Tag: Owls

Nov 1, 2024; Boca Raton, Florida, USA; Florida Atlantic Owls head coach Tom Herman walks on the field before the game against the South Florida Bulls at FAU Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-Imagn Images

Reports: FAU fires coach Tom Herman in 2nd season

Posted on | by Field Level Media

Florida Atlantic has fired head coach Tom Herman in just his second season, multiple outlets reported Monday.

Associate head coach Chad Lunsford will be named interim head coach for the Owls’ final two games.

Herman finishes with a 6-16 record in Boca Raton, Fla.

The news comes two days after the Owls lost to Temple in overtime, 18-15. The loss dropped FAU to 2-8 and 0-6 in the AAC. Temple fired head coach Stan Drayton on Sunday.

Herman, 49, is owed a buyout of more than $4 million, according to the USA Today database.

FAU hired Herman in 2023. He went 32-18 in four seasons at Texas but was fired after a 7-3 stint in the 2020 COVID season. Herman led the Longhorns to a bowl win in each of his four seasons.

Herman went 22-4 as head coach in Houston from 2015-16. He is 5-1 in bowl games overall, though not at FAU.

–Field Level Media

Oct 5, 2024; East Hartford, Connecticut, USA; Temple Owls head coach Stan Drayton watches from the sideline as they take on the Connecticut Huskies at Rentschler Field at Pratt & Whitney Stadium. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-Imagn Images

Temple fires third-year head coach Stan Drayton

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Temple football coach Stan Drayton was fired Sunday after nearly three seasons on the job.

The move comes one day following the Owls’ 18-15 overtime victory against FAU.

Drayton, 53, guided Temple to a 3-7 record overall (2-4 in the American Athletic Conference) on the season and 9-25 overall (4-18 AAC) since he took over the program in 2022.

Defensive coordinator Everett Withers has been named the team’s interim head coach for the remainder of the season.

“I would like to extend my appreciation to Coach Drayton for his commitment to Temple University, our student-athletes and the football program over the past three years,” Owls athletic director Arthur Johnson said.

“… With the changing landscape of college football and the playoff format, the opportunity for Temple football has never been greater. Our expectation is to compete for American Athletic Conference titles, appear in bowl games consistently, and build a program that our fans, alumni, and students can be proud of in the classroom and on the field. I am confident that our fans will rally around our student-athletes and support them as they always have.”

The Owls visit Texas-San Antonio on Friday and host North Texas on Nov. 30 to conclude their season.

–Field Level Media

Kennesaw State head coach Brian Bohannon on the sidelines during the football game against Middle Tennessee at MTSU, on Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024.

Kennesaw State coach Brian Bohannon steps down from program he created

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Brian Bohannon, who started the Kennesaw State program, stepped down on Sunday as head coach in his 10th season following a 1-8 start to the Owls’ first campaign at the FBS level, the school announced.

Bohannon, who turns 54 next month, has a career record of 72-38, including 5-6 in the ASUN Conference in 2022, and 3-6 in a transition season as an independent in 2023. The Owls have the losing record this year as a new member of Conference USA, which led to media reports that he was in danger of being fired.

The Owls’ lone victory came at home Oct. 23 against previously undefeated Liberty, 27-24. Kennesaw State has lost two games since then, including a 43-35 double-overtime loss to UTEP on Saturday in El Paso, Texas.

“Coach Brian Bohannon informed me this morning that he has decided to step down as our head football coach,” Kennesaw State athletic director Milton Overton said. “I want to express my sincere appreciation to Coach Bohannon and his family for their dedication to Kennesaw State University and our football program over the past 11 years.

“Coach Bohannon led Kennesaw State into the football era, poured his heart and soul into this program, and represented our university with the highest standards of professionalism and character.”

Chandler Burks, the co-offensive coordinator and a former star quarterback for the Owls, will serve as interim head coach for the rest of the season. The Owls have home games on Saturday against Sam Houston and Nov. 23 against FIU before visiting Louisiana Tech in Ruston on Nov. 30.

Kennesaw State hired Bohannon in March 2013 to launch an FCS program, which made its debut in 2015 and quickly enjoyed success, going 49-10 from 2017-21. His teams won three Big South Conference titles and made four FCS playoff appearances.

He was twice selected the Big South Conference Coach of the Year and was the 2017 FCS national coach of the year by the American Football Coaches Association.

A former wide receiver at the University of Georgia (1991-93), Bohannon was an assistant coach at Gardner-Webb (1996), Georgia Southern (1997-2001), Navy (2002-07) and Georgia Tech (2008-12) before he was hired to start the program at Kennesaw State in 2013.

