FIU Football To Honor 15 Seniors On Saturday

FIU will honor 15 seniors prior to Saturday's game against Middle Tennessee State

Kevin Barral | 3 Hours Ago

Seniors Jojo Evans, Jamal Potts and CJ Christian all pictured / FIU Athletic

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FIU Panthers

FIU will be honoring 15 seniors prior to Saturday's season finale against the Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders.

Linebacker, Elijah Anderson-Taylor

Anderson-Taylor, a Northern Colorado transfer, joined the Panthers before the 2023 season. He started in 11 games, posting 46 total tackles (23 solo/23 assisted), but it wasn't until this current season that the redshirt senior took off. With 85 total tackles (34 solo/51 assisted), Anderson-Taylor is fifth amongst Conference USA in total tackles.

Safety, CJ Christian

Christian joined FIU after one season at Iowa Central Community College and was limited to five games in 2022 due to an injury. In 2023, Christian played in 11 games, posting 55 total tackles (35 solo/20 assisted) along with three interceptions which led the team.

In 2024, Christian has been one of the best safeties in Conference USA with 75 total tackles (36 solo/39 assisted), two tackles for loss and one interception. Christian is one of nine players with an interception and finds himself with fourth most total tackles amongst the team.

Defensive lineman, Giovanni Davis

Davis transferred over from UT Martin this offseason and in 11 games at FIU, he's posted 31 total tackles (18 solo/13 assisted), two tackles for loss and a sack. He also saw some time at linebacker when FIU took on Jacksonville State, starting in place of Travion Barnes.

Safety, Jojo Evans

A transfer from Kent State, Evans did not see any action with FIU in 2023 due to the transfer rules which no longer exist. In his lone season at Kent State, Evans posted 83 total tackles (55 solo/28 assisted), four tackles for loss and one interception.

In 2024, Evans is having a career-year with 88 total tackles (48 solo/40 assisted) which is fourth most in Conference USA. He also has three tackles for loss and two interceptions. Evans is well on his way to making an All-Conference team.

Running back, Lexington "Flex" Joseph

Joseph remains the lone player from the last FIU team that went bowling. The Panthers running back went through a coaching and Athletic Director change, but still stuck through it all. This season, he has 288 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 71 attempts.

Punter, Daton Montiel

Montiel transferred to FIU after spending two seasons at Marshall where he appeared in only two games. He joined the Panthers in 2021 where he's been a mainstay ever since. He's been named to the Ray Guy award watchlist in 2022, 2023 and 2024.

He's punted for 7,802 yards in 194 attempts. In his time at FIU, 2024 will mark the least amount of yards he's punted for, which in the grand scheme of things is a good thing. He set a career high in 2022 with 2,907 punting yards.

Defensive Lineman, Jeramy Passmore

After spending two seasons at Indiana, Passmore transferred over to FIU looking for more consistent playing time. It's safe to say that he's found enough playing time, posting 43 total tackles (12 solo/31 assisted) in 2022. Overall, he has 119 total tackles (44 solo/75 assisted) along with 11 tackles for loss and five sacks.

Defensive Back, Jamal Potts

Potts is an interesting player. Standing at 6'2," 193 pounds, he was a pretty verstile player. Potts is having a career year in 2024, posting 77 total tackles (38 solo/39 assisted), four tackles for loss, one sack and one interception.

Kicker, Alejandro Prado

Prado transferred over from St. Thomas University. He wasn't supposed to be taking field goals for FIU at all this season with Chase Gabriel coming back for another season. After Gabriel went down, Prado stepped in and thus far has gone five for seven on field goals and to those who may not know, also has five total tackles (four solo/one assisted).

Offensive lineman, Ben Shellenback

Shellenback, a transfer from Tusculum has seen action in 10 games this season, missing their most recent game against Kennesaw State.

Defensive lineman, Marquez Tatum

Prior to joining FIU, Tatum spent time at Grambling State, Mississippi Gulf Coast and Pearl River. In 2023, Tatum only played one game after suffering an injury in their season opener to Louisisna Tech. This season, Tatum has posted 14 total tackles (four solo/ten assisted).