Lightning Strikes, Thunder Rolls and FAU Owls Football Give up 14-point Fourth Quarter Lead and Lose Another Close Game at FAU Stadium in Boca Raton

Lightning delayed the first ever meeting of the Ball State University Cardinals and Florida Atlantic University (FAU) Owls college football game at FAU Stadium’s Howard Schnellenberger Field though the light drizzle of rain and gloom did little to slow down two speedy offenses before Ball State (3-1) pulled away for a 31-27 win over FAU (1-3). After trailing the Owls 24-17 at halftime, the Ball State Cardinals outscored FAU14-3 in the second half. The turning point of the game when Ball State’s defense stuffed Owls running back Buddy Howell Jr., on 4^th and 1 yard from the Ball State 30-yard line, with 5:33 left in the fourth quarter. Lightning struck after the play and the teams ran into their locker rooms for the last 30-minute-plus lightning delay. The FAU Owls offense sputtered in the third and fourth quarter, and the call to go for it on fourth down, in field goal position, with a kicker who made field goals from 41 and 19 yards respectively, was a questionable call by the FAU coaching staff. If the Owls would have gone for the field goal, and made it, they would have been up 27-21 with just over 5 minutes remaining in the game. Instead FAU went for it, failed, and gave the Ball State Cardinals momentum going into the last lengthy lightning delay and a chance to plan their final offensive assault.

Thanks to a thundering offensive attack, the Owls controlled the Cardinals early. Defensive back Andrew Soroh intercepted a pass by Ball State quarterback Riley Neal as the Cardinals were driving into FAU territory. The FAU offense took advantage of the turnover and marched down the field to the Cardinals 5-yard line. On the next play, FAU quarterback Jason Driskel scored on a 5-yard touchdown run and Owls kicker Greg Joseph made the extra point (E.P.) to give FAU a 7-0 lead early in the first quarter. On the play, Driskel darted to the right side of the offensive line, slashed through a hole in the Ball State defense and hit pay dirt on the touchdown run. Later in the first quarter of the game, Driskel connected on a 31-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Kalib Woods and Joseph nailed the E.P. to give FAU a 14-0 lead over Ball State.

After Driskel ran and passed to give his FAU Owls the lead, then Ball State Cardinals quarterback Riley Neal passed to tight end Sam Brunner for a 26-yard touchdown late in the first quarter. Early in the second quarter, Neal rushed for a one-yard touchdown run to tie the game 14-14 with 10:29 to go in the second quarter.  The Owls scored 10 out of the next 13 points in the game, Kerrith Whyte Jr. rushed for a three-yard touchdown a minute later after Ball State’s score, to give FAU a 21-14 lead. The Cardinals responded with a 39-yard field goal to narrow the lead 21-17. Not to be left out, FAU kicker Greg Joseph nailed a 19-yard field goal to give the Owls a 24-17 lead at halftime.

Both teams came out stale in the second half. The offenses looked bad, like the weather. In a hard-to-believe stroke of Mother Nature, a third lightning delay halted the game for 46 minutes early in the third quarter. Ball State tied the score for the second time in the game late in the third quarter when Neal connected with wide receiver Corey Lacanaria to even the score at 24-24.With 9:18 left in the fourth quarter, FAU kicker Greg Joseph walloped a 41-yard field goal to give the Owls a 27-24 lead. That would be the last time FAU would lead in the game. The Cardinals took their first lead of the game with less than two minutes in the fourth quarter and went on to win the game.

The game between FAU and Ball State had a total of three timed lightning delays, and three other times where the mandatory time delays were restarted. Most of the lightning lit up the northeast and east side of FAU Stadium, a sporting venue dominated by metal bleachers.

Keep an Owls Eye On –

·         Owls offensive lineman Tarrick Thomas left the game with a right knee injury on FAU’s first offensive series. Thomas is a redshirt freshman from Tallahassee. 

