In what was one of their most disappointing losses in recent memory, the FAU Owls (2-2, 1-0 C-USA) fell 40-14 to the UCF Knights (2-10) last Saturday at FAU Stadium in Boca Raton, Fla.
In front of a record-breaking crowd of 30,991, the Owls came out of the locker room looking better than they have all season. After the defense forced the Knights to punt on the opening drive, the FAU offense quickly marched down the field on a six-play, 87-yard touchdown drive leaving them up by seven early.
After UCF quarterback tied the score at seven with a seven yard touchdown run, sophomore wide receiver LaJohntay Wester retook the lead for FAU with a four yard touchdown catch.
After the touchdown, however, the Owls collapsed from top to bottom. Following the score, the Owls offense wasn’t able to do much of anything, while the defense allowed UCF to score on five of the following eight drives, leaving the Knights with a 40-14 victory over FAU.
Here are three takeaways from the loss:
FAU isn’t a 2nd half team
Last Saturday was the second time FAU has blown a lead this season, coincidentally, it resulted in their second loss of the season.
In their week two loss to the Ohio Bobcats, FAU led by a touchdown with two minutes left in the second half before proceeding to allow Ohio to score 24 unanswered points. While the offense did rally late to shrink their deficit to three, the Owls ultimately fell 41-38 in a game they were favored in.
FAU found themselves in a similar situation on Saturday versus UCF.
At the end of the first quarter, not only were the Owls up a touchdown, they were playing some of the best football they’ve played all year. The offense was moving the ball very efficiently on the ground and through the air and the defense had already made multiple stops, leaving them ahead 14-7.
However, the Owls imploded from top to bottom shortly thereafter. After being up by seven, the defense allowed the UCF offense to go on a rampage, scoring 33 unanswered points. Meanwhile, the offense almost completely disappeared in the second half, gaining only 18 yards of total offense in the second half.
The Owls’ inability in the second half isn’t going to be a problem, it already is. They’ve already lost two games because of it.
Despite the opponent, good teams get better in the second half, and FAU simply doesn’t. If it’s not addressed, it will cause them to lose even more games in the future.
Ground and pound is your identity
While it may not have been what many expected, the first four games have proved that the “run the ball, control the clock” approach should be the offense’s identity.
On the Owls’ opening drive, which was easily their most efficient of the game, four of the six plays called were runs, and it resulted in a two minute touchdown drive which left the Knights completely on their heels, and the Owls up seven early.
On their second touchdown drive, which started with 5:09 left in the first , FAU took the same approach, running the ball on seven of the twelve plays. Once again it resulted in an efficient scoring drive, leaving them ahead 14-7 as the first quarter winded down.
Throughout the first quarter, FAU kept with the game plan of keeping the ball on the ground. Consequently, the Owls were ahead 14-7 at end of the first quarter and were winning the possession battle by 2:50, which we noted would be important.
After the first quarter, the game plan of running the ball started to get away from FAU, and as a result, the game started to get away from them as well.
FAU kept the ball on the ground 18 times of the 38 total plays (47.3%) they ran after the first quarter. Interestingly enough, after the first quarter the Owls’ offense scored zero points, lost the possession battle by a whopping 17 minutes, and gained only 126 total yards on offense. They had 170 yards of total offense in the first quarter.
They don’t have a shortage of running backs either. Larry McCammon III and Zuberi Mobley both have had a great start to the season, and although he has been dealing with injury, many expect Johnny Ford to return to last year’s form.
Secondary will be put to the test
Although they currently sit at 1-2, Purdue is a solid team and the strength of their team lies in the offense.
In their 32-29 loss to Syracuse last Saturday, Boilermakers’ senior wide receiver Charlie Jones torched the Syracuse defense for 11 catches, 188 yards, and a touchdown. Quarterback Aidan O’Connell finished the game throwing 39 completions for 424 yards and three touchdowns.
While they haven’t played bad through three games, this will arguably be the toughest test they face all season. With his performance against Syracuse and his 474 receiving yards and five touchdowns through three games, Jones has been making a name for himself and rising on draft boards. Senior tight end Payne Durham also had himself a game.
Defensive coordinator Todd Orlando’s 3-3-5 scheme matches up well with Purdue’s passing attack because it leaves an extra defensive back on the field, the nickel back, usually redshirt freshman cornerback Jayden Williams.
Orlando also has developed a habit of lining up Williams closer to the edge of the defensive line and sending him on a blitz through the first four games. If he decides to employ this tactic again against Purdue, it may help the defensive line, who’s still dealing with injuries, get extra pressure on O’Connell.