FAU had a tough showing in week 2 against Army as the Owls were unable to build on the momentum from the strong second half in their season opener and let Army run all over them at home.
The offense was only able to put together 1 scoring drive, and the defense gave up 400 yards on the ground and although it was a major struggle for most of the game, there were positives on both sides of the ball that the Owls need to build on to avoid an upset against FIU.
Week 3 will be a test for the Owls as they will face an FIU team who dominated offensively against CMU and have put together 2 solid defensive performances against the Chippewas and Indiana in week 1 and will be looking to make it 3 in a row against an Owls team which is still looking to find their groove, which is why the Owls will need to address what led to their immense struggles and fast.
What helped them:
Omari Hayes:
The Owls slot receiver continues to establish himself as a go-to target for Fancher, as he’s led FAU in catches and yards in the first 2 games, and in week 2 against Army he was one of the lone bright spots offensively, finding the end zone from 8 yards out to end the second quarter.
The slot was where La’Johntay Wester shined last year and although the unit as a whole had struggled to contribute consistently to this point, Hayes has stood out as the guy to step up and make plays. Hayes has been the most consistent target over the middle and on screen passes in this offense and if FAU is going to put it all together offensively at some point, he is going to be a big part of it.
With 119 yards and a score through 2 games, Hayes has been one of the bright spots in what has been an overall tough start offensively, however he only received 19 total snaps in week 2, which was second least out of the 7 WRs who played.
FAU is going to have to find their identity next week if they want to avoid 0-3 against an FIU team who has shown an explosive ability, and one has to figure the Owls best receiver through 2 games has to be a part of it.
CJ Heard:
The freshman safety who dazzled all summer long saw an increase in snaps in week 2, as he played 48 snaps which was 3rd most on the team, compared to 20 in week 1.
Heard has shown that he’s able to be a presence in the run game, recording 7 tackles and forcing and recovering a fumble in week 2 against an Army team that usually features solid ball protection. Heard has also played 12 snaps in coverage, allowing only 1 catch against MSU’s top WR Nick Marsh in week 1.
Heard was a highly touted recruit for the Owls, ultimately choosing the Owls over numerous P4 and AAC teams. It was expected he would play a role in his freshman year, having received reps with the 1st team during fall camp, however in week 2 that role neared starting, outsnapping starting safety Phil Dunnam 48-14.
The DB room is a strength for this Owls defense as it limited Aidan Chiles and Michigan State to 114 yards and no passing TDs, and the Spartans went on to torch Maryland for 393 yard yards passing and 3 scores this week.
Heard taking a step up in playing time this week against a conference opponent shows how much this team trusts him, albeit against a team that doesn’t test the DB unit that much, and going forward if he continues to play more, this unit will only get stronger,
Heard and company will have a bigger test on their hands next week, as they face off against an FIU team who will look to stretch the field a lot more than Army did and it will be something to note if Heard continues to out-play Dunnam, or if that was a move by the Owls to try to stop the run.
What hurt them?
Lack of WR production:
FAU has employed a deep rotation at receiver and it has left the offense without a go to guy in pressure situations. In week 2 against Army, FAU had played 7 receivers, with Omari Hayes leading the way with 4 catches for 45 yards on 7 targets and a score, in only 19 snaps.
Milan Tucker, Marlyn Johnson and George Johnson were behind him respectively in terms of yards and all 3 found a connection with Fancher at various points, but when Fancher tried to stretch the field or convert a 3rd and long there was no go-to target.
Against Army, FAU completed less than 50% of their passes longer than 10 yards and finished 3 for 10 on 3rd downs and part of that has been Fancher’s inability to find open targets. When you bring in an entirely new offense, it is going to take time for those pieces to gel and the WR rotation allows for Fancher to get comfortable with multiple targets, however through 2 weeks Fancher has only shown consistency with Omari Hayes.
In the up-coming weeks it will be important for the offense to find a way to stretch the field, whether it’s through allowing their guys to make plays in space with short passes and screens or with longer throws. If it is going to be the latter, Fancher will need a playmaker to step up on the outside and create separation to give the unit a chance at having an explosive play.
