One of the best defenses in the Group of Six is a unit you don't hear much about nationally. Its coordinator, Jovan Dewitt, even calls them a "no-name, faceless defense." But the FIU Panthers have put together impressive performances this season while attempting to build on the momentum started in 2025. The individual stats aren't eye-popping, but as a collective, FIU is ninth nationally in scoring defense, 12th in passing yards allowed per game, and 24th in yards per game allowed.
Their 3-3 start has seen every opponent except for Jacksonville State score 20 points or fewer. Now, as the faceless men look to the back half of their 2026 season, CBS Sports looks at how the unit was built and how it's powering FIU's success. FIU has been a program of unrealized potential since Mario Cristobal was fired after one bad season in 2012.
Cristobal went 7-6 with a conference title in 2010, then 8-5 in 2011, led by future pro receiver TY Hilton. Cristobal's journey led him to a national championship game appearance in South Florida -- but coaching the school a few miles away in Coral Gables. FIU backslid and languished between being below average and one of the worst teams in FBS.
Butch Davis, a different Miami coaching legend, came to wrest the program out of freefall and did for two seasons before leaving in a blaze of glory in 2021, publicly blasting school administration on the way out. That made way for Mike Macintyre, who took over in 2022 right as the NIL era became supercharged and just a few years after the transfer portal's inception. His staff found an intriguing proposition for team building.
Sure, perhaps they wouldn't be able to get a commitment from Deejay Holmes out of high school at powerhouse Pahokee High School. Holmes ended up signing with Ole Miss. But should he ever want to transfer home, they could be a landing spot.
That's exactly what happened as Holmes found that Ole Miss wasn't the right place for him. He transferred back ahead of the 2026 season and has been FIU's anchor. "Everyone at home can see me.
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