Above Photo Gallery Courtesy Former FAU Student Max Jackson. See His Work Here.
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BOX SCORE: FAU 69, North Texas 31
BONUS PHOTO GALLERY: Fan Shots
YET ANOTHER PHOTO GALLERY: Pregame and Game Shots
BOCA RATON – For the first time this season, FAU showed exactly how potent the Kendal Briles-Baylor offense can be.
For the second consecutive game the Owls set a program scoring record. In Saturday’s 69-31 victory over North Texas, the Owls did so without being one dimensional.
Quarterback Jason Driskel and a struggling Owls passing game broke out in a big way. Driskel, the redshirt junior starter, threw for 357 yards in less than three quarters of play. The Owls didn’t even need to put the ball in the air during the fourth quarter.
FAU scored on its first 11 possessions before turning the ball over on downs late.
“I didn’t know it was 11 times in a row, but I know we didn’t punt,” Driskel said. “We had a pretty good night. We executed well and it showed.”
Driskel came out slinging, completing passes on four of the Owls’ six plays before turning the drive over to Devin Singletary.
He completed nine of his first 12 passes before finally connecting on the big one – a 69-yard touchdown pass to Willie Wright.
“That was relieving,” Driskel said. “We’d been missing that and it was no secret that we’d been missing that. We hit one. Willie ran a good route. They put a safety on him and that’s a great match-up in our regard. Gave him a chance to go run it down and he did. It’s a good play.”
A true freshman, Wright caught eight passes for 141 and that touchdown in his biggest game to date as an Owl. Driskel and tight end Harrison Bryant connected seven times for 69 yards and a touchdown.
Daniel Parr started the first three FAU games this season. Searching for a more dynamic passing game coach Lane Kiffin turned to Driskel, last year’s incumbent.
The Owls averaged about 150 passing yards through the air in Driskel’s first three games, partially because Driskel and the Owls’ wide receivers struggled to connect and partially because, with Devin Singletary, Buddy Howell and company running wild, FAU didn’t need to throw the ball.
Coming off a bye week, what finally made the passing game click this week?
“I’m not sure,” Driskel said. “Obviously more reps in practice helped. Me giving the guys chances helped. They can’t do anything if I don’t give them a chance to catch the ball. We executed today.”
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