TAMPA, Fla. – The Florida Atlantic University football team (3-3, 2-0 AAC), took the bulls by the horns in a dominating 56-14 win over the University of South Florida (3-4, 2-2 AAC) on Saturday.
It was a scoring explosion for the Owls, who racked up 35 unanswered points in the second half and showed no mercy in an afternoon that saw several players have career days.
Junior Quarterback Daniel Richardson found his targets all day on his way to a career-high 382 yards on 31-38 passing. While he spread the ball around to nine different receivers, more career days by redshirt sophomore Tony Johnson and junior LaJohntay Wester were keys to a historic offensive night.
The Owls remain on a perfect American Athletic Conference play start in their inaugural season with the AAC and find themselves firmly in the mix at the top of the conference.
FIRST HALF
The Owls have had plenty of strong starts to go around, and this game was no exception. The defense forced a three-and-out and the offense marched right down USF territory, culminating in freshman TE Zeke Moore’s first career touchdown.
Defense and offense continued to work in harmony as Jarron Morris forced a fumble on the very next drive, recovered by Amari Wansley.
The offense impressed through the end of the second quarter with a wildcat touchdown run by QB Michael Johnson Jr. and a traditional 3-yard punch-it-in score by Larry McCammon, giving the Owls a 21-14 lead at halftime.
SECOND HALF
An acrobatic 47-yard catch by Tony Johnson set up yet another touchdown run by Michael Johnson Jr. to put the Owls up 28-14.
It was then time for the LaJohntay show to take over. The all-time leading Florida Atlantic receptions leader hauled in a 17-yard pass for the score.
He then took a punt return 67 yards to the house, the first of career and first by an Owl since 2019, to bust open the game.
Not wanting to be outdone, Tony Johnson snagged a 23-yarder at the beginning of the fourth quarter. The redshirt sophomore receiver finished the day with a career-high 131 yards.
Graduate running back Kobe Lewis then capped off the scoring palooza with a 12-yard run for 56 points, the most in a game since 2021, to seal the 56-14 victory.
QUOTABLE
Hagerty Family Head Football Coach Tom Herman
“We played a really good offensive team and to hold them to 14 points, a lot of that has to come with having a 10-minute advantage in the time of possession, but also scoring points. You can have the ball for as long as you want on offense, but if you don’t have much to score for it on the scoreboard, it is not really beneficial. But to be able to score that many points as well as a bunch of guys that when their number was called on defense really stepped up. We don’t like to use the phrase ‘rising to the occasion’, we like to do what the Navy seals talk about, which is falling to the level of your training. The guys that were forced into some very key roles this afternoon were trained really well and they went out and applied their training. I was really proud to see their result.”
OFFENSE
- The Owls recorded season highs in total yards and passing yards
- Offensive coordinator Charlie Frye’s unit maintained a 13-minute advantage in time of possession, often cited as a key factor for offensive success
- Florida Atlantic went a perfect 6-6 in each of their red zone opportunities
- Richardson threw for a career-high 382 passing yards on a career high 82% completion percentage and three touchdowns
- Johnson recorded a career-high 131 yards on eight catches, snagging every target thrown his way
- Wester moved up to No. 3 on Florida Atlantic’s all-time receiving yards list and had yet another electric performance, finishing the night with 10 receptions and 123 yards. It was his eighth game recording 100+ yards and fourth time in the last five games
- Junior WR Devin Price also made his mark with an acrobatic catch of his own and added another for a total of 60 yards on his two receptions
- The rushing attack remained a force to be reckoned with, with McCammon rushing for 75 and a touchdown and Lewis adding 70 and a score himself
- Richardson was clean in the pocket all afternoon thanks to an offensive line that did not allow any sacks and made way for an effective run game
DEFENSE
- While the offense was the highlight of the night, the defense got after the quarterback with a season-high six sacks
- Senior LB Jackson Ambush logged a team-high nine tackles
- Sophomore LB Jaylen Wester made seven tackles and added his first career sack
- Junior DL Decarius Hawthorne notched a career-high 1.5 sacks
SPECIAL TEAMS
- Already impressive at punt returner, Wester added his name to the Owls’ special teams history books with his 67-yard touchdown
- While the reigning AAC Special Teams Player of the Week Logan Lupo did not have to punt much, only twice, he made all eight of his extra point attempts
UP NEXT
The Owls went 1-0 in the AAC this week and will have to go 1-0 AAC next week. The next challenge is the UTSA Roadrunners, who won the FAU’s previous conference in 2022, Conference USA, before joining the American. The game is set for Saturday, Oct. 21 at 6 p.m. EST at FAU Stadium, marking homecoming weekend. Broadcast will be on ESPN+.