Owls Off To Soaring Start, Don’t Disappoint Dallas Cowboys Star Lucky Whitehead at FAU Stadium

With Dallas Cowboys return man Lucky Whitehead on the field to support his FAU alma mater, the Owls took leads on three separate occurrences thanks to the explosive speed of running back Buddy Howell Jr. and led by quarterback Jason Driskel’s clever running and passing attack in a 38-30 FAU (1-0) win over the Southern Illinois Salukis (0-1) at FAU Stadium’s Schnellenberger Field. Howell Jr. had first half touchdown runs of 48, 37 respectively and on his first three carries had 87 yards rushing.

“If you block for Buddy to get you six yards he gets you 10 and if you block for him to get 10 yards he runs for 15,” FAU Head Coach Charlie Partridge said. Howell Jr. finished with 129 yards rushing. “It was one of those moments we were practicing day in and day out. Going through my reads and just hitting it hard and it was wide open and I’m just blessed the line made that hole for me and I was able to complete the mission by running fast and getting into the end zone,” Howell Jr. said.

Driskel had two touchdown passes, the first to Tavaris Harrison for 85 yards in the second quarter and another to former Jupiter High School quarterback and Wake Forest transfer Tyler Cameron for a four-yard touchdown late in the third quarter. The latter gave FAU an 11-point lead heading into the fourth quarter. Eventually, the FAU Owls (1-0) won 38-30 over the Southern Illinois Salukis (0-1) at FAU Stadium’s Schnellenberger Field. Maybe it was Lucky Whitehead’s Owls hand sign he flashed thumb to index finger with middle, ring and pinky finger up to the team and fans while wearing the brightest orange, John Lennon like glasses which seemed to reflect the new shine of a young season for the FAU Owls.

“Back in Boca watching my boys work!!! Let’s get this Victory #GoOwls,” Whitehead tweeted from his @ninjafast22 Twitter handle.

Whether it was Lucky or a better FAU football team, one thing is for sure the Owls are hungry to get off to a soaring start following consecutive three win, nine loss seasons which mirrored the program in both the 2014 and 2015 seasons. Even the Owls defense looked much improved in the second half when defensive line leader Trey Hendrickson blocked a 50-yard field goal attempt by the Salukis Austin Johnson.

“I think it was huge. Our scouting report did show at times he had a low trajectory on his field goals. We thought if we didn’t catch it we’d be able to catch it in the back of the end zone and build a return off of it. Our players executed the game plan by knowing that and getting their hands up at the right time,” Coach Partridge said.

Earlier in the game, Johnson connected on a 48-yard field goal to give the Salukis their first lead 17-14 with 4:44 late in the second quarter. The Owls turned Hendrickson’s blocked field goal into a score of their own early in the final period when FAU kicker Greg Joseph booted a 40-yard field goal to take a commanding 38-24 lead. On the second play from scrimmage for the Owls offense, junior running back Buddy Howell blasted through a hole big enough to drive a Ford truck through en route to a 48-yard touchdown run to give FAU an early 7-0 lead with just 12:49 left in the first quarter. Southern Illinois answered by chomping chunks of yardage against the Owls defense in just under two minutes when Salukis running back Jonathan Mixon scored on a three-yard touchdown run to even the score 7-7. The Salukis touchdown was set-up by a 54-yard pass from quarterback Josh Straughan to wide receiver Connor Iwema deep into FAU territory. Just three offensive drives later FAU’s Howell used his speed and another giant gap to break free on an exciting 37-yard touchdown run to give FAU a 14-7 lead. One spot where the FAU defense looked really vulnerable was in their first half pass defense. On the next Salukis possession, Straughan found Billy Reed for an 11-yard touchdown. After an FAU punt, Salukis kicker Austin Johnson booted a long 48-yard field goal to give the Salukis their first lead 17-14. The lead was short lived as FAU quarterback Jason Driskel had a pass tipped by several defenders and then Tavaris Harrison came down for the rebound and outran the Salukis defense for an 85-yard touchdown reception to give the Owls another first half lead 21-17.