Caleb Coombs has been used sparingly through his first 2 weeks, and EJ Horton has been out due to a toe injury, but as the week goes on it is something to watch if either gets involved in the passing game more frequently to help Fancher get comfortable.
Passing game:
Cam Fancher and the FAU offense have had a tough start to their 2024 campaign, but there have been positives in both matchups and multiple factors which have led to the overall poor performance.
Through 2 games, Fancher has thrown for 309 yards 2 tds and 3 interceptions, completing 59.7% of his passes, but only throwing for 5 yards per completion. The lack of ability to stretch the field has been evident through 2 games, as Fancher has been 2/8 on throws 20+ yards or longer and 7/13 on throws of 10+.
Some of the inability to do that can be placed on Fancher, as there have been a couple of times he’s missed open targets or thrown errant passes, with the interception in double coverage this week being one that just looked bad.
However, while Fancher has made some mistakes, he hasn’t had much help beside him, as the run game has been non-existent, his outside receivers have been unable to make plays consistently and the pass protection struggled to give him time in the pocket against MSU, but in this one they improved. The Owls allowed no sacks against Army and as a collective the unit received an 87.8 grade per PFF, and after Fancher was gotten to 7 times in week 1 and the line received a 52.4 grade per PFF, this was a much-needed bounce back performance.
In week 3 against FIU, the Owls will need their best passing performance yet, with Fancher avoiding mistakes, but alongside him the run game needs to come to fruition, and his receivers need to find a way to get open downfield to give this offense an explosive side to it.
What cost them:
The lack of a Run-Game:
One of the best ways to get around having a pass game that struggles is finding a way to ground and pound and dominate the line of scrimmage and in week 2 against Army FAU was unable to institute that and it led to multiple drives stalling out before they even got going.
CJ Campbell received 9 carries for 18 yards in week 2, and for the second straight game it was a struggle to get his inside zone touches to the second level, with his longest carry of the day going for 6 yards. There just hasn’t been a lot of space to work with in the trenches and as a result its led to some tough sledding in the run game.
FAU has tried different things to get the run going, with both Milan Tucker and Omari Hayes getting involved with jet sweeps and reverses, but those were snuffed out for the most part leaving the Owls in situations where they were forced to pass, which hasn’t been an ideal scenario for the offense.
Fancher dominated the run game for FAU in the season-opener and he picked up 10 first downs in doing so, however in week 4 he only rushed it 4 times and with the running backs unable to find any space, it led to a disaster offensively.
Zuberi Mobley received 10 touches to Campbell’s 12 in week 1, however he only received 3 carries in week 2 in a game where FAU had to go to the pass to try to comeback. In week 3, the Owls will need to establish the traditional run game and Mobley has shown an ability to operate in this offense last year so it will be something to watch if FAU leans on him more to try to get a spark.
Run defense:
It was a long day at the office for the Owls defense, as the Owls struggled against Army to stop the run, with the option game flourishing to the tune of 405 yards rushing.
The linebacker corps, which is usually a strength of this unit, had a rough day against the heavy dose of running. Overall the defense as a whole had 11 missed tackles and all 3 starting linebackers Desmond Tisdol, Eddie Williams and Jackson Ambush all recorded run stopping grades below 60 per PFF, and Williams had 3 of those missed tackles.
Against a typical rushing attack against MSU, run defense wasn’t an issue, however Tom Herman noted Army was an entirely different beast and they displayed that, getting plus blockers on nearly every outside carry and it led to a big day on the ground.
Next week, against an FIU team which will be looking to get multiple running backs and QB Keyone Jenkins involved in the run game, the Owls will need to find the groove they had against Michigan State and bring that back, otherwise they risk getting into a dogfight against a team that has been much more consistent all around compared to FAU.
Tom Herman was frustrated with the defensive mistakes against Army, and this week of practice will feature the Owls focusing on a lot of the little things that go into stopping the run. With not many reserves at LB, it will be up to the group who struggled last week to dig deep and find their grit and avoid back to back weeks of ground and pound.
What is good for FAU is that although there isn’t an array of linebacker reserves, the 3 guys who are starting are a strength of this team and although they struggled in that one, this week is an opportunity to push that aside and get back to doing what they do.