FAU has been back in action at Schmidt Practice fields for 2 days following their final scrimmage of fall camp and the Owls are now headed into the Mock game week in which they will go through the same procedures as they will prior to Michigan State.
Vibes were high at the practice today as there was a general sense of excitement around the team that game week is approaching. The Owls have moved away from the general drills of fall camp and have shifted gears in preparation for Michigan State, which will see them increase use of scout team and drills that will emulate the Spartans.
These next 2 weeks are extremely important for the Owls to dial in their mindset for MSU preparation and fine tune their game plan as they look to upset a Big 10 team. In his first press conference following the end of Fall camp, Tom Herman (photo above, Angelina LaBelle) addressed a variety of topics including Captains, Starting Quarterback, Injuries and more.
Opening statement from Herman on President Stacy Volnick attending practice
“President Volnick and myself have had a great relationship since I’ve been here. You know, she was not in her current role when I was first hired, and has stepped into that role marvelously, in my opinion. You know, I told the team something, I believe, something, I feel about her. I mean, she’s been here for 30 years. She has three degrees from FAU. If you find somebody more passionate about this university as a whole, I’d like to meet him, because I haven’t and President Volnick has been great for us in this program. She understands the value of athletics from a campus perspective and the benefits of having an elite athletics department, and so you know, her and the leadership team on campus was a big reason why we came here. You know, as I’ve said before, I do believe. I’ve seen it in players and coaches win games. Administration is truly, you know, pushing over the top to give you that, that extra whatever it takes to win championships. And I think she understands it. It was great to to have her out there at practice to show the support to the team,” Herman said.
Statement on naming 2024 captains
“It’s always an honor to name the captains, I think this year, maybe more than others, because the competition was so fierce. You know, we picked four. Pretty standard, I guess. But also, you know, there was a bit of a gap between four and five in terms of the voting, and it seemed like a logical number. But I don’t think anybody’s surprised by, you know, Federico, Jackson, Jaden and Cam being named captains, I do think you know, DaeDae Hill was right there, Jaden Wheeler was right there. You know, Nick Marino was right there, CJ Campbell was right there. So when you see Zeke Moore as a true sophomore, got a lot of votes, so it felt good to know one that those four guys have kind of separated themselves, but also that we have a group that does a tremendous job of leading and has obviously affected a lot of people on this team, for them to garner the amount of votes that they did. So I was really happy I reached out to those four guys parents and let them know that their teammates had voted in this captain and how proud they should be and so But with that comes a responsibility in our program. You know, those guys are held to the highest of standards, and not that all 100 and something Guys don’t, don’t have very high standards, but those guys, there’s a microscope on you. You know, as much as we live in a fishbowl, as division one college football players, when you’re when you’re a captain, especially in our program, there’s a there’s a weight that comes with it too, and these guys are certainly up for the challenge,” Herman said.
Herman on Captains coming from different backgrounds
“I’m surprised, pleasantly surprised, at the level of immediate assimilation that some of these new guys had. It certainly helps you when you come in in January and you go through the struggles of winter conditioning and spring practice and all that. You know, you’ve been through the crucible a little bit, so to speak. But I think it’s a great representation of our team too. You know, you’ve got guys like, Fed and Jayden Williams that have been here a while. Fed, I think he was here in the Carter administration. But, you know, it is kind of nice to have that representation of two guys. One guy just got here in January, one guy got here last year, you know, and so they, kind of know what it’s like to for those other, 40 some odd guys that we have that are that are in their shoes. I think it’s important for those guys to show you can come in as an outsider outsider, to a fairly formed family and make a difference. And it’s been been fun to watch how quickly those guys have become bona fide leaders on our team,” Herman said.
On Fancher winning the starting QB Job
“I don’t see that changing (Fancher starting) between now and next Friday. Tyriq has had a really good three weeks, and it’s certainly no knock on on him and his performance, just Cam has had a really good spring, had a really good summer, and has had a really good three weeks of three weeks of camp, and he just hasn’t done anything really to let go of that spot. It’s critical now that we get the timing. BJ is going to be out, so now we’ve got a little bit of a different rotation of wide receiver. That’s going to be critical that those guys get Cam and the receivers that are going to play against Michigan State get rep after rep,” Herman said. When asked if Fancher being the starter was official Coach Herman kept it simple. “Yes,” Herman said.
Herman on Fancher’s leadership development “Cam’s a pretty soft spoken guy. I knew that. You know, he’s a do everything right guy, so he certainly leads by example, so much so I asked our Strength Coach ‘What am I Missing’ know, I love the kid. I’m excited to go do battle with him, but I just didn’t think he had that so quickly. And Joey (FAU strength Coach) said coach, ‘There’s a lot of stuff he does that that you don’t see’, and that’s a big compliment to him, to surprise me, that means he’s doing a lot behind the scenes that has really captured, the hearts and minds of a lot of this team,” Herman said
Herman on the offenses struggle to stretch the field and Fancher’s ability to help that
“I don’t think he struggled as much as the moving parts around him. When you try to take those shots, I haven’t been displeased. I do think it’s noticeable, the lack of downfield explosiveness. We are who we are at wide receiver and in tight end and those skilled positions. I was part of a team that won 10 games in 2018 and we were one of only two teams in the entire country in division one to not have an offensive play over 50 yards, and we won 10 games, the other team that did it won two, so you don’t want to live like that. But if you protect the ball and you are great at all the other stuff, you have to capitalize on those because, you know, they’re harder to manufacture when you don’t quite have the 4.3 guys on the outside, to really push that ball down the field. I think you will see a bit of a different feeling offense when we take that black jersey off Cam, and defenses have to defend against him tucking ball down and running around a little bit. And having coached quarterbacks like that, now he’s not Mike Vick currently, but he’s going to make a lot of plays with his feet this year. That’s just part of the game that can’t be simulated,” Herman said.
Update on OL Scarlee Jean
“Scarlee Jean, he’s got a Mild MCL sprain, he’s going to be immobilized for a week, so he will not play in the first game, and then it’s just going to be how fast. It could be 3 weeks, it could be 6 weeks, is the way I understand. We were anticipating him coming back pretty quickly,” Herman said.
Herman on WR Jayshon Platt taking on an expanded role
“We need him to (take on a big role), Jayshon Platt, he would tell you, it’s been a bit inconsistent, but when he flashes, he shows us what he’s capable of. He’s had a great off season, a guy that’s really turned a corner in our program. I wasn’t sure if he was going to make it this time last year, and he’s done everything right up into this point to get him in this position. So we got 10 or so more days for him to continue. He’s improved every day, and we’re going to need him to be at his best, on Friday, because he’s going to play a big part in that game,” Herman said.
Herman on the kicker battle
“I thought about it, and the thought is, we have more time. We have time, and those guys appreciate that. They’re in no hurry, and I think we owe it to the team, but we owe it to those guys too, to make sure that if it’s this close this late, then we let them keep battling until, until it becomes clear,” Herman said.
Up Next
FAU will continue to finish out the week of preparation as they would prior to Michigan State, which will see them wind down contact and pad usage towards the end of next week. With the Quarterback position decided, the Owls can look to suit the offense to Fancher over the next week and a half and find what works best for him, specifically the WR personnel groups that he gels with.
Tom Herman will speak to the Media again next Monday in his final appearance prior to the Owls trip to East Lansing.