It was a duel in paradise as the Owls took the field for the second scrimmage of FAU fall camp. It was a battle as the first and second team defense stymied Cam Fancher and Tyriq Starks at times, however, the Owls offense (wide receivers photo above, Angelina LaBelle) eventually got in a groove, which created a balanced afternoon and showcased talent on both sides.
The defense was led by an improved DB room and pass rush, which saw Buggs Brown and Daedae Hill limit the offense’s ability to stretch the field on the outside.
In terms of the pass rush, Wilky Denaud, Chisom Ifeanyi, Eric Brantley, and Jarrett Jerrels recorded sacks and were providing consistent pressure against the offensive units.
As for the offense, at times it was a struggle to stretch the field early on as both Cam Fancher and Tyriq Starks had multiple 3 and outs, however both were able to find success in the short game.
Starks was able to run the speed option efficiently, and utilize the short game with screens to his WRs and RBs to pick up 1st downs. For Fancher, he led a 99 yard TD drive in which he found 4 different receivers and was able to stretch the field.
The biggest explosiveness of the offense came when Kasen Weisman took the field, connecting with multiple receivers on deep passes and making plays outside of the pocket. Weisman showed a strong command of the offense which saw him lead multiple TD drives including a 40 yarder to Marlyn Johnson and a yarder to Buck Mitchell, one in which Mitchell blazed by the defense.
Special teams also bounced back from the previous scrimmage and saw Carter Davis, Morgan Suarez, Robert Hammond III, and Logan Lupo all hit from 50+ after the unit saw struggles last week.
FAU coach Tom Herman said today’s scrimmage was a big one for the entire roster as it helps him decide who will make the travel squad for the first game of the season.
“This was a huge scrimmage for the 30th-85th guy because we are only going to travel 70 to east Lansing, not that it wasn’t important for those first few guys… those guys still have a ton of work to do,” Herman said. “The opportunities for some of these other guys, are going to be dwindled, knowing that soon we’re going to use scout teams, the FAU Vs FAU (above photo, Angelina LaBelle) is going to be extremely limited from this point forward, and so we made a big deal about todays scrimmage because it needed to feel that way.”
Owl Bytes
Herman’s Shining Unit
When asked what unit Coach Herman has stood out the most to him this camp, he mentioned his running back unit, keying in on the depth and the veterans at the top. After last season’s issues with injuries and lack of depth, this season will feature an array of talent, all of which will be able to chip in if needed.
“Over the last 16 practices, you’ve said, Boy, this thing’s starting to gel a little bit. I feel good about the trajectory. Tailback. Tailback, yeah, that’s we’ve got two really good veterans in Zu and CJ, and we’ve got two really good young guys in Gemari and Xavier, and we’ve found a new one in Tremonte Underwood, so we’re able to say we have 5 tailbacks that we feel good about,” Herman said.
Lockdown in Paradise
FAU’s defensive backs have been able to really limit the offense’s ability to stretch the field, and that’s largely because 6’3 Buggs Brown and “Athletic Freak” Daedae Hill have been locking down the outside. They’re just one portion of a really solid defensive unit overall for the Owls, however their athletic prowess combined with really solid technique should help FAU limit opposing receivers and it’s something DB Buggs Brown says he’s confident will be the case.
“Definitely, I have our DBS over any receiver corps in the country. I don’t care who you are. I have a lot of confidence in this DB room that we have everybody in our room can cover. We don’t have any weak spots in our room. I feel like we can guard anybody in the country,” Brown said.
Cautiously Optimistic
FAU Coach Tom Herman pondered on the idea of how much his squad improved from last year following last week’s scrimmage, and he came to the conclusion although his team this year is better, he doesn’t want that to be satisfying.
“That scrimmage was what I thought it should look like, I always nitpick but I had to say ‘we’re better than last year’. But last year’s not the standard. You know, the standards in New Orleans and in San Antonio and in Memphis, that’s the standard. And are we there yet? I don’t know. So are we better than last year, for sure, but I woke up the next day after kind of having that epiphany, if you will, and mentioned it to the staff like, I want to make sure we’re all guarding against that, Herman said.
NFL influences on the offense FAUs offense features a lot of motion which you see in the NFL, and FAU Coach Tom Herman says that the Owls do draw some offensive ideas from the pros. Also helping that is the Owls offensive coordinator Charlie Frye having an NFL background with the Dolphins, which has led to connections which the Owls use to their advantages.
“He (Coach Frye) studied the 9ers extensively this off season. Him and I have a relationship with Coach Shanahan there, and that’s been a nice relationship. This game is different, our quarterback is different. We ask our quarterback to do different things than what they do in that league. So I don’t want to full scale say, you know, we’re going to look like the San Francisco 49ers or the Los Angeles Rams, but there are some things that have been a nice wrinkle in addition that we have picked up,” Herman said.
Freshman Safeties Making an impact In today’s game, Freshman safety Mike Wright III recorded back to back interceptions on consecutive plays, playing with both the 1st and 2nd team defense. It was a shining moment for the freshman safety, who although he hasn’t cracked the starting rotation like his freshman counterpart CJ Heard (photo below, Angelina LaBelle), has found a way to make an impact.
Wright is showing his potential to make an impact with the Owls which could earn him a role his freshman year. A big part of Wright’s adjustment to FAU has been Heard, who he says has had a big impact on his freshman year.
“When he first got here we already knew what it was, we were trying to get to work. So sometimes late at night we study together, he’s been a big impact, I look for him to help with the playbook because he gets it real fast,” Wright said.
Injury Report
During today’s Media Availability Tom Herman gave an update on injuries that have occurred throughout Fall camp for the Owls, giving updates on DB Logic Hudgens, WR BJ Alexander, OL Scarlee Jean, DB Cam Goggins and EJ Horton.
“Today Scarlee Jean sprained his MCL, I don’t know exactly the severity, he got rolled up by a running back on a run play. EJ Horton had a turf toe, he would have gone back in if it was a game but I’m trying to be cautious. Cam Goggins, I have to figure out how this happened but he broke his nose, I’m guessing his helmet probably slid down. BJ Alexander has ruptured his patellar tendon and he will miss the season. Logic Hudgens has torn his ACL and he will miss the season,” Herman said.
“Hate it for BJ, this is a guy who fought his tail off to get a 6th year, so I just hate to see that happen, to get his butt, his butt off for so long, to get himself into that position. But he’s a great young man. He’s a college graduate, we’re going to help him out in whatever journeys he decides to go on from this point forward,” Herman said.
“Yeah, he will definitely be here, helping, helping our coach out, but BJ, he was that vet in our group. He’d been playing for a little while, so I just know I have to step up, because he was really one of the leaders. So I really have to step up because I got, I got some experience. So it’s really stepping up me to do with, with an expanded playing role this season, Platt said of how he’ll still impact the WR room-
Coaches Corner
Head Coach Tom Herman headlined our time in video interviews.
Up Next
FAU has officially finished fall camp and will transition into preparations for Michigan State with a mock game week in this upcoming week. The Owls will still look to finalize a few positional battles, including QB, over the next week and FAU Coach Tom Herman will speak to the media again on Tuesday.