–Field Level Media

Nov 18, 2023; East Hartford, Connecticut, USA; UConn Huskies head coach Jim Mora watches from the sideline as they take on the Sacred Heart Pioneers at Rentschler Field at Pratt & Whitney Stadium. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-Imagn Images

UConn builds 27-point lead, rolls over Florida Atlantic

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Nick Evers rushed for two touchdowns and threw for another to fuel UConn to a convincing 48-14 victory over Florida Atlantic on Saturday in East Hartford, Conn.

Evers completed 9 of 14 passes for 88 yards and added a career-high 78 yards on the ground as the Huskies (2-2) breezed to a win in the opener of their stretch of six straight home games.

Durell Robinson had 16 carries for 157 yards and two touchdowns and Mel Brown rushed for 156 yards for UConn, which benefited from a dominant ground attack. The Huskies carried the ball 66 times for 421 yards to enjoy a decisive edge in time of possession.

Florida Atlantic’s C.J. Campbell Jr. rushed for a pair of touchdowns. Cam Fancher completed 9 of 15 passes for 87 yards and rushed for 71 yards for the Owls (1-3), who shot themselves in the foot with 12 penalties for 93 yards.

The Huskies led 3-0 before igniting a pair of 12-play scoring drives to take a 17-0 advantage into halftime.

Evers connected with an unmarked Brown in the flat for a 5-yard touchdown pass with 11:32 remaining in the second quarter. That capped an 80-play drive that spanned 6:46 of playing time.

Robinson rushed to his right before making one cut and rumbling eight yards for a touchdown to complete a 91-yard drive with 1:50 left in the second quarter.

UConn essentially put the game away in the third quarter.

Evers capped a 14-play, 75-yard drive with a 3-yard touchdown before a deflected pass resulted in Jayden McDonald reeling in an interception. That drive bogged down before Chris Freeman kicked his second field goal to extend the Huskies’ lead to 27-0.

Campbell’s short-yard score was answered by Evers putting his shoulder down on a 2-yard touchdown to begin the fourth quarter.

–Field Level Media

Sep 14, 2024; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Cougars linebacker Michael Batton (44) pre-snap in the second quarter at TDECU Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Sean Thomas-Imagn Images

Houston dominates Rice in annual Bayou Bucket game

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Stacy Sneed rushed for 82 yards on seven carries and a long touchdown and Houston’s defense held visiting Rice to 159 total yards in a 33-7 win in the annual Bayou Bucket game on Saturday night.

Re’Shaun Sanford II added 71 rushing yards on 15 carries for the Cougars (1-2), who opened the season with losses to UNLV (27-7) and No. 15 Oklahoma (16-12).

Houston quarterback Donovan Smith completed 12 of 21 passes for 142 yards and a touchdown. He also rushed for two scores.

Rice managed just eight first downs and was 0-for-10 on third downs until the final drive of the game, finishing 2 for 13.

The Owls (1-2) beat Houston in double-overtime last season.

Rice quarterback E.J. Warner completed 12 of 21 passes for just 50 yards with an interception.

Sneed scored on a 65-yard touchdown run to give Houston a 7-0 lead with 5:30 left in the first quarter.

Rice went its third straight drive without a first down and Mekhi Mews returned the ensuing punt 75 yards for a touchdown, increasing the lead to 14-0 with 3:49 left in the first quarter.

Stephon Johnson caught a 44-yard touchdown strike from Smith with 7:29 left in the first half, extending the lead to 20-0.

The Cougars were stopped on downs at the Rice 7-yard line late in the third quarter, but Jalen Garner intercepted a Warner pass two plays later and returned it to the 1-yard line. Smith scored one play later to extend the lead to 26-0.

Smith added a 37-yard touchdown run with 7:10 remaining in the game to extend the lead to 33-0.

Rice’s Dean Connors scored on a 4-yard run with 1:08 left to prevent the shutout.

After both teams went three-and-out on opening drives, Sanford’s 34-yard run on the first play of the second series moved Houston into Rice territory. J’Marion Burnette’s 14-yard run pushed the drive into the red zone, but Joseph Kim would miss a 31-yard field goal attempt after a shaky hold.

Rice had three first downs and 59 total yards in the first half, going 0-for-7 on third downs.

–Field Level Media

Houston Cougars quarterback Donovan Smith (1) throws a pass during a college football game between the University of Oklahoma Sooners (OU) and the Houston Cougars at Gaylord Family – Oklahoma Memorial Stadium in Norman, Okla., Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024.

Houston seeing improvement, eyes first ’24 win vs. Rice

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Houston will try to put a dent in the win column when it hosts Rice in a nonconference game on Saturday night.

Houston (0-2) opened the season with a 27-7 home loss to UNLV and fell at No. 15 Oklahoma 16-12 last week.

