Football Faces Bobcats on Senior Night

LAKELAND, Fla.- Southeastern (6-3) will look to conclude their season with a winning 3-2 Sun Conference record as they host No. 17 ranked St. Thomas University on Saturday at 7 p.m.
 
The Fire have dominated in their last two contests, taking the 41-13 victory from Florida Memorial and the 44-7 win against Warner University on the road.
 
Southeastern has outscored their opponents in every quarter thus far this season with their largest scoring margin falling in the second quarter as they outscore their competitors 81-37.
 
The rushing and passing game have been equally successful for the Fire this season as they average 188.1 rushing yards per game and 218 passing yards per game with 17 rushing and 11 passing touchdowns.
 
Quarterback Kaylan Wiggins leads the Fire in both rushing and passing with 501 total rushing yards and seven touchdowns and 1,461 total passing yards and 10 touchdowns. The graduate transfer has thrown just two interceptions in 190 attempts.
 
Shane McLaughlin has been the top target in the air with 554 receiving yards on 24 attempts for an average of 23.1 yards per completion.
 
On defense, the Fire have come up with seven interceptions and eight fumble recoveries including three takeaways against the Royals. Khalid Scott and Joseph Bonga each have recorded two interceptions while Marc Viechec and Eddie Davis each have two fumble recoveries.
 
Viechec leads the team in tackles with 77 for an average of 9.6 tackles per game while Ryan Cunningham sits at 8.4 tackles per game with 67 total. The senior posted a career-high 20 tackles on October 8^th against the Warriors while the sophomore's career-high came on October 22^nd against Keiser when he tallied 18 tackles.
 
The Bobcats hold a record of 8-2 and 4-1 in the SUN with their only conference loss coming against the receiving votes Keiser University by a score of 36-31 at home. St. Thomas opened their season with a loss to NCAA FCS institution Butler University by a score of 31-26.
 
During their current four-game win streak, the Bobcat offense has outscored their competitors 182-72, conceding no more than 20 in a contest.
 
STU has found most of their offensive success on the ground as they average 231.7 rushing yards per game with 27 rushing touchdowns. Their five yards per rush is good enough to rank ninth in the NAIA. Reigning NAIA National Player of the Week, Rontavious Farmer, captains the run game with 1,361 total rushing yards and 13 touchdowns as he averages 155.2 rushing yards per game.
 
In the air, the Bobcats average 210 yards per game and have thrown for 16 touchdowns, 12 of which have come from Tyler Thomas. Thomas has thrown for 1,564 yards in his 107 completions, averaging 173.7 passing yards per contest.
 
Fourteen forced fumbles and nine fumble recoveries on the defensive side has aided in the overall Bobcat success. Sidney Porter and Nicholas Engler lead the defense as Porter has tallied 64 total tackles, three interceptions, two pass breakups, and a forced fumble while Engler has recorded eight sacks, six pass breakups, three fumble recoveries, and a forced fumble.
 
The Fire and the Bobcats met earlier this season with the Bobcats taking the 34-14 victory on AutoNation Field on September 24^th for their first win over the Fire in program history.
 
To purchase tickets to Senior Night, go to https://fire.seu.edu/sports/2019/7/29/ticket-central.aspx.