FIU's problem is easy to see in the scores. The defense has kept games close: Long Island and New Mexico State scored 3 points each, and Florida Atlantic scored 16. The offense has been the issue. The Panthers haven't scored more than 24 in any of their last 5 games, and when an opponent gets to the mid-20s, FIU hasn't been able to keep up.
Long Island University20-3
The Middle Tennessee loss shows the pattern. Terrence Brown broke a 54-yard touchdown run late in the third quarter to make it 23-16, and Middle Tennessee led the rest of the way. FIU got within 3 when Kohl hit Sterling Joseph for a 21-yard touchdown with 6:06 to go. Then the Blue Raiders ran an 11-play, 71-yard drive and the Panthers never got the ball back. A 24-27 loss at Jacksonville State the game before went much the same way. FIU is good enough to stay in games and hasn't been able to finish them, which is how a team gets to 3-4 without being blown out.
Liberty has outscored its last 5 opponents 184-55 and won 3 of those games on the road. The Flames' last game against an FBS-level conference opponent ended 34-6, so it's hard to find a hole. The schedule is the honest caveat. Ball State, Delaware, Sam Houston and Kennesaw State aren't a gauntlet, and FIU's defense, which held 2 of its last 5 opponents to 3 points, is probably the most disruptive unit Liberty has seen in a while.
So the matchup is Liberty's offense against an FIU defense that has held up all season, and the Flames' defense against an offense that hasn't consistently scored 25. If FIU can keep this in the teens deep into the second half, it gets another chance to win a close one. If Liberty scores early like it has all month, the Panthers' offense doesn't look built to come back.