FAU Athletics announced the schedule for the 2021 football season on Wednesday. It will be the second season for head coach Willie Taggart, as he will be prepared with a retooled coaching staff.

The Owls will open their season on Sept. 4 in Gainesville as they take on the Florida Gators. This will be the fourth time these two teams will face each other, with the last three all going to the Gators’ favor. The last time resulted in a 20-14 loss in overtime for the Owls in the 2015 season.

Georgia Southern will be the next opponent on Sept. 11, as last season’s game had FAU lose 20-3. It was the first time since the 2016 season that FAU was unable to score a touchdown.

A brand-new matchup will happen on Sept. 18, as the Owls will host Fordham University for the first time ever. Fordham did not play last season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The last game outside of Conference USA will be on Sept. 25 on the road against Air Force. FAU’s last encounter with them ended in a 33-27 win during the 2018 season. 

Conference play for the Owls will begin on Oct. 2 at home against Florida International University for the annual Shula Bowl. FAU beat FIU 38-19 on the road to claim its fourth straight title last season.

The game on Oct. 9 in Alabama against the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) will be next on the Owls’ list. 2019 was the last time they faced each other, as FAU blew out the Blazers 49-6 to win the C-USA championship.

After a bye week on Oct. 16, FAU will resume its season on the road against the Charlotte 49ers on Oct. 23. The Owls won 21-17 at home last season to give Taggart his first win as FAU head coach.

The Owls will return home to face the UTEP Miners on Oct. 30 for the first time since 2016. That game finished with a 35-31 win for FAU.

After that, Marshall will be next for the Owls on Nov. 6. Taggart got his first loss as FAU head coach in last season’s 20-9 loss against the Thundering Herd.

FAU will have its last two-game road trip in November, first going against the Old Dominion Monarchs on Nov. 13. FAU was originally going to play the Monarchs last season, but Old Dominion canceled its season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The last road game for the season will be against the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers on Nov. 20. Last season’s matchup was a defensive dogfight, with FAU prevailing 10-6.

FAU will conclude its season at home against Middle Tennessee on Nov. 27. Last season’s game was canceled due to positive COVID-19 cases at Middle Tennessee.

The Owls had a 5-4 record last season, which featured an undefeated 4-0 record at home, but had FAU get its first-ever loss in a bowl game, losing in the Montgomery Bowl to the Memphis Tigers 25-10.

Richard Pereira is the Sports Editor for the University Press. For information regarding this or other stories, email [email protected] or tweet him @Rich26Pereira.