The Florida Atlantic Owls (2-6, 0-4 AAC) lost to the University of South Florida Bulls (4-4, 2-2 AAC)  44-21. The Owls remain winless in conference play this season and this marks the 10th loss on homecoming. FAU has a 13-10 record in homecoming games. 

Although the score tells a story of Bulls’ dominance, in reality, the Owls were putting up a fight until the middle of the third quarter. In the third, the tides turned and the Bulls scored 30 unanswered points.

“We’re trying to uncover every stone as to why in the second half we don’t play as well,” head coach Tom Herman said. “Obviously, I have to look at myself… it’s a bit perplexing, I got to be honest with you… We need a big shot of confidence right now.” 

After the game, the Bulls head coach, Alex Golesh, seemed to give a quick and abrupt handshake to Herman before walking off. Herman tried to confront Golesh about the handshake. However, Golesh continued to walk away and greet other FAU players, ignoring Herman. 

Herman said in the post-conference that he wished “there was a conversation” and that it held no substance.

The next game will be on the road against the East Carolina University Pirates (4-4, 2-2 AAC) on Thursday, Nov.  7. The game will be televised on ESPN2 at 8 p.m.

“The first thing we gotta do, if we want to get out of this hole, is we have to stop digging,” Herman said. “We gotta stop being our own worst enemy, and then we’ve got a confidence issue. I’m trying like hell to make these guys believe how good they can be.”

Recap 

The Owls won the coin toss and elected to defer, giving possession to the Bulls to start the game. On the second play of the game, Bull’s quarterback Bryce Archie rolled to his right, and linebacker Jackson Ambush immediately broke through the offensive line to sack Archie for a seven-yard loss.

Right after, Archie threw his first incompletion of the game to complete the three-and-out. 

Running back CJ Campbell started things off for the Owls with a seven-yard reception and a 14-yard rush to midfield. Wide receiver Jabari Smith got into Bull’s territory after a 13-yard catch. 

Unfortunately for the Owls, they did not move the ball much further. Fancher threw three incompletions and rushed once for five yards. The Owls turned the ball over on downs at the Bull’s 32-yard line on fourth-and-5.

The Bulls’ next drive started with an explosive, up-the-middle run from their running back Nay’Quan Wright for 17-yards. That run might have been a touchdown if it wasn’t for defensive back Phillip Dunnam tackling Wright at his ankles. 

USF slowly drove into Owls’ territory with short to intermediate runs and throws. After a 12-yard reception from wide receiver Keshaun Singleton, the Bulls ended up at FAU’s 28-yard line.

On the very next play, Archie threw to slot receiver Sean Atkins, but at the last second Dunnam jumped in front of Atkins to break up the pass. The Owls defense did not budge following this play and forced a 46-yard field goal attempt from kicker John Cannon, which he missed.

The Owls took full advantage of the miss and scored on the next possession. The drive started with a 19-yard rush from Campbell down the left sideline into Bull’s territory. After a few more plays, wide receiver Omari Hayes made a 28-yard catch to set up the offense in the red zone. 

Fancher handed the ball off to Campbell who then bounced to the left, making a defender miss a tackle. Campbel then, ran through the goal line. The Owls scored first making the game 7-0 with 2:09 remaining in the first quarter.

The Bulls and Owls punted back and forth a couple of times going into the second quarter. The Owls got to the Bulls 32-yard line, but kicker Davis Carter missed a 49-yard field goal. 

Immediately after the missed field goal, Wright ran towards the left sideline, shed through Ambush’s tackle and shoved defender CJ Heard to the ground on his way to a 64-yard rushing touchdown. The two teams were tied 7-7, with 7:48 remaining in the first half. 

The Owls answered right back with a 30-yard rushing touchdown from Campbell. He exploded from the backfield and had no defender within ten yards from him on his way to the endzone. The Owls took back the lead 14-7, with 4:45 left in the first half. 

After a quick three-and-out from the Bulls, the Owls looked to score once again, following a 40-yard rush from running back Zuberi Mobley. However, kicker Morgan Suarez missed the 36-yard field goal far left.

Heading into halftime, the Owls led 14-7 and had the advantage of starting the second half with possession. 

Unfortunately for the Owls, the Bulls defense forced a quick three-and-out to regain possession. It took the Bulls only one minute and 19 seconds to tie the game. Running back Kelley Joiner burst toward the left sideline and followed his blockers for a 32-yard rush. 

The Bulls chipped away at the Owls defense and eventually tied the game with a one-yard rushing touchdown from Archie. The score was 14-14, with 12:30 remaining in the third quarter. 

Campbell continued his dominance with a 63-yard catch and a run touchdown. Fancher dropped back and threw to a wide open Campbell, who had nothing but green grass in front of him. The Owls re-took the lead with a 21-14 score, with 10:25 remaining in the third quarter.

However, the Bulls answered right back with a three minute scoring drive ending with a 13-yard touchdown pass to Atkins. The game was tied once again at 21, and it officially became a back-and-forth affair. 

The Owls next possession looked to have a grim end. However, on third-and-18, Fancher saved the drive by rushing up the middle and bouncing to the left for 35 yards, before going out of bounds at the Bulls 48-yard line. 

After two rush attempts for nine yards from Mobley, it became third-and-one. Fancher threw an incomplete pass and Mobley was stuffed for the Bulls to force a turnover on downs. 

Bulls running back Ta’Ron Keith ran the ball three consecutive times, totaling 57 yards to set up the 34-yard field goal from Cannon. The Bulls took the lead 24-21, with 2:26 remaining in the third quarter.

To make matters worse for the Owls, Fancher snapped the ball and was looking to pass. What he didn’t see was linebacker Rico Watson III rushing toward Fancher from behind. He was strip-sacked, and the Bulls recovered to get the ball at the Owls 25-yard line. 

The Bulls made the most of this opportunity and scored a touchdown from a 3-yard pass to Joiner. The score was 31-21, with 48 seconds left in the third quarter. All the momentum FAU had was relinquished. 

The Owls ran three plays, and then punted the ball right back to the Bulls to start the fourth quarter. The Bulls offense was now playing with their food, scoring another touchdown in two minutes with only five plays. 

The 17-yard touchdown rush up the middle from Joiner made the score 38-21 with 12:35 remaining in the game. After another three-and-out from the Owls, the Bulls had another chance to score, and they did just that.

On the first play of the Bulls drive, Keith ran up the middle and out ran multiple Owl defenders for a 42-yard rushing touchdown. After a failed two-point conversion, the score was 44-21, with 11:01 remaining in the game. 

The Owls drove all the way to the Bulls 2-yard line but could not punch the ball in. The Bulls forced a turnover on downs and the game was over for the Owls. The last seven minutes featured a scoreless back-and-forth until the Bulls put the Owls out of their misery with a knee to end the game. The Bulls won, 44-21.

Morgan Larkins is a Staff Writer for the University Press. Email him at [email protected] or DM him on Instagram or Twitter @mj_larkins for more information regarding this or other stories.