By Brett Shweky/Sports Director
With the Panthers trailing and 6:04 remaining left on the clock, wide receiver Maurice Alexander hauled in a seven-yard touchdown pass from quarterback James Morgan to cut the Indiana Hoosiers’ lead along with scoring his first career receiving touchdown.
Considering Alexander was a backup quarterback for FIU a season ago, much has changed for the former signal-caller.
Earlier this year on April 17, head coach Butch Davis announced that the redshirt junior would be moving over the wide receiver position.
“Once I made the decision, I felt like this is the best decision for me moving forward and helping the team win games this season,” said Alexander.
In his two-touchdown performance against UMass, Alexander may have justified his decision further when he caught his second receiving touchdown since switching to the position on a 38-yard pass from quarterback James Morgan.
The former quarterback also showcased his return skills in the game when he juked and maneuvered his way to a highlight reel touchdown on a 69-yard punt return.
Alexander became the first player in program history to score a receiving touchdown and a punt return touchdown in the same game.
T.Y. Hilton scored a receiving touchdown and kickoff return touchdown in the same game. However, the program’s all-time leading receiver never managed to do it with a punt return touchdown.
“When Maurice came to us and said that he liked to move positions and go to wide receiver, we thought that he potentially has the athletic skills to be a dynamic kid,” said head coach Butch Davis. “Whether it’s as a receiver or a returner.”
Before transitioning over to the wide receiver position, the redshirt junior only appeared in eight games for the Panthers as a quarterback.
During the Gasparilla Bowl last season, Alexander was thrown into action following the injury to 2017 starter Alex McGough.
He finished the game completing 16 of his 33 passes for 162 yards, zero touchdowns and two interceptions in route to a 28-3 defeat against the Temple Owls.
Following his first four games as a wide receiver, Alexander has displayed his quick development by ranking second amongst Panther receivers in touchdowns. C.J. Worton is first on the squad with three receiving touchdowns.
“The receivers do a phenomenal job pushing each other. We brought Maurice from the quarterback position, and I told coach before practice that it’s rare to see when a quarterback moves to receiver to have a lot of success,” Worton said. “You don’t see that very often, and he’s taken the challenge and run with it.”
While he attended Booker T. Washington High School, the 5-11, 180 lb speedster made his name by becoming the TECO Dade County Player of the Year in 2015.
The Class 4A First-Team All-State honoree led the Tornadoes to perfect 15-0 record and the state championship. He threw for 3,060 yards and 32 touchdowns while also rushing for 466 yards and seven touchdowns.
During his tenure, he was coached by former Tornadoes head coach and current Panthers’ running back coach Tim Harris, Jr.
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