Saturday night was one to remember for the Owls, until it wasn’t. UNT shutout FAU 14-0 over the final 4 minutes, forcing a ferocious comeback with Chandler Morris commanding the offense like a poised veteran.
The final 4 minutes of the ball game puts a damper on what was one of the Owls best overall performances of the season, as Cam Fancher recorded a season high 351 yards and 3 TDs, which also resulted in numerous Owls pass catchers having a big day.
The FAU defense was solid early on forcing 5 stops, 2 punts, 2 turnovers on downs and an INT from Jackson Ambush, however the unit ran out of gas. When they needed a stop the most on the final 2 drives, they were unable to get one and it cost the Owls their biggest win of the season to this point.
Time is running out, as FAU will need 4 wins across the final 6 games to secure a bowl game, however there are positives and negatives to take away from this game. The Owls will have to batten down the hatches and identify those positives and negatives down the home stretch of the season and find a way to be consistent and push for a Bowl game.
Takeaways
Cam Fancher’s big day
The Owls saw what they knew Cam Fancher was capable of on Saturday evening, as he was able to throw for 300+ yards, making multiple big plays through the air which was aided by his mobility in the pocket. Fancher was also able to pick up 69 yards on the ground which was a return to his early season form, specifically his MSU performance where he gashed the Spartans on the ground.
For the first time all season, Fancher was moving the ball down field with a purpose as his average depth of target was 10.8 yards which was more than 2 yards longer than his previous season high. The shot taking was there Saturday, but so was the efficiency as Fancher recorded his second consecutive week with an adjusted completion percentage above 80%, finishing with a season high 85.7%.
That willingness to go deep resulted in explosive plays for the Owls, as Fancher completed 4 of 7 throws 20 yards or longer, for 102 yards through the air and 2 TDs to the right side, throws between 10-20 yards Fancher was even better, hitting 6 out of 7 attempts for 127 yards total and another score to the right side of the field.
Fancher was also eclectic on the ground as mentioned, as he had his best pocket awareness of the season, having the wherewithal to step up in the pocket when needed, but also run with it, as he finished with 4 runs of 10+ on the day.
The lone dark spot on the day for Fancher was the INT he threw on the final drive, as it was really his only forced ball of the day, but nevertheless UNT capitalized. The one mistake late is unfortunate, however only 1 turnover is a sight for sore eyes, as the Owls had struggled with sloppiness in previous losses.
Moral victories are non-existent in college sports, however Fancher and company have to be proud of what was accomplished, despite the loss. FAU saw what made them want to acquire Fancher in the portal, now the next step will be how they bottle up his success and replicate it over the next 6 weeks.
Owls WR corps steps up
With Cam Fancher having a huge day, multiple FAU WRs were able to be on the receiving end of his down field passing barrage.
CJ Campbell Jr was the Owls most targeted pass catcher on the day, as the FAU RB hauled in all 6 of his targets for 74 yards. It wasn’t just the Owls lead back getting involved through the air, both Milan Tucker (pictured above via Angelina LaBelle) who recorded a season high 69 receiving yards and Jabari Smith Jr who had his first career TD both had their most productive games of the season, while Omari Hayes hauled in all 5 of his targets for 89 yards and a score, continuing to build on what is becoming a breakout campaign. For the first time this season, the tight end trio of Zeke Moore, Khalil Brantley and Wyatt Sullivan all saw targets and Sullivan had a career day, as he was on the receiving end of a reverse flea flicker, finishing with 3 catches for 71 yards and a score.
The FAU pass catchers were getting open for what seems like the first time this season and Fancher was able to find his guys and as each week goes by it seems as if Omari Hayes’ role becomes more and more established. Fancher was unable to find his go-to guy in Hayes on the final drive of the game and going forward in situations like that the Owls have to find a way to get Hayes the ball in space and let him make some plays.
With 4 out of the top 6 WRs heading into the season currently out for the year the Owls have been needing a breakout performance from all of their receivers and they got one on Saturday night, also getting their Tight Ends involved and keeping their confidence up. With a half of season remaining, FAU has to find a way to build on this performance from their receiving corps and give Fancher trusty targets across the board, night in and night out.
Defense collapses late
The FAU defense was giving it all they had throughout the game, forcing 5 aforementioned stops, however those stops didn’t translate to the final 2 possessions of the game and it cost the Owls.
Overall, according to PFF FAU finished with their 3rd lowest defensive grade of the season, totaling a 68.6 which is only behind UConn and Army in terms of defensive grades this season. What that grade doesn’t reflect is the fact the Owls were consistently in the backfield with their pass rushers, pressuring Morris all throughout which resulted in some errant throws. The Owls recorded 13 total pressures on the day, 4 from Chris Jones who continues to be a force off the edge for FAU. Wilky Denaud had highs and lows despite only playing 9 sacks, as he brought pressure on UNTs 4th quarter turnover on downs, getting in there on 4th down and forcing the incompletion. The downs came when he recorded an unnecessary roughness penalty on UNTs drive which cut the deficit to 3 and ultimately sparked their rally.
FAU getting productive pass rush from both their starters and rotational players is important, however even with the rotations the Owls defense ran out of gas late, generating slightly less pressure than they were getting early on and it resulted in Morris dicing up the Owls secondary on the final 2 drives.
It was an uncharacteristic struggle for the Owls secondary, as Buggs Brown, Wendol Philord, and DaeDae Hill all gave up season high’s in terms of yardage allowed against them, however they were being tested a significant amount. Phil Dunnam was targeted the most in coverage, 10 total times, allowing 6 catches for a team high 86 yards, while Brown gave up 44, Philord allowed 67 and Hill conceded 52 yards, all being targeted a minimum of 5 times throughout the game.
The pressure that FAU was able to bring, along with 5 stops including the take away in the second half are positive strides for the Owls, however they have to find the energy to finish ball games and bring the same intensity that was evident early on, late in games when it is crunch time.
The late collapse was unfortunate for an FAU team who needed a win in the worst way, however the Owls have to now wipe the slate clean and dial in on UTSA, a road matchup next Saturday which is one of 6 opportunities for FAU to get 4 wins and make it to a bowl game for the first time since 2020.