The Cougars outgained the Sooners 318-249 in total yards, including 260-174 in passing yards, but came up empty on their final five drives of the game.

Still, Houston coach Willie Fritz saw plenty of improvement from the opening week.

“I think we cut in half the missed tackles from Week 1 to Week 2,” Fritz said. “I think we had seven (against Oklahoma). When you start to have less than 10 missed tackles in a ballgame, you’re really playing excellent defense. You’re doing a good job in tackling.”

Houston quarterback Donovan Smith bounced back from a poor performance against UNLV and completed 24 of 28 passes for 260 yards and a touchdown with an interception.

Defensively, the Cougars will continue to count on linebacker Michael Batton, who had nine tackles and two sacks against Oklahoma.

“He’s a really fun guy to coach,” Fritz said. “He’s got great speed, quickness, movement, loves the game. He can close on people. He knows when to go. He doesn’t have to reassess things. Once he makes a decision, he’s quick with the decision.”

Rice (1-1) is coming off a 69-7 home win against Texas Southern after dropping its season opener 34-14 to visiting Sam Houston. The point total against Texas Southern was the third most in school history and the margin of victory was the second largest.

Dean Connors needed just nine carries to accumulate 113 yards and three touchdowns against Texas Southern.

“There’s still plays that we need to improve on all throughout the game,” Rice safety Tyson Flowers said. “There’s stuff that we’re going to find when we watch the film that we need to correct if we want to continue to have the season that we want to have.”

–Field Level Media

Aug 30, 2024; Norman, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma Sooners wide receiver Deion Burks (6) celebrates with Oklahoma Sooners offensive lineman Spencer Brown (58) after scoring during the first quarter against the Temple Owls at Gaylord Family-Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports

Jackson Arnold (4 TDs), No. 16 Oklahoma defense dominate Temple

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Jackson Arnold threw four touchdowns and No. 16 Oklahoma’s defense forced five turnovers in a 51-3 win over in the teams’ season opener on Friday in Norman, Okla.

The game was Arnold’s home debut as a starter after he started the Sooners’ Alamo Bowl loss to Arizona in December.

Purdue transfer Deion Burks caught three touchdowns — all in the first half. It was Burks’ first career three-touchdown game.

While Arnold had a decent if not flashy performance, completing 17 of 25 passes for 141 yards, his Temple counterpart struggled from the jump.

Forrest Brock, making his first Division I start, missed on his first five pass attempts and his sixth went for a 2-yard loss. His seventh was intercepted by the Sooners’ Kani Walker.

Before his interception, Brock fumbled after a hit from Ethan Downs to give the Sooners the ball in Temple territory.

Five plays later, Arnold hit Burks for a touchdown to put Oklahoma up 14-0.

The Sooners got on the board with Arnold’s 14-yard touchdown pass to Bauer Sharp on their first offensive drive of the game.

Tyler Keltner hit three field goals, including a 50-yarder in the first quarter.

The Sooners didn’t convert on third down until Taylor Tatum’s 8-yard touchdown run with just more than three minutes remaining. Oklahoma was 0-for-11 on third down before the conversion.

The Owls lost two more fumbles in the second quarter, leading to 10 Sooners’ points.

The last of those first-half turnovers came with just more than a minute remaining before half, with Joquez Smith’s fumble giving Oklahoma the ball back at the Temple 6.

Brock finished 12 of 25 for 128 yards and two interceptions. The Sooners sacked Brock six times.

Jaren Kanak scored on a 21-yard fumble return following an Oklahoma punt early in the fourth quarter. The fumble was Temple’s sixth turnover of the night.

Oklahoma outgained the Owls 378-197, holding Temple to just 69 rushing yards.

–Field Level Media

Dec 29, 2020; San Antonio, TX, USA; Texas Longhorns head coach Tom Herman is being interviewed during the first half against the Colorado Buffaloes at Alamodome. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Reports: FAU hires Tom Herman as coach

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Former Texas and Houston coach Tom Herman has accepted the head coaching position at FAU, multiple reports said Thursday.

Herman has a 54-22 record as a head coach. He led Houston to victory in the 2015 Peach Bowl in his first of two seasons there, then went 32-18 over four seasons at Texas with a 4-0 record in bowl games.

But the Longhorns let him go after a 7-3 season in 2020 in favor of hiring Steve Sarkisian.

Herman, 47, spent the 2021 season as an offensive analyst for the Chicago Bears. He did not coach in 2022, instead calling games for CBS Sports.

He replaces Willie Taggart at FAU after the program fired Taggart at the end of his third season. The Owls went 15-18 during that span, including 5-7 in 2022.

