Every Sunday during the football season OwlAccess.com writers Chuck King and Jake Elman and Matt dissect the previous day’s FAU football game in a feature we call “Four Down Territory.” Here’s our analysis of FAU’s 42-24 loss to Old Dominion.
BIGGEST SURPRISE
King: Two players, wide receiver Kalib Woods and linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair, attributed the Owls’ second half collapse to themselves and their teammates being physically tired. As honest as that excuse was, it was also disturbing. Players wear down this late in the season, but this was supposed to be the best conditioned, best hydrated, most diet conscious team the Owls have ever fielded. Second half struggles have become the norm for FAU this season. Do the Owls need to reconsider what they’re doing in the conditioning program this offseason?
Elman: The lack of explosiveness from Devin Singletary in the second half. With the way Motor had played in the first half alone, guessing that the American Heritage product wouldn’t even have gained positive yardage in the final 30 minutes seemed an impossible thought, but that’s exactly what happened. Did Old Dominion’s defense properly make all of the adjustments needed to stop one of the hottest running backs in college football, or was it simply a case of a true freshman finally feeling the effects of so many touches in recent weeks?
PLAYER OF THE GAME
King: Well, ODU quarterback David Washington certainly had a night to remember, throwing for 416 yards and five touchdowns. So did FAU running back Buddy Howell, setting the FAU single season rushing TD mark with his 12th of the season. Anytime someone breaks a record held by Alfred Morris, it’s something special. But Singletary had a better overall night than Howell, rushing for 89 yards and two scores. Great vision. Surprising power. Fun to watch.
Elman: David Washington, take your prize. After putting up 437 yards of total offense without a turnover, it’s hard to argue against Washington be named Player of the Game. As for FAU, tackles may seem like a meaningless statistic to some because it means the opposing quarterback is throwing someone’s way a lot, but Azeez-Al Shaair and his 12 tackles were a different story. Despite briefly leaving for an injury, Al-Shaair made plays all around the field and with Trey Hendrickson playing in his final collegiate game next week, the sophomore linebacker will be needed to continue his leadership role in 2017 and beyond.
CONTROVERSIAL CALL
King: As surprising as it sounds considering that the insertion of Daniel Parr into the lineup for his scheduled third series of the game drained, at least momentarily, FAU’s offensive momentum, the Owls needed to give Parr more playing time. FAU isn’t playing for a bowl. FAU coach Charlie Partridge has said for weeks that he wants to develop Parr for the future. Three plays on Saturday, and 13 total since Parr started that game three weeks ago against Rice, isn’t going to cut it. If development is the plan, commit to it. Parr needed to play in the second half, too, or not at all.
Elman: With how well the offense was moving after the first two drives, it seemed that the trend of switching quarterbacks on drive number three would halt on Saturday night to let Driskel continue getting reps. This surprisingly turned out not to be the case as Parr came in, threw one pass, and Driskel returned on the next drive. Parr getting snaps isn’t what ends up on this list, but it’s instead taking Driskel out when the offense is so red hot and effective. To his credit, though, Driskel didn’t lost his focus despite the brief benching and made some great throws in the game’s final three quarters.
EXTRA POINT
King: FAU dropped to No. 122 (out of 128 teams) in total defense after allowing 623 yards of total offense to ODU. The Owls are allowing 36.4 points per game, No. 113 nationally. The 269 passing yards per game FAU allows places the Owls at No. 111 in the nation. The 222.7 yards on the ground is only good enough for the No. 107 ranking. By any measure, this is a bad defense. And it doesn’t seem capable of improving.
Elman: Way back in early September after the Miami loss, Partridge praised his players for not being content despite fighting well for two halves against Miami in what turned out to be a loss. Listening to Kalib Woods and Buddy Howell talk after the game against an 8-3 Old Dominion team that’s been red hot, it was easy to tell that these players have learned how to maturely handle losses and properly explain what went wrong in addition to what went right. It’s easy to forget that these are still college kids and for so many of them who haven’t had a winning season since high school, showing such maturity and leadership after another loss speaks volumes about the coaching job Partridge and the others have done. A winning season is heavily dependent on talent, but having those talented players who can also be leaders should definitely raise excitement for the 2017 season.
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