G5 Football Daily

Week 7 - FIU Panthers @ Liberty Flames: How to Watch, Preview, Time, Date, Storylines

FIU will look to get back to .500 with a win in Lynchburg

Kevin Barral

FIU Athletics
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Week seven is no easy task for the FIU Panthers as they travel up to Lynchburg, Virginia to take on the reigning Conference USA champion Liberty Flames, currently 4-0 on the season. The last time FIU took on the Flames, they fell by a final score of 38-6.

Here's everything you need you need to know about the Tuesday matchup between the two CUSA sides.

FIU Panthers (2-3, 1-0 Conference USA) @ Liberty Flames (4-0, 2-0 Conference USA)

Date: Tuesday, October 8

Time: 7:00 PM ET // 6:00 PM CT

TV: CBS Sports Network

Radio: fiusports.com // LFSN Radio (The Journey 88.3 FM)

RELATED: Conference USA Football Power Rankings - Week 6

Storylines

Midweek CUSA Football is Back

Last year was the first with Conference USA playing a midweek schedule in the month of October. On Tuesday, FIU and Liberty will be the only collegiate teams on TV.

"You have to adapt to the schedule and look at everything as Tuesday is Saturday and work at it from there," said FIU head coach Mike MacIntyre. "Our kids understood that and learned some of the new guys are kind of getting used to it. One of the things that we did this year is have a little bit of a break here. We had a few days off to make sure the kids got there, recovered and got themselves back."

Best Rush Offense in Conference USA

Amongst Conference USA, Liberty has the best rushing offense, averaging 218.5 yards per game. Running back Quinton Cooley is at the forefront of that, leading the conference with 371 yards and four touchdowns.

It's not just one running back that FIU will have to worry about as last year, the Flames had two 100-yard rushers against the Panthers. Along with Cooley, Billy Lucas has rushed for 271 yards and seven touchdowns this season. Cooley missed part of Liberty's win over UTEP, which allowed Lucas to become the featured back.

"They're really good," said FIU head coach Mike MacIntyre. "They do that to everybody and they're excellent runners. They're very physical runners. We have to be able to tackle them well. We've been working on that. They're guys you gotta wrap up and get down. You can't shoulder these guys down at all. Their offensive line does a great job of getting up to the second level and different things there."

Liberty Praises FIU Defensive Backs

On Thursday, Liberty head coach Jaime Chadwell met with the media to talk about their upcoming game against the Panthers and one thing he credited a lot were the defensive backs.

"I think they are well coached," said Chadwell. "They play extremely hard and I think defensively they've upgraded their talent. Their defensive backs are probably the best group of DBs in this league...They play well, smart and they're physical up front."

This season, FIU leads the conference with the most interceptions, two being taken back for a pick-six. Brian Blades III continues to be recognized nationally as the 22nd-best cornerback in the country according to Pro Football Focus.

Jenkins Taking Major Jump in Year Two

Through five weeks, FIU sophomore quarterback Keyone Jenkins has been towards the top of the conference in several notable categories. He is second amongst the conference in passing yards, leads in passing touchdowns and has the fourth best effeciency.

"He's seeing everything better," said MacIntyre. "He's more and more consistent with his drops and his footwork, which keeps you consistently throwing and has good confidence. We've got good players around him and our line's done a great job. We've improved there. So he has more confidence in what we're doing."

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Kevin Barral
KEVIN BARRAL

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