Florida Atlantic gets blasted by the Trojans

2009 Florida Atlantic Owls ... Head Coach: Howard Schnellenberger

2009 Schedule
CFN Prediction: 6-6
2009 Record: 3-7

9/5 at Nebraska L 49-3
9/12 OPEN DATE
9/19 at S. Carolina L 38-16
9/26 ULM L 27-25
10/3 Wyoming L 30-28
10/10 OPEN DATE
10/17 at N Texas W 44-40
10/24 at UL Laf W 51-29
10/31 Middle Tenn L 27-20
11/7 at UAB L 56-29
11/14 Ark St W 35-18
11/21 at Troy L 47-21
11/28 WKU
12/5 at FIU

2008 Schedule
CFN Prediction: 7-5
2008 Record: 7-6

Aug. 30 at Texas L 52-10
Sept. 6 UAB W 49-24
Sept. 13 at Michigan State L 17-0
Sept. 20 at Minnesota L 37-3
Sept. 30 at Middle Tenn L 14-13
Oct. 7 Troy L 30-17
Oct. 11 OPEN DATE
Oct. 18 at West Kent. W 24-20
Oct. 25 at UL Monroe W 29-28
Nov. 1 OPEN DATE
Nov. 8 North Texas W 46-13
Nov. 15 UL Lafayette W 40-29
Nov. 22 at Arkansas St L 28-14
Nov. 29 FIU W 57-50 OT
MOTOR CITY BOWL
Dec. 26 Central Mich W 24-21

Florida Atlantic Owls

Nov. 21
at Troy 47 … Florida Atlantic 21
Troy earned at least a share of the Sun Belt title with three Levi Brown touchdown passes highlighted by a 59-yard Cornelius Williams catch made it a blowout. The Trojans got up 40-7 before FAU got a touchdown pass and a three-yard scoring run from Jeff Van Camp in the third quarter. FAU committed 17 penalties for 156 yards and gave up 651 yards of Troy offense.
Player of the Game: Troy QB Levi Brown completed 27-of-36 passes for 477 yards and three touchdowns with an interception
Florida Atlantic: Passing: Jeff Van Camp, 22-33, 193 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Alfred Morris, 17-137, 1 TD, Receiving: Lester Jean, 5-54
Troy: Passing: Levi Brown, 27-36, 477 yds, 3 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Jerrel Jernigan, 6-51, 1 TD, Receiving: Jerrel Jernigan, 6-147
What It All Means: This might be a disappointing season for the Owls, getting worse with three losses in the final four games, but there’s still a shot to turn things around in the end and save face with Western Kentucky and FIU to close. The passing game keeps on producing, even with Jeff Van Camp under center in place of Rusty Smith, but the defense has been a disaster with no pass rush and the secondary getting destroyed. Fortunately, WKU won’t be able to take advantage next week. However, at 3-7, this is the league’s most disappointing team. 

Nov. 14
at Florida Atlantic 35 … Arkansas State 18
Jeff Van Camp threw three touchdown passes including a 52-yarder to Jason Harmon, and Alfred Morris ran for scores from 21 and seven yards out and caught a 17-yard touchdown pass as FAU got up 28-9. ASU moved the ball well, but managed just four field goals before finally getting into the end zone on a Taylor Stockemer catch in the final minute. In place of Corey Leonard, Ryan Aplin ran for 82 yards and threw for 168 for the Red Wolves.
Player of the Game: Florida Atlantic QB Jeff Van Camp completed 18-of-27 passes for 242 yards and three scores and ran for six yards.
Arkansas State: Passing: Ryan Aplin, 20-27, 168 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Ryan Aplin, 15-82, Receiving: Brandon Thompkins, 5-43
Florida Atlantic: Passing: Jeff Van Camp, 18-27, 242 yds, 3 TD
Rushing: Alfred Morris, 24-117, 2 TD, Receiving: Jason Harmon, 4-85, 1 TD
What It All Means: While Jeff Van Camp might not be Rusty Smith, he played extremely well and was able to lead the team to a key win, but it was the defense that came up big by forcing field goals instead of allowing touchdowns. Alfred Morris picked up the slack with Smith gone, doing well both on the ground and with a touchdown catch, and he’ll have to do even more to help the O keep up the pace against Troy next week. A shot at a .500 record is still possible, but Van Camp and Morris will have to continue to be great. 

