Football Predictions

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