South Florida Sun-Sentinel (Sunday)
Picking on an opponent of their own size
After losses to 2 Top 25 teams, Owls finally reach win column
MUNCIE, Ind. — The goal for Florida Atlantic during its first trip to Indiana was specific.
Restart.
Termed a “bounce-back week” by FAU coach Lane Kiffin, the Owls wanted to reset Saturday afternoon against Ball State after a
0-2 start, and despite some costly fumbles early, they accomplished their mission.
The Owls (1-2) found their offense with three first-half touchdown drives, tightened up their defense after allowing 1,043 yards in total offense over the past two weeks and found out exactly where they stood after falling to consecutive top-20 programs to open the season.
The key was consistency, and the passing game set the pace during FAU’s 41-31 victory at Scheumann Stadium.
Redshirt sophomore quarterback Chris Robison completed 33 of 41 passes for 366 yards and four touchdowns to exploit BSU’s weak secondary, while the FAU defense led by senior linebacker Rashad Smith scooped up a pair of well-timed fumbles and cooled BSU quarterback Drew Plitt.
“We basically had three significant running backs out for the game,” FAU coach Lane Kiffin said. “Noah Jefferson, a defensive tackle, [was] out for the game. When you play two games like that, you get beat up. It was really big to see guys step up with limited depth.”
Ball State (1-2) marked the first opponent of the season for FAU that wasn’t ranked among the country’s top 20, and the offense appeared at ease in only the program’s second meeting against the Cardinals.
FAU and Ball State met three years ago in Boca Raton, with the Cardinals winning
31-27. BSU allowed only three second-half points in a game remembered for its lightning delays that lasted two-plus hours.
The Owls didn’t fall stagnant this time around after losses to both No. 17 UCF and No. 6 Ohio State by a combined 58 points the last two weeks.
The Buckeyes charged out to a 28-0 firstquarter lead in Columbus before the Owls could find their offense. Ohio State rolled to a 45-21 victory, and UCF matched the Buckeyes in first-half production against FAU
with a 28-6 lead en route to a 48-14 win.
The Owls were the aggressors in Muncie, taking their first lead of the season with a short-field drive in the first quarter set up via a fumble recovery by Smith on the Cardinals’ 31.
FAU survived two first-half ties and established a double-digit lead by the fourth quarter with three scoring drives measuring at least 70 yards.
The first touchdown, on a
4-yard completion to John Raine, put FAU ahead 7-0. The second scoring pass went to John Mitchell for 33 yards and tied the game at 14-14 in the second quarter.
The third TD, a 4-yard pass to Mitchell, capped a nine-play drive that stretched 77 yards in 1 minute,
40 seconds to give FAU its first halftime lead of the year, 21-17.
Mitchell finished with 124 yards on eight receptions and three touchdowns.
“I think there is a sense of excitement and a sense of relief,” Kiffin said. “You know, that game, we’re down 14-7, we’re kind of outplaying them and here we go again.
“I think the changing point was right before half, the two-minute [drive]. To be able to go down there and score was a big deal.
“You have to give credit to the players. They made some plays. Those weren’t all perfectly designed plays. The quarterback played really well and John Mitchell stepped up.”
Ball State took advantage of an FAU lost fumble by Raine on
first-and-10 on the Owls 37. BSU’s Jordan Williams picked up the ball in stride and ran 60 yards into the end zone to tie the game at 7-7.
Another fumble recovery by Williams on FAU’s ensuing possession put BSU in position again, which Plitt capitalized on with a one-play drive and a 14-yard
touchdown pass to put the Cardinals up 14-7.
Ryan Rimmler converted a
30-yard field goal to give BSU a
17-14 lead, but the Cardinals offense couldn’t get anything going against FAU until late in the third.
Plitt passed for 439 yards during BSU’s 57-29 win over Fordham last week and converted six touchdowns. He had 737 passing yards, the sixth-most in the FBS. FAU’s defense held him to 84 yards in the first half on 8 of 13 completions and sacked the red-shirt junior five times in the game.
BSU was limited to 470 yards in total offense, including 303 yards passing. FAU compiled 498 yards in total offense and 132 yards rushing.
Robison’s fourth touchdown pass went 24 yards to Mitchell late in the third quarter as the FAU running game took over in the second half.
“When you’ve had some bad streaks and some bad luck — we’ve
lost four in a row going back to last year — you’re just like, here we go again,” Kiffin added. “It’s unfortunate something like that with two turnovers on offense, but the defense made significant plays.”
Larry McCammon scored on a 1-yard run to end an 80-yard drive midway through the third quarter as FAU pulled ahead 28-17, and James Charles added a 4-yard run to make it 40-24 in the fourth quarter.
Smith and the defense allowed a late BSU touchdown pass to Plitt, but they clamped down when the game was still in question.
Ahead 21-17, Da’Von Brown forced a crucial fumble against BSU running back Caleb Huntley near the Owls goal line, which Smith recovered in the end zone for a touchback.
The Owls responded on their next possession to score in sixplays and grab a 28-17 lead to never look back.