Nov. 7
at UAB 56 … Florida Atlantic 29
Joe Webb threw four touchdown passes and tore off touchdown runs from 65 and two yards out as UAB exploded for a win. The Blazers came up with 622 yards of total offense and got up 28-7, but FAU bombed its way back into the game with three Jeff Van Camp touchdown passes and a five-yard scoring run. UAB was able to pull away on the third quarter on a two-yard Daniel Borne run and two Frantrell Forrest touchdown catches from 24 and 17 yards out as part of a 21-point run.
Player of the Game: UAB QB Joe Webb completed 14-of-19 passes for 292 yards and four scores, and ran 15 times for 120 yards and two touchdowns.
Florida Atlantic: Passing: Jeff Van Camp, 24-36, 254 yds, 3 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Alfred Morris, 12-60, Receiving: Cortez Gent, 5-48, 1 TD
UAB: Passing: Joe Webb, 14-19, 292 yds, 4 TD
Rushing: Joe Webb, 15-120, 2 TD, Receiving: Frantrell Forrest, 3-69, 2 TD 
What It All Means: Jeff Van Camp did a decent job under center in place of Rusty Smith, who’s out for the year with a shoulder injury, but the defense didn’t have a prayer of stopping Joe Webb and the UAB offense from putting up huge numbers. FAU’s D couldn’t come up with the stop needed in the second half to come back, and now there has to be a concern that Arkansas State and QB Corey Leonard might have similar success. This has been a tremendously disappointing season, and it’s all on the D and the line that can’t hold up against the run or get into the backfield.

Oct. 31
Middle Tennessee 27 … at Florida Atlantic 20
In a nip-and-tuck game, Middle Tennessee tied the game at 20 on a eight-yard D.D. Kyles run early in the fourth and got the win on a 74-yard Dwight Dasher run with 5:31 to play. FAU got two Rusty Smith touchdown passes highlighted by a 18-yard Cortez Gent catch, but Middle Tennessee stayed alive on two field goals and a blocked punt for a score. MTSU only converted 1-of-12 third down chances.
Player of the Game: Middle Tennessee LB Danny Carmichael made 15 tackles and a sack with a broken up pass.
Florida Atlantic: Passing: Rusty Smith, 23-45, 304 yds, 2 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Alfred Morris, 23-93, Receiving: Jamari Grant, 6-80
Middle Tennessee: Passing: Dwight Dasher, 7-21, 90 yds
Rushing: D.D. Kyles, 13-140, 1 TD, Receiving: D.D. Kyles & Chris McClover, 2-18 
What It All Means: Just when it seemed like Florida Atlantic was about to come up with a win and make a big statement in the Sun Belt race, a win would’ve set the stage for a big showdown at Troy in a few weeks, the defense collapsed late and the season took a big step downward. Now the Sun Belt title is out of reach, a bowl game is all but out of the picture, and this might be the league’s most disappointing team. The special teams have been abysmal while the defense can’t stop anyone’s running game. The front line is getting killed.

Oct. 24
Florida Atlantic 51 … at Louisiana-Lafayette 29
FAU cranked out a school-record 624 yards, but it took a fight to put the Ragin’ Cajuns away. Rusty Smith threw four touchdown passes including a 70-yarder and a 64-yarder to Chris Bonner. Alfred Morris finally put the game away with a 47-yard scoring run late in the fourth quarter, and he also gave the Owls a second quarter lead on a 17-yard run. ULL managed to stay in the game helped by three Brad McGuire touchdown runs and a 14-yard Marlin Miller catch, but couldn’t keep up in the fourth quarter as the Owls scored 17 unanswered points.
Player of the Game: Florida Atlantic QB Rusty Smith completed 18-of-28 passes for 359 yards and four scores.
Louisiana-Lafayette: Passing: Chris Masson, 19-30, 209 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Yobes Walker, 21-105, Receiving: Marlin Miller, 7-115, 1 TD
Florida Atlantic: Passing: Rusty Smith, 18-28, 359 yds, 4 TD
Rushing: Alfred Morris, 24-181, 2 TD Receiving: Lester Jean, 4-62, 1 TD
What It All Means: After a rough start to the season, FAU has turned things around with two straight conference wins on the road. Getting Rusty Smith and the passing game rolling for the second week in a row is a plus going into the key game against Middle Tennessee. There’s still time to win the Sun Belt title with a trip to Troy still ahead, but ULM has to lose a few games. For now, just getting more out of the porous run defense and keeping the offense hot will be enough. 