FAU moves from Conference USA to the American Athletic Conference next season.

–Field Level Media

Oct 29, 2022; Annapolis, Maryland, USA; Temple Owls quarterback E.J. Warner (13) throws an interception in overtime against the Navy Midshipmen at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brent Skeen-USA TODAY Sports

Temple hosts USF as both teams search for first AAC win

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Temple and South Florida are the only teams yet to win a game in American Athletic Conference play this season.

Off to 0-4 starts in league play, Temple and USF are hoping to emerge with the elusive AAC victory when the teams convene Saturday afternoon in Philadelphia.

Temple (2-6, 0-4 AAC) has dropped conference games to Memphis, Central Florida, Tulsa and Navy. The Owls absorbed a 70-13 loss to UCF on Oct. 13, took an early 10-point lead in a 27-16 loss at Tulsa and succumbed in overtime during last week’s 27-20 loss to Navy.

Amad Anderson Jr. caught a 20-yard touchdown for the Owls and finished with eight receptions for 114 yards. E.J. Warner, the son of Kurt Warner, completed 24 of 48 passes for 268 yards and was intercepted twice.

Perhaps the most encouraging sign came from the defense’s showing against Navy’s triple-option. The Owls conceded 224 yards from scrimmage — well below Navy’s 370 yards per game entering last week.

“We prepared very well for the triple-option,” Temple linebacker Jordan Magee said. “We just didn’t get the outcome.”

USF (1-7, 0-4) enters Saturday allowing a league-worst 38.1 points per game and a league-worst 488.4 yards per contest. The Bulls are also on a six-game losing streak since getting their only win over Howard on Sept. 10.

Since entering league play, USF has losses to East Carolina, Cincinnati, Tulane and Houston. After allowing three touchdowns in a span of 6:30 in the second half in its 45-31 loss to Tulane, the Bulls allowed 490 yards in last week’s 42-27 loss at Houston.

Katravis Marsh started at quarterback for the first time for the Bulls and completed 24 of 34 passes for a touchdown and 275 yards. He is expected to start again at Temple after starter Gerry Bohannon suffered a season-ending shoulder injury Oct. 15.

“Most improvement in the quarterback position is typically from the first game as a starter to that second game so I expect to see him build off of this performance and continue to improve next week and as we move forward,” USF coach Jeff Scott said.

Temple has won five of eight all-time meetings, though USF recorded a 34-14 home win last season.

–Field Level Media

Oct 5, 2022; Orlando, Florida, USA; UCF Knights wide receiver Javon Baker (1) runs the ball against Southern Methodist Mustangs safety Nick Roberts (22) during the second half at FBC Mortgage Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mike Watters-USA TODAY Sports

UCF seeks fourth straight win, faces Temple

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After losing to Louisville in Week 2, UCF has rebounded and will seek its fourth straight win when it hosts Temple on Thursday night in American Athletic Conference play at Orlando, Fla.

Second-year coach Gus Malzahn and his Knights will be facing the Owls in UCF’s annual Space Game, a contest that honors the long relationship between the central Florida school and the nearby U.S. space program.

During their three-game winning streak, the Knights (4-1, 1-0 AAC) have played in another galaxy and put a vast amount of space between themselves and the opposition on the scoreboard — a combined 108-43 upper hand in points.

UCF collected a conference-opening 41-19 win over SMU last Wednesday, pouring it on by a 31-6 margin in the second half after trailing at halftime. The Knights’ defense made big plays in the second half of the game that pitted new SMU coach Rhett Lashlee and Malzahn, who have worked together on five previous teams.

“We played our best football game,” Malzahn said. “We dominated the second half.”

Though they allowed 476 total yards to the offensive-minded Mustangs, the Knights held them to 4-for-16 on third downs. UCF had seven tackles for loss, eight pass breakups and five quarterback hurries.

In its last outing on Oct. 1, Temple (2-3, 0-1) led 3-0 at halftime in Memphis before the Tigers awakened and scored four times in the final 17 minutes for a 24-3 conference win.

Owls first-year coach Stan Drayton said his team isn’t playing complementary football, with the defense leading the way and the offense trying to keep up.

Penalties and turnovers have also been a problem, as E.J. Warner — the son of former NFL quarterback Kurt Warner — threw three interceptions.

In three of its games, Temple’s defense has held the opposition to 16 points or fewer, including a 28-0 blanking of UMass.

“The defense played lights out for about 2 1/2 or three quarters,” Drayton after the Memphis defeat. “They’re playing 89 plays compared to 50-some-odd plays on offense. That’s just not a good formula we’re living by right now.”

UCF has won five straight in the series and owns a 7-2 all-time edge.

–Field Level Media