Fleming looks ahead and puts 2013 behind him

Damien Fleming knows what it’s like to be on top of his game.  The senior quarterback has won MVP awards for the Atlanta Football Classic, MEAC/SWAC Challenge, Prince Hall Shriners Diabetes Classic and the Florida Classic. But, near the end of last season, it all flashed in front of his eyes as a season-ending foot injury sidelined him for the rest of the season and most of Spring practice this year.

As a true freshman, he played in nine games, and won the starting position a third of the way in, throwing for 1,622 yards.  His dual threat on the ground made him one of the most feared quarterbacks in the conference.  As a sophomore, Fleming passed at 70-percent accuracy, totaling 2,157 yards.  His status as a star in the league became obvious as he sliced through defenses and made a name for himself.

Last season, a new offense and new scheme led to frustration as Fleming and the Rattler offense struggled to grasp the system. Connecting on the field was a major issue as the receivers were plagued with dropped passes. Fleming, was selected prior to the season as the MEAC Co-Offensive Player of the Year. He was captain of the team and ready to have an excellent season, when the struggles hampered his progress.

He started the season with a win in the MEAC/SWAC Challenge in a 27-10 win over Mississippi Valley State.  Fleming ran for the first score of the game in the first quarter. In total, he passed for 110 yards and ran for 38, earning him MEAC/SWAC MVP honors.  To Fleming, that is all a distant memory. From there it was downhill as the Rattlers struggled mightily for the remainder of the season.

“Knowing that I have those credentials gives me a lot of motivation.  I know it, but I can’t really even think about it.  I’m just going out here to play every game,” Fleming said.

After being relegated to second team pre-season All-MEAC, Fleming is not fazed by the challenges ahead of him.  “It really doesn’t matter what everyone else has to say, I’m here to lead my team,” Fleming said. 

Head Football Coach Earl Holmes echoes Fleming’s sentiment.

“We have made a commitment to protect Damien with a better offensive line.  As coaches, we also had to bring in some talent to compliment him.  He now has some talent around him as we’ve added some talented and experienced linemen in front of him to give him the best opportunity to be successful,” Holmes added.

The fact that Fleming may be under some teams’ radars is fine with Holmes. 

“We know what caliber of player he is and this just adds fuel to his fire.  We want him to get back to just being Damien.  Last year was rough for all of us, but he’s excited about the talent that we are surrounding him with,” Holmes said.

Fleming feels good about where he is at the moment. 

“I know I’m far ahead of where I was last year.  The schemes are now second nature to me, whereas last year, it was all new to me.  Our quarterbacks and receivers worked hard over the Summer on our own to make sure that we will be synchronized when it’s time to play.  With the added linemen and new receivers we’ve added, I feel more comfortable that I’m going to have time to make the throws and when I do, we have guys that can catch it,” Fleming said.

Initially recruited by Vanderbilt, the Commodores went through a coaching change that allowed offensive coordinator Quinn Gray to sign Fleming to the Rattler squad. The Jacksonville Ribault alum feels honored to be in this position to start this season. 

“Missing the last two games, missing the Florida Classic, missing the entire Spring, it all made me hungrier.  The injury I had to my foot, really made me appreciate this game.  I’m glad God is enabling me to get back on the field, so I’m going to take advantage of that,” he concluded.