FMU Eying A Victory, Hosts Warner University Saturday

AT A GLANCE
FMU Lions (0-6, 0-2) vs. Warner University Royals (2-3, 0-1)
When: Saturday, October 9, 2021
Where: Miami, Fla. | Nathaniel "Traz" Powell Stadium
Kickoff: 1:30 p.m.
Last Meeting: First Meeting
Tickets: Link
Live Stream: Link
Live Stats: Link

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – Florida Memorial University is getting close.

Close to breaking through the tangible and inherent obstacles in the program's way, close to fully establishing a culture of competition through successful recruiting and development, and close to capturing the program's first win in 63 years.

The Lions hope that they can snap this season's losing streak and allow their fans to experience something that their parents likely weren't even alive to see – a Florida Memorial football victory – when they host Warner University Saturday afternoon at Nathaniel "Traz" Powell Stadium.

Saturday's game is set for a 1:30 p.m. kickoff and will open to home and visiting fans. General admission tickets start at $5 dollars with special 3-ticket family packs available for $10 dollars. Attending fans will be asked to wear facial coverings while inside the stadium and maintain social distance when possible.

The game, which will be the second straight home game for the Lions and the second of a three-game home stand through the month of October, will also be streamed live and can be viewed for free via the FMU Athletics Streaming Portal.

FMU (0-6, 0-2 Mid-South Conference Sun Division) came within five points and a turnover on its final possession of upsetting No. 6 Keiser University this past weekend. Powered by sophomore quarterback Antoine Williams' three rushing touchdowns – a modern-era record for most rushing touchdowns in a single game – the Lions held multiple leads and had the ball with just over a minute left in the game with a chance to potentially score the go-ahead touchdown before ultimately falling 31-26.

Unfortunately, Williams' big day was cut short when he was forced to leave the game before the Lions' final offensive drive with a lower extremity injury. Upon further evaluation of the injury, Williams' status for Saturday's game against Warner was downgraded from questionable to doubtful and opened the door for freshman quarterback Demarcus McEachern to get the first start of his college career.

McEachern, a dual-threat signal caller from Coconut Creek High School, can make plays with his feet and his arm but needs to gain experience to sharpen his decision-making.

To take the load off of McEachern, Florida Memorial head coach Tim "Ice" Harris Sr. could turn to his stable of running backs and steadily improving run game. Freshman George Young has emerged as the team's lead back – evident by his setting new modern-era single-game records for carries, rushing yards, and total yards from scrimmage – while Akin Liverpool, Marcus Barthell, and Adrian Gray all could provide productive carries.

Florida Memorial will be taking on a Warner University team that comes into the weekend as a program in a bit of flux.

Not only are the Royals (2-3, 0-1) coming in off a lopsided loss to St. Thomas University, but they're also coming into the game without their head coach. Warner University head coach Kirk Talley announced his resignation from the position earlier this week following the team's loss to the Bobcats. Talley, who led the team for two seasons, offered no explanation for the abrupt departure in the release from the school and Warner University's Athletic Director quickly named linebackers coach and director of football operations Michael Piasecki the team's interim head coach.

The Royals run a more pass-heavy offense, quarterbacked by senior Michael Young. Young has passed for at least 210 yards in each of Warner's past three games but has shown a propensity for turning over the ball through the air.

Because their offense will be operated by a first-time starter, the Lions defense could do its part by forcing Young into turnovers to give the FMU offense shorter fields to drive or even create points on their own – like they did last week against Keiser when freshman defensive back Terry Smith returned an interception 35 yards for a score, a new modern-era record.

Coach Harris said that he wants his team to just focus on the execution of its game plan and not on who is or isn't on the field.

"I don't want our guys to get caught up thinking that [Warner University] is going to be down or affected by the [resignation] of its coach and don't want them to feel down because we may be playing without our usual No. 1 quarterback," Harris said. "We have to do things to help each unit on both sides of ball…we have to sustain some drives on offense to keep our defense fresh and we have to make some plays defensively to put our offense in the best position to succeed."

"If we do that," Harris began. "I think we will find ourselves in a good position Saturday."

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Players Mentioned

#2 George Young: RB; 5' 11"; Freshman

#5 Akin Liverpool: RB; 5' 8"; Freshman

#10 Terry Smith: DB; 5' 10"; Freshman

#12 Antoine Williams: QB; 6' 3"; Sophomore

#17 Demarcus McEachern: QB; 5' 10"; Freshman

#21 Marcus Barthell: RB; 5' 9"; Freshman

Players Mentioned

#2 George Young
: 5' 11"; Freshman
: RB

#5 Akin Liverpool
: 5' 8"; Freshman
: RB

#10 Terry Smith
: 5' 10"; Freshman
: DB

#12 Antoine Williams
: 6' 3"; Sophomore
: QB

#17 Demarcus McEachern
: 5' 10"; Freshman
: QB

#21 Marcus Barthell
: 5' 9"; Freshman
: RB

Florida Memorial University Athletics

Scoreboard

Players Mentioned

Players Mentioned