Panthers try to reload through recruiting

Nicholas Poblete/Panther Magazine

By Brett Shweky/Sports Director

 

With FIU losing many of their impact players due to graduation this season, the team will look upon their incoming recruits to make an immediate contribution for the following year.

Some of the big named players FIU will lose on offense are wide receiver Thomas Owens, quarterback Alex McGough, running back Alex Gardner, tight end Pharoah McKever, and left guard Jordan Budwig.

On the defensive side of the ball, defensive end Newton Salisbury, linebackers Anthony Wint, Treyvon Williams, Fred Russ, and defensive backs Brad Muhammad, Andrew Brown, Niko Gonzalez, and Bryce Canaday will also be graduating.

In total, the Panthers will have 20 seniors depart from the program, which will leave multiple holes to fill offensively and defensively.

So far for the 2018 recruiting class, FIU has accumulated 12 hard commits, nine of which are offensive players.

Coach Davis explained that if the team is able to sign 20 to 25 players this offseason, then it will help carry the program going forward.

“If we can find 20 to 25 guys (recruits) every single year that we feel are good enough to win, we’re going to have great teams,” said Davis.

At the moment, FIU is targeting an array of players to fill the holes on the roster.

Linebacker D’Andre Ragin and defensive end Joshua Sanders are two players, who are high on the FIU program and are considering playing their collegiate ball with the Panthers, according to 247sports.com.

Ragin is currently playing for the (11-2) St. Thomas Aquinas High School Raiders and is helping his team advance in the Florida High School Football Class 7A Playoffs.

He is a 6-3, 218 lb prospect, who can run a 40-yard dash in 4.66 seconds. Ragin is listed as a three-star recruit and the 85th linebacker in the nation, by 247sports.

The Opa Locka native is also receiving offers from Michigan State, Rutgers, and the University of South Florida

Sanders is a 6-5 weak-side defensive end, who is playing for the Life High School Mustangs in Waxahachie, Texas. 247sports list him as a three-star recruit and is 78th overall amongst weak-side defensive ends.

He recently visited FIU on Nov. 10, which might indicate that is strongly considering the Panthers. The Texas native is also fielding offers from the Illinois Fighting Illini, the Rice Owls, and the Tulane Green Wave.

Right now for FIU, the offensive side of the ball seems to be the strength of this recruiting class, due to the amount of offensive players that have committed to the program.

Wide receivers Ivan Thomas and Jordan Underwood are primed to help the Panthers ease the loss of current receiver Thomas Owens, who led the team in receiving with 59 receptions for 887 yards and six touchdowns this season.

Thomas is a 6-4 playmaker out of Miami Palmetto High School and announced his commitment to the Panthers back in July. The three-star recruit will add extra height to the FIU receiving core and could become a red zone target for the team in the immediate future.

Miami, Rutgers, and Syracuse have also offered Thomas scholarships, however Thomas has been firm with his pledge to FIU.

Underwood also committed to the Panthers back in July and will look to add a different dimension to the FIU passing game.

The 6-0, 174 lb prospect will add necessary speed to the team’s offense. Underwood runs a 4.44 in the 40-yard dash and completes the shuttle run under 4.2 seconds.

The Olympia High School receiver has received additional offers from Conference USA rivals UAB and Middle Tennessee State.

With National Signing Day quickly approaching, the FIU coaching staff will look to build upon their 2018 class and finish out the recruiting season on a high note.

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