Football Drops Season Finale At FIU, 63-45

MIAMI – The University of Massachusetts football quarterback Andrew Ford threw four touchdown passes to as many receivers and Marquis Young racked up 125 yards on the ground, but the Minutemen were unable to stymie the FIU offense en route to a 63-45 loss at the Panthers' Riccardo Silva Stadium on Saturday. Young, along with Adam Breneman, Brennon Dingle and Andy Isabella, each caught a touchdown while Young also ran for one.

Ford ended the day 30-of-44 for 349 passing yards and had one interception alongside his quartet of touchdown passes. Ross Comis added 43 yards passing on a 4-for-5 showing, while Comis rushed for a six-yard score among two carries covering 16 yards.

Isabella and Young were the most frequent targets, as each caught seven receptions. Isabella finished with 95 yards while Young had 44. Jessie Britt led the team with 101 receiving yards – his first collegiate game in triple digits – over five receptions, while nine Minutemen recorded at least one catch in the game.

Young also averaged 7.4 yards per carry against the Panthers defense with 125 yards gained over 17 rushing attempts. He ended the game with 183 all-purpose yards, including 14 gained over his lone kick return.

Bryton Barr led the defensive effort from his spot at middle linebacker with 12 total tackles, with 2.0 TFLs including a 13-yard sack. Jarell Addo and Steve Casali each posted nine takedowns, which included 2.0 TFLs by Addo. The Minutemen collected a pair of turnovers during the game via an Isaiah Rodgers fumble recovery and a Bakhari Goodson interception return, the team's fifth consecutive game with multiple takeaways.

Logan Laurent finished 1-of-2 on field goal tries, which moved Laurent into sole possession of first place on the program's top-10 list for most field goals made all-time (32). He also converted all six extra point attempts for nine points on the afternoon.

FIU jumped to a 14-point lead with back-to-back game-opening touchdown drives. The Panthers were methodical in their first sequence and scored via a 12-yard Alex Gardner run on the ninth play of the series. FIU followed with a quick-strike drive that included a 72-yard Darrius Scott catch-and-run and a five-yard Shawndarrius Phillips touchdown run for a 14-0 lead halfway through the first quarter.

Massachusetts responded in the final seven-and-a-half minutes with scoring plays by Isabella and Young, and evened the game at 14-all headed into the second quarter.

Isabella was on the receiving end of a 24-yard endzone toss from Ford only 55 seconds after FIU's second touchdown. Isabella's 10th touchdown of the year capped a three-play drive, which included a 50-yard Young scamper.

Two UMass drives later, Young made it a 14-14 ballgame with his ninth score of the year. The Minutemen benefitted from a short field after Stone Wilson punted 32 yards to the FIU 45, but an interference penalty on the Panther brought the ball up to the 30 yard line. Three plays later, Young leaped over a pile at the goal line for the one-yard score.

The teams traded scoring plays in the second quarter, with FIU pushing in front before the Minutemen again rallied.

Maxwell put the Panthers back in front with 13 minutes, three seconds remaining in the quarter via a six-yard run play after McGough set up the short-yardage situation with a 32-yard rush. However, the lead only held for 3:04 of game clock before Massachusetts answered.

Using a seven-play drive, the combination of Young's efficiency on the ground and Ford's accuracy in the air resulted in the third Massachusetts touchdown. Young carried three times for 24 yards while Ford went 4-of-4 for 51 yards, including the 28-yard touchdown by Dingle.

The Panthers scored twice in the final two minutes of the opening half and turned a tie game into a 35-21 lead for the home side prior to the break. Gardner plunged in one from yard away with 1:49 to go before Singleton hauled in a 31-yard pass play with 37 seconds on the clock.

Massachusetts scored the opening 10 points of the third quarter via Laurent's 36-yard conversion and Breneman's fourth touchdown of the year. However, back within 35-31 of the Panthers, the defense faltered as FIU put up the next three scoring plays and turned the four point game into a 56-31 lead. Massachusetts was unable to rally closer than within 18 of tying the remainder of the way.

The game marks the completion of the 2017 season. Massachusetts finished with four wins, the most during the program's Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) tenure (2012-present). It also included head coach Mark Whipple's 60th victory (44-31, vs. Maine at Fenway Park), which made Whipple the program's all-time winningest coach. Whipple ended the year with 61 victories, including the later triumph at BYU.

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Scoreboard

Team Stats

Andrew Ford

Ross Comis

Players Mentioned

Jarell Addo

Bryton Barr

Adam Breneman

Jessie Britt

Steve Casali

Ross Comis

Brennon Dingle

Andrew Ford

Andy Isabella

Logan Laurent

Isaiah Rodgers

Marquis Young

Players Mentioned

Jarell Addo

Bryton Barr

Adam Breneman

Jessie Britt

Steve Casali

Ross Comis

Brennon Dingle

Andrew Ford

Andy Isabella

Logan Laurent

Isaiah Rodgers

Marquis Young

Scoreboard

University of Massachusets Athletics