Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Paths to Senior Night special for 3 linemen
Bain, Riles, Diaz excited for honor at Saturday’s game
BOCA RATON – Senior Night at Florida Atlantic will be special in different ways for a few of the Owls offensive linemen Saturday at FAU Stadium.
For fifth-year senior Reggie Bain, it’ll be his 49th career start with the program when he lines up at left tackle with the first-team offense. For Antonio Riles and Junior Diaz, they’ve played college football just as long, but only this season at FAU.
“I don’t know what to expect because I ain’t never done it before, but I think it’ll be special,” Bain said of what it will feel like ahead of the Owls’ 6 p.m. kickoff against Charlotte. “Just everything put together.
“I don’t think it’s going to hit me until I’m leaving, I see my family and I realize that could be my last one.”
For Riles, although he transferred to FAU from Florida as a graduate student just to play this final season, the bond he developed with fellow Owls still has him feeling like he’s celebrating a longer tenure.
“The offensive line group, I ain’t never really been that close to an offensive line group like this. Love my guys at Florida, but I feel like we got a lot closer — me and the offensive line,” said Riles, the Owls’ starting right guard.
“It’s going to hit me. It’s going to hit everybody. We put in a lot of work. Even though [I] came in a little late, we woke up – 4:30 in the morning. We put a lot of work in together. That’s a long chapter. 2018 has been a long year.”
He’ll also just appreciate it from a football perspective and love of the game.
“You always hear people talking about how they wish they could strap up again,” Riles said. “These ain’t the things that you take for granted. I’m not trying to be the person that takes for granted.”
Riles was actually sent out with a senior event his final home game with the Gators, so it’ll be his second.
Players are also motivated to give themselves a chance to make it so Saturday night isn’t their last game overall.
At 5-6, FAU would become bowl eligible with a sixth win.
“I don’t how I’m going to feel,” said Diaz, who was a grad transfer from Tulane ahead of this season. “It definitely sucks that it’s going to be my last [home] game, but I’m trying to go out with a bang.”
Owls pick up RB commit:
FAU’s running back success this season is rubbing off on recruits interest in the program.
The Owls picked up a commitment from Drexlan
Allen, a back from Hattiesburg High in Mississippi. The three-star 2019 prospect, according to 247 Sports, tweeted out a picture announcing his commitment on Monday and wrote out a message on Twitter on Tuesday.
“I would like to thank all the school[s] that [have] recruited me,” Allen wrote. “I’m announcing that I’m officially ending my recruitment. 100% committed to Florida Atlantic University!” He visited FAU on Sept. 8 for the home opener against Air Force. FAU now has seven commitments in its 2019 class, with Allen being the first from outside the state of Florida.
Kevin Smith puts the
pads on: FAU running backs coach Kevin Smith was a pretty good player in his day, and he seemed to relive some of it with his coaching regimen at Tuesday’s practice.
Smith, who played collegiately at UCF before he made it as a running back in the NFL for the Detroit Lions from 2008 through 2012, was seen wearing a No. 24 FAU jersey with pads underneath as he coached his backs during positionspecific drills.