The Florida Atlantic Owls (1-1, 0-0 AAC) lost to the Ohio University Bobcats (2-1, 0-0 MAC) on Saturday at FAU Stadium, 17-10.
“Any loss is a hard pill to swallow,” replied Eddie Williams. “Tomorrow we got practice. Corrections, get better at the stuff that we messed up on, you know, stuff like that. Just everyday, wanting to get better and we want to come out with a dub, of course.”
On the game’s first play, FAU graduate linebacker Jackson Ambush caught an interception. Following that play, Ohio’s sophomore safety Austin Brawley intercepted a pass to redshirt senior Je’Quan Burton. During the play, two Ohio defenders collided with Burton. Several uncertain minutes later, Burton was helped up by the medical staff and was carted off.
While his complete status is unknown, head coach Tom Herman did mention that he heard that Burton had “some busted up teeth and lip.”
After a solid defensive play, Ohio missed the field goal and the Owls started on the 31-yard line.
A fumble recovered by redshirt junior cornerback Darius McClendon set up a drive for the Owls’ offense that ended with a 37-yard field goal to put them in the lead.
On the ensuing drive, graduate defensive back Jarren Morris caught a deflected pass and returned it for a 72-yard pick six that extended the FAU lead to 10.
“I’ve seen it all the way,” said Morris on his pick-six. “I was just reading my keys and I saw him get a signal that he ran on me earlier, and I knew they was finna the out-routes so I was trying my hardest to break down to it and it just came to me. I took advantage of my opportunity.”
The Bobcats drove down the field following the interception, setting up a touchdown pass from graduate quarterback Kurtis Rourke to redshirt sophomore tight end Will Kacmarek, slimming the Owls’ lead back down to three with 23 seconds in the first half.
After a 15-yard sack stalling the FAU’s first drive of the second half, Ohio’s offense drove down the field, and fifth-year senior running back O’Shaan Allison ran in a four-yard touchdown to give the Bobcats their first lead.
Junior running back Larry McCammon had a big play when the Owls got the ball, receiving a pass from Thompson for 15-yards. But again, the offense went nowhere and was forced to punt it away.
In the fourth quarter, Thompson threw an interception to Ohio’s junior cornerback Tank Pearson, his first career interception. The Owls’ defense held off the Bobcats’ offense following the interception, but not before Bobcats freshman kicker Alex Kasee, his first career field goal, extended the Bobcats’ lead by seven.
Facing a 4th and 5 with 1:37 left in the fourth quarter, Thompson scrambled to find junior tight end Jackson Sumlin but threw incomplete.
With only 19 seconds to muster up a touchdown drive, Thompson went one-for-four on the final drive, firing an incomplete pass over the middle on the game’s final play to seal the Owls’ second consecutive defeat to Ohio.
“Overall, we just have to play better,” said Thompson. “That starts with me at quarterback, it’s starts with the offensive staff. We have to get to run the ball and definitely get a run-game going. And in the passing game, I just feel like we have to clean up a little bit of details, whether that is incompletion, accuracy-issues, or a drop pass here and there.”
Maddox Greenberg is the Sports Editor for the University Press. Email [email protected] or DM via Twitter @MaddoxGreenberg and Instagram @maddoxblade04 for information regarding this or other stories.
