BOCA RATON – Considered by many a savant on the offensive side of the ball, Lane Kiffin spent part of his first practice as FAU football coach doing something he hadn’t done in the past: watching defense.
A former head coach at Tennessee, USC and with the NFL’s Oakland Raiders, and most recently the offensive coordinator at Alabama, Kiffin has always focused on the offensive side of the ball.
“That’s really kind of the difference this time from the other head coaching jobs is not running the offense,” Kiffin said. “This is the first time I’ve ever been in practice I haven’t called the plays the whole time – as the head coach or as an assistant.”
The fifth football coach in FAU history, Kiffin handed the offensive controls over to former Baylor offensive coordinator Kendal Briles for the Owls’ first spring practice, which occurred under sunny skies on the practice fields at the Oxley Center on Tuesday morning.
While Briles ran the offense through its paces, Kiffin took time to offer some coaching advice to wide receiver John Mitchell, chat with FAU president John Kelly on the sidelines and every so often walked over to the defensive field.
“That was strange but that’s done on purpose so I can leave offensive views and I can go defense and special teams and have a better grasp on everything,” Kiffin said.
To get get that grasp, Kiffin needed to be quick.
Beginning with Carl Pelini, the program’s second head coach, the Owls have wanted to pick up the tempo in practice.
On Tuesday, FAU set its fastest pace yet. Where as previous regimes emphasized speed getting into and out of drills, Kiffin’s crew placed an emphasis on speed within the drills, too.
“I think that kind of shocked some of the guys,” Kiffin said.
Shocked or not, returning players definitely took notice.
“It was a lot faster,” guard Roman Fernandez said. “We’re in a lot better shape than we were in last year I think.”
Along with Kiffin and his staff, which includes brother Chris as the defensive coordinator and father Monte as an adviser, Tuesday also marked the unveiling of FAU’s newest prized recruit.
De’Andre Johnson signed with FAU out of East Mississippi CC, where he played after being kicked out of Florida St. when video emerged that appeared to show him punching a girl in a bar.
Technically the first official recruit of the Kiffin era – he signed with FAU the day after Kiffin was introduced as head coach – Johnson already intended to come to Boca Raton even before the Owls announced their new head coach.
Johnson likes what he’s seen so far out of his new coach.
“Coach Kiffin, he doesn’t really say too much, but when he talks you listen,” Johnson said. “Whatever he says is like gold. He says something, you drop what you are doing and you listen.”
A dual-threat quarterback who threw for 2,646 yards and 26 touchdowns against only six interceptions and also led East Mississippi in rushing with 846 yards last season, Johnson spent much of the morning firing darts to receivers across the middle and lofting accurate deep balls with a soft touch.
“I think he handled himself for he first day well with command of the offense – made some good throws, took off and ran when it was there,” Kiffin said.
Johnson is battling incumbent Jason Driskel for the starting quarterback role. A redshirt junior, Driskel started 11 games last season for the Owls, who went 3-9.
Last year at this time Driskel was locked in a battle with Daniel Parr for that starting spot. Parr will not be part of the battle this spring following offseason foot surgery.
“It’s an open competition,” Kiffin said “I think a lot of you will assume it’s not, but it is.”
FAU returns to the practice field on Thursday. The Owls will practice every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday leading up to their April 22 spring game.
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