FAU rolls to 'elite' 8-0 in league

Kiffin congratulates Owls as they eye C-USA title after eighth straight win.

Devin Singletary ran for 108 yards and two touchdowns, Jason Driskel threw for two in the air, and Lane Kiffin’s Florida Atlantic Owls won their eighth

consecutive game with a 31-12 victory over Charlotte on Saturday afternoon in Charlotte, N.C.

Totaling 563 yards of offense, the Owls (9-3, 8-0) overcame two turnovers and four total fumbles to go undefeated in conference play (Sun Belt or Conference USA) for the first time in program history.

“The standards have changed here, and it’s good to see, because today was ugly,” Kiffin said. “(Getting to 8-0) was conflicting. I did tell them that at the end, congratulations. It’s pretty elite status.”

FAU will host North Texas next Saturday in the Conference USA Championship game (noon, ESPN2).

“We did a lot of things, but we’re not done yet,” said Singletary, who ran for his 25th and 26th

touchdowns of the season Saturday. “Just keep preparing, same things we’ve been doing.”

Five takeaways from Saturday’s game:

1. Owls don’t stoop to 49ers’ level: Coach Lane Kiffin and his players called Saturday’s matchup a “trap game” all week, but FAU played an efficient game and avoided what would have been easy mistakes. Notably, the Owls were whistled for only one penalty — a holding call on a kickoff return, offset by a 49ers penalty on the same play — and held the ball for more than 36 minutes.

2. Buddy Howell runs like old self: In his final regular-season game, Howell took advantage of his most carries since the Oct. 21 win over North Texas. Howell ran for 63 yards on 11 carries, teaming effectively with Singletary (American Heritage) in the backfield.

3. Jason Driskel finishes regular season strong: The days of FAU fans clamoring for Kiffin to move Driskel back to the bench are long gone, especially after another strong game from the redshirt junior. Driskel finished 18 of 22 for 245 yards and two touchdowns and added 40 rushing yards.

In his past three games, Driskel has completed 50 of 64 passes for 705 yards, eight touchdowns, and only one interception.

4. Did Kiffin subtly look at the future? With several senior playmakers set to graduate, Kiffin quietly used Saturday’s win to evaluate rarely used players who will return next year. Running back Kerrith Whyte (Seminole Ridge), who had nine carries for 31 yards, and wide receiver/tight end D’Anfernee McGriff (three catches, 48 yards) saw increased playing time with the starters and possibly gave the coaching staff an idea of what they can do next year.

5. Kiffin loves fourth downs: Kiffin and the Owls trying to convert fourthdowns is nothing new, but attempting four conversions in one game was new ground for the well-traveled coach. FAU made only one of those four conversion attempts, two of which came in Charlotte’s red zone and could have easily been turned into field-goal attempts.

Perhaps Kiffin, who joked about gambling earlier this month, was simply trying to avoid the Owls covering a 21½-point spread.