By Pete Pelegrin
Twitter: @Petepelegrin

During FIU's scrimmage Saturday morning at the new football practice fields, an FIU fan mentioned that Anthony Gaitor was having a good scrimmage. To which another observer said that Anthony Gaitor last played for FIU in 2010.

The fan meant Tony Gaiter was having a good day catching the football and not Anthony Gaitor, who is one of the top defensive backs in FIU football history.

Tony Gaiter is the current Panthers sophomore receiver and spells his last name differently from Anthony Gaitor, who has the second most interceptions in FIU history, and is currently playing in the CFL.

Still, Tony Gaiter wouldn't mind having the type of career that Anthony Gaitor had at FIU and end up being drafted to the NFL like Gaitor was by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2011.

"I got to meet Anthony this summer when he came to work out with us here at FIU," Gaiter said. "I didn't get to go against him running routes but I saw how well he played at corner and he gave us some tips."

Gaiter has had a solid training camp thus far, including several catches in Saturday's scrimmage -- one of which was an 80-yard touchdown pass from Alex McGough. Gaiter made a move on the safety and sprinted to pay dirt.

"Gaiter stuck the safety good on play action and got vertical and he was gone," McGough said. "He's got some football smarts. He really studies the game. He's gotten so much better in the route running and the feel of the route."

Coming out of Miami Westminster Christian before last season, Gaiter caught 12 passes for 101 yards as he adjusted to college football in his freshman year. One area where he thought he had to get better before this season was strength and conditioning. At 5-9, 170 pounds last season, Gaiter wanted to add some muscle for 2017. He did so gaining 10 pounds in the offseason.

"I feel I'm in better shape than last year," Gaiter said. "I got a little faster and stronger."

The football instincts have always been there for Gaiter. His father, Tony Gaiter III, was a receiver for the New England Patriots and San Diego Chargers in the NFL and often works with the FIU receiver.

"He makes sure that my head is in the right place," Gaiter said of his father. "He tells me not to worry about my mistakes, focus on the next play. We work on routes on the weekends when I have time. He will tweak some little things."

Gaiter is focused on developing into one of the more dependable receivers for the Panthers. With tight end Jonnu Smith gone to the Tennessee Titans, FIU is looking for more pass catchers to take away the defensive focus from No. 1 receiver Thomas Owens.

The work off the field has been paying off for Gaiter on the field.

"[FIU offensive coordinator Rich] Skrosky says that Gaiter will be a good coach one day because he's always asking questions," McGough said. "I agree. For instance, he'll say to me if there are two high and the will linebacker blitzes then I'm going to do this. If you see that then you know where I'm going to go. That really helps because you feel like you are in his head and he's in my head. It's a comfortable feeling when you have that."

Besides playing at receiver, Gaiter is among the candidates to return punts and kickoffs this season. He is one of the quickest players on the team and has done well on special teams.

"Tony's a very conscientious kid, probably one of the smartest guys in our group," FIU receivers coach Aubrey Hill said. "He knows inside and outside receiver. He catches the ball well and does a good job at punt returner, kick return. We're really hoping he has a breakout season this year with some consistency and makes some plays."

And then fans will know Tony Gaiter as well as they do Anthony Gaitor.