Football Edged out by Three by North Texas

Thursday, November 15

Denton, Texas

9:30 p.m.

Florida Atlantic

5-6 , 3-4

North Texas

8-3 , 4-3

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

FAU

North Texas

11/16/2018 1:23:00 AM | Football

Box Score

DENTON, Texas – The first Thursday night game in Florida Atlantic University football history, that lasted well into early Friday morning locally, was a back and forth affair that saw the Owls fall to North Texas, 41-38. FAU must pick up a win in their next (and last) matchup to have the possibility of playing in a second consecutive bowl.

Quotable
"Credit to them," said Head Coach Lane Kiffin of North Texas. "They played really hard. Their defense, even in a high-scoring game, really gave us problems, stopping the run … Very tough quarterback (Mason Fine), coming back after it looked like he'd be out for the game. We screwed up ourselves there at the end. We had every chance to win. (We) scored, got it back … and just didn't make the plays down the line."

Quick Hits

FAU (5-6, 3-4 C-USA) won the toss and chose to receive, but punted away on their first drive
The Mean Green (8-3, 4-3 C-USA) drove for the first score, notching five first downs, including a 13-yard touchdown pass
The Owls netted their first two first downs on back-to-back 12-yard rushes by Devin Singletary and Chris Robison, but failed on a fourth-down pass attempt
NT extended the lead on a 38-yard field goal midway through the first, and further went ahead 17-0 late in the frame
On their final opening quarter drive, and facing 3rd-and-2 from their own 44, the Owls ran a perfect play call, with Robison faking a handoff before finding Harrison Bryant untouched down the middle for a 56-yard touchdown
Despite having 1st-and-goal on the FAU eight, NT was held to just a field goal on their next drive. Still, at that point (with 13:37 left in the second), the home team led, 20-7
The Owls had an apparent 50-yard touchdown by Kerrith Whyte, Jr. called back, but kept the momentum: Whyte went nine; three plays later, Robison got five on 4th-and-4; he scrambled for 25 on the very next play, and Singletary went in from one on the 10th play of the drive
That gave Singletary 21 touchdowns this season and 65 in his career, making him now sixth all-time by himself in FBS history
And then the next two plays went the Owls' way as well: a tipped pass was intercepted by Rashad Smith, and Whyte took the ensuing offensive possession 29 yards for a touchdown and a 21-20 lead
Those two touchdowns (and the interception in between) came in a span of just 13 seconds
On the heels of the FAU defense holding NT to field goals on their previous two red zone opportunities, the next drive saw the Mean Green get to the two but get stuffed on 4th-and-goal, with James Pierre getting the tackle for loss (one of five TFL for the Owls in the first half)
Each team came up empty on their last opportunities of the half, meaning FAU took the one-point lead into the locker room
At that point, the Owls had held the Mean Green to just three rushing yards as a team
Two plays after the break, another tipped NT pass fell into the hands of an Owl defender, as Ocie Rose picked up his second interception of the year (and second for the team on the night)
The drive ended with points as Vladimir Rivas was good from 31 yards out to push the lead to four, 24-20
NT regained the lead on the next drive, 27-24, on a five-yard rush, recorded their first turnover with an interception to get the ball right back, and extended the lead on the ground again (from 18 yards out)
Bryant picked up a 36-yard reception on the Owls' next series to go over 100 for the second time in his career
Singletary capped off the drive (eight plays, 75 yards) with an eight-yard touchdown, the play after a 23-yard scamper. That cut the deficit back down to three at 34-31
An FAU field goal attempt to tie with 8:07 left went off the right upright
NT seemingly sealed it with a long run with just over four minutes to go, but nearly as quickly, the Owls aired it out, with Robison connecting with Jovon Durante for 55 yards on a drive lasting just 28 seconds. That made it 41-38 with 3:38 left
A Mean Green three-and-out, and punt, gave FAU the ball back with 2:30 to go, but an interception on third down sealed the game
Bryant set a career high with 138 yards, on six receptions. Durante also had six catches and totaled 90 yards receiving
Singletary was just under 100 rushing (91, on 23 carries), while Whyte added 76
Robison nearly had the third 300-yard passing game of his season, settling for 294, going 21-for-35. He added 34 yards rushing
The Owls' defense had seven tackles for loss, three forced fumbles, three sacks and two interceptions

Looking Ahead
FAU fans have one more opportunity to see the Owls in person this regular season, on Saturday, Nov. 24, when the team hosts Charlotte at 1:30 p.m. To purchase tickets, call 1-866-FAU-OWLS or visit www.FAUSports.com.