Oct. 17
Florida Atlantic 44 … at North Texas 40
Florida Atlantic scored 20 second quarter points and reeled off a 37-7 run with Rusty Smith running for a 17-yard score and hitting Jason Harmon and Lester Jean for touchdown passes, but North Texas fought back. The Mean Green got 238 yards and three touchdown runs from Lance Dunbar, and a 69-yard Jamaal Jackson touchdown catch, on the way to a 40-37 lead in the fourth quarter, but FAU was able to take the lead back with a one-yard Alfred Morris touchdown run with just under five minutes to play. The FAU D held on, but it was one of the few times either offense was stopped as the two teams combined for 1,044 yards of total offense.
Player of the Game: Florida Atlantic QB Rusty Smith completed 21-of-40 passes for 308 yards and three touchdowns, and he ran three times for 30 yards and a score
North Texas: Passing: Nathan Tune, 13-17, 129 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Lance Dunbar, 25-238, 3 TD, Receiving: Jamaal Jackson, 5-85, 1 TD
Florida Atlantic: Passing: Rusty Smith, 21-40, 308 yds, 3 TD
Rushing: Alfred Morris, 29-147, 2 TD, Receiving: Chris Bonner, 6-134, 1 TD 
What It All Means: What’s the problem with the defense? The offense did what it needed to do to get up on the Mean Green, but the defense was miserable in the second half and was a doormat for Lance Dunbar and the UNT running game. The defensive front is having a miserable season, and it’s only going to get worse over the second half of the season. Rusty Smith will have to bomb away to keep the Owls in games, and he has the weapons around him to do it. This might have been a rough win, but it was a win. The team needed one, and now the momentum has to continue with ULL up next.

Oct. 3
Wyoming 30 … at Florida Atlantic 28
Alvester Alexander ran for three touchdowns including a 15-yard dash late in the fourth to take the lead, but the extra point was missed. FAU had one last shot but bogged down just past midfield. The Owls got an 18-yard Darian Williams touchdown catch to take a late lead, and got a 16-yard interception return for a score in the first quarter, but Wyoming tied it up with a 23-yard Brandon Stewart touchdown run and held the lead until the fourth quarter. The two teams combined for 24 penalties for 221 yards.
Player of the Game: Wyoming QB Austyn Carta-Samuels completed 29-of-38 passes for 223 yards and an interception, and he ran 20 times for 69 yards.
Florida Atlantic: Passing: Rusty Smith, 17-28, 235 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Alfred Morris, 19-81, 1 TD, Receiving: Darian Williams, 4-64, 1 TD
Wyoming: Passing: Austyn Carta-Samuels, 29-38, 223 yds, 1 INT
Rushing: Alvester Alexander, 17-50, 3 TD, Receiving: David Leonard, 13-97 
What It All Means: At 0-4, things just aren’t working. Losing to Nebraska and South Carolina is one thing, but to lose to ULM and Wyoming at home is disastrous. The offense, even with all the experience and a talent in Rusty Smith under center, isn’t producing on a consistent basis, and the defense hasn’t shown up against the run. With two road games against North Texas and Louisiana-Lafayette up next, the team has to find a way to quickly come up with wins or the season will go completely into the tank with several tough games over the second half of the year.

