Panthers QB Joe Pesansky earns his Miami moment with homecoming heroics

Shortly after defeating Liberty in overtime in his second start as a Panther, Florida International quarterback Joe Pesansky proclaimed to the camera, with his teammates behind him, that he “is in the greatest city in the world.”

Pesansky went from being hoisted in the air by his teammates to rejoicing with friends and family to then meeting the media for his postgame press conference in a matter of minutes. He admitted at the time that he was “still coming down from the high.”

”Definitely one of the most exciting moments of my life,” he said.

The Tampa native spent four seasons in the FCS circuit with Holy Cross before transferring to FIU. He spent much of the season as the backup quarterback with a few minutes of playing time here and there. He came into the midweek road contest at Missouri State and led a touchdown drive to put the Panthers within a score in the final two minutes.

“That’s the luxury of having a veteran guy,” FIU head coach Willie Simmons said. “When we signed Joe this past January, we were excited because we were getting a guy who played a lot of college snaps and started all last year. And so knowing [Keyone Jenkins] was the incumbent and coming into the season as a starter, you wanted some security at the position, and Joe’s given us that.”

That was the last time FIU suffered a loss this season.

Since naming Pesansky the starter, the Panthers have won two straight games and are one win away from their first bowl berth since 2019, a season highlighted by a rare victory over the Miami Hurricanes. The Panthers host C-USA leader Jacksonville State on Saturday and close out the season on the road at Sam Houston State the next week.

”I’m just so excited for my teammates and this team,” Pesansky said. “This place hasn’t been to a bowl game in a while. Obviously, we’re not there yet, but it’s very feasible.”

Pesansky became the first-ever FIU football player to account for five touchdowns in one game (four passing, one rushing) in the Panthers’ 56-30 road win over Middle Tennessee. In a 34-27 win over Liberty, he completed 24 of 34 passes for 206 yards and two touchdowns in his first career overtime start.

“He drove the car,” Simmons said. “Like we say, you’ve got a lot of great pieces around you. You don’t have to do anything extraordinary, just drive the car. And he’s been driving it perfectly, and the offense has been clicking with him there.”

During that crucial period, Pesansky went from falling down on the first snap to throwing a dart in the end zone to redshirt senior receiver Maguire Anderson for his first career touchdown.

“That was all coaching,” Pesansky said. “[FIU offensive coordinator Nick Coleman] told me on either Tuesday or Wednesday, he goes, ‘If they’re in cover zero and we run that play, you’re gonna throw it to the guy over the ball in the middle of the field.’ And I lined up, I saw the look, I knew exactly where I was going with the ball. Maguire knew exactly what to do, and that’s coaching.”

Origins

Despite being from Tampa, Pesansky was born in West Chester, PA, and grew up a Philadelphia Eagles fan watching games with his father. He comes from an athletic family, as his sister was a rower at Alabama, and his brother, Peter, currently plays for North Carolina as an offensive lineman.

Unlike his brother, Pesansky was a “small, skinny kid” who didn’t grow until his high school days. His friends steered him from running cross country to joining the football team at Jesuit High School in Tampa. In three years as a starter, he led Jesuit to a 29-7 record and threw over 6,700 career passing yards with 80 touchdowns.

“I kind of had a weird path to football,” Pesansky said.

Pesansky originally saw himself entering the sport as an aspiring broadcaster, but watching the 2019 LSU Tigers winning the national championship with Joe Burrow under center inspired him to strive for a life as a Division I collegiate quarterback.

“He was the one who inspired me to be a Division I quarterback and really want to take this thing to the next level,” Pesansky said.

Up Next

Jacksonville State enters the Panthers’ final home game of the season undefeated in C-USA play and on a five-game winning streak. Every game has been close for the Gamecocks, but their powerful rushing attack usually wins the day. JSU averages 260.2 rushing yards per game, which is the fifth highest in the nation. Junior running back Cam Cook’s 1,313 yards is behind only Missouri’s Ahmad Hardy for the FBS lead.

10 FIU seniors, including Pesansky, will be honored on Senior Day this Saturday.