NORMAN, Okla. – It was looked upon as perhaps FAU’s highest profile game in program history.
It was looked upon as a real opportunity for running back Devin Singletary to be firmly entrenched in this year’s Heisman Trophy race.
It was an opportunity to get its first win over an AP Top 10 team. It was an opportunity to crack the AP Top 25 rankings for the first time.
Today’s road game at No. 7 Oklahoma turned out to be an opportunity for other goals down the line, to say the least.
In FAU’s 63-14 road loss to Oklahoma, Singletary was limited to 18 carries for 69 yards and a touchdown. His score came after halftime, when the Owls went into the second half with a whopping 42-0 deficit to the Sooners (1-0).
Other than Singletary’s score, there weren’t many highlights for FAU (0-1).
The Owls defense gave up a eye-popping 650 yards to the Sooners offense, which was led by senior quarterback Kyler Murray’s near-perfect game (9-of-11 passing, 239 yards, 2 touchdowns; 23 yards rushing) and wide receiver Marquise Brown’s six-catch, 133-yard performance that was highlighted by a 65-yard touchdown catch in the first half.
“Obviously, we didn’t score until the second half,” Kiffin told media members after the game. “That’s ridiculous. Giving up 650 yards is ridiculous and we gave up a score on special teams. We did the trifecta today, so that’s very discouraging.”
FAU’s other score came from multipurpose running back Kerrith Whyte, who scored on a 7-yard run to the end zone with 4:13 left in the fourth quarter. It turned out to be the final score of the game.
Both touchdowns came from running backs who played high school football in Palm Beach County (Singletary – Delray Beach American Heritage alum; Whyte – Seminole Ridge alum). It lets everyone know that our area players can shine for themselves on any stage.
Meanwhile, there were some good defensive performance on the individual front, despite the fact that the Owls defense gave up a staggering 650 yards to the Sooners offense.
Owls senior safety and Seminole Ridge alum Jalen Young finished the day with five tackles. That was tied for second most on the team, behind junior linebacker Rashad Smith’s nine tackles (0.5 TFL).
Owls senior defensive lineman and Glades Central alum Steven Leggett recorded a tackle against the Sooners.
Although highlights were hard to find on this day, the rest of this season looks to be promising for the Owls. Their next game is at home against Air Force on Saturday, Sept. 8 (2:00 p.m. kickoff) at FAU Stadium.
“At the end of the day, we’re 0-1,” Kiffin said to media members. “We just got to go back to work. It’s the same record we started with last year.”
NOTE: FAU started with a 0-2 record, then went on to win 11 of its 12 final games en route to the Conference USA regular season title and championship game victory. The hometown college football team capped off last season with a 50-3 win over Akron in the Boca Raton Bowl.