Sept. 26
ULM 27 … Florida Atlantic 25
Trey Revell ran for two seven-yard touchdowns and Frank Goodin added a 14-yard scoring dash as ULM got was able to stay ahead after the first quarter, but the D had to hold on. Rusty Smith connected with Chris Bonner for an 18-yard touchdown and hit Darian Williams with a five-yard score with just over three minutes to play, but ULM recovered the onside kick and held on when FAU had one final shot. The two teams combined for 19 penalties.
Player of the Game: ULM QB Trey Revell completed 18-of-25 passes for 207 yards, and he ran 11 times for 48 yards and two scores.
Florida Atlantic: Passing: Rusty Smith, 30-50, 347 yds, 2 TD
Rushing: Alfred Morris, 23-122, 1 TD, Receiving: Jason Harmon, 11-132
ULM: Passing: Trey Revell, 18-25, 207 yds
Rushing: Frank Goodin, 18-71, 1 TD, Receiving: LaGregory Sapp, 7-96
What It All Means: This was disastrous. It’s one thing to lose at Nebraska and South Carolina with the offense struggling a bit, but to lose at home to ULM all but ends the Sun Belt season before it starts. Rusty Smith has too much experience to be so average, while the defense has been a disaster against the short to midrange throws. The line isn’t generating any pressure, and it’s trickling down. On the plus side, tight end Jason Harmon is coming off a fantastic game catching 11 passes for 132 yards. He can do that almost any time he wants in Sun Belt play. 

Sept. 19
at South Carolina 38 … Florida Atlantic 16
Brian Maddox ran for two scores and caught another and Stephen Garcia ran for a 15-yard score as South Carolina beat a mistake-prone FAU. The Owls came back from a 17-3 deficit to pull within one after two Rusty Smith touchdown passes, but two turnovers early in the second half led to two of Maddox’s scores as the Gamecocks pulled away. USC outgained FAU 516 yards to 307.
Player of the Game: South Carolina QB Stephen Garcia completed 20-of-27 passes for 222 yards and a touchdown, and he ran four times for 18 yards and a score.
Florida Atlantic: Passing: Rusty Smith, 21-31, 198 yds, 2 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Alfred Morris, 22-79, Receiving: Chris Bonner, 6-57, 1 TD
South Carolina: Passing: Stephen Garcia, 20-27, 222 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Jarvis Giles, 11-113, 1 TD, Receiving: Tori Gurley, 4-100
What It All Means: Florida Atlantic has played two BCS teams, Nebraska and South Carolina, and came up with two awful defensive performances. The line isn’t generating any pressure and is getting pushed and shoved around way too easily. Just as big a problem is the ineffectiveness of Rusty Smith and the FAU passing game. He’s too good to be as inefficient as he was over the first two outings, but everything should quickly change around against ULM in the start of the Sun Belt play.

Sept. 5
at Nebraska 49 ... Florida Atlantic 3
It took a little while to get going, but the Nebraska offense eventually took over with Roy Helu, Jr. busting open a 14-7 game with three straight touchdowns scoring from one, seven, and 44 yards out to kick off a run of 35 unanswered points. Florida Atlantic was kept under wraps managing only a 21-yard Ross Gornall field goal while being held to 358 yards. The two teams combined for 20 penalties.
Player of the Game: Nebraska RB Roy Helu, Jr. ran 16 times for 152 yards and three touchdowns.
Florida Atlantic: Passing: Rusty Smith, 15-31, 164 yds, 2 INT
Rushing: Alfred Morris, 18-85, Receiving: Cortez Gent, 5-58
Nebraska: Passing: Zac Lee, 15-22, 213 yds, 2 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Roy Helu, 16-152, 3 TD, Receiving: Curenski Gilleylen, 4-92, 1 TD
What It All Means: FAU might have been outmatched and outclasses, but it gave Nebraska a whole bunch of help with a sloppy performance. From the 11 penalties to the five fumbles, losing one, to the ineffectiveness in the running game, the Owls weren't nearly as sharp as they needed to be. Now they get to face South Carolina and its nasty defense, but the Gamecocks don't score much. Rusty Smith got time against Nebraska, and now he has to do more to make the attack go.