Florida Atlantic Owls football

Football team of Florida Atlantic University

Florida Atlantic Owls football

| | 2025 Florida Atlantic Owls football team

|

First season| 2001; 24 years ago
Athletic director| Brian White
Head coach| Zach Kittley
1st season, 0–0 (–)
Stadium| FAU Stadium
(capacity: 29,571)
Year built| 2011
Field surface| Natural Turf
Location| Boca Raton, Florida
NCAA division| Division I FBS
Conference| The American
Past conferences| Division I-AA independent
(2001–2004)
Sun Belt Conference
(2005–2012)
Conference USA
(2013–2022)
All-time record| 124–158 (.440)
Bowl record| 4–1 (.800)
Conference titles| 3 (2007, 2017, 2019)
Division titles| 2 (2017, 2019)
Rivalries| FIU (rivalry)
Consensus All-Americans| 1
Colors| Blue and red[1]

Fight song| FAU Fight Song
Mascot| Owlsley the Owl and Hoot the Owl
Marching band| Florida Atlantic Marching Owls
Website| fausports.com/football

The Florida Atlantic Owls football program represents Florida Atlantic University (FAU) in the sport of American football. The Owls compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the American Athletic Conference (American/AAC). The Owls play their home games at FAU Stadium which has a seating capacity of 29,419.

## History

[edit]

See also: List of Florida Atlantic Owls football seasons

### Howard Schnellenberger era (2001–2011)

[edit]

Florida Atlantic University football began play in 2001 with legendary coach Howard Schnellenberger serving as head coach until 2011. Schnellenberger was a former offensive coordinator with the NFL's Indianapolis Colts and Miami Dolphins who, as a head coach, turned around a moribund Miami football program and won a national championship in his fifth season in 1983 after back to back nine win seasons in 1980 and 1981. Schnellenberger also turned around a downtrodden Louisville football program, winning the Fiesta Bowl in 1990.

Coach Schnellenberger

After competing their first four years as an NCAA Division I-AA independent, the Owls moved to Division I-A and the Sun Belt Conference. Starting with the 2013–14 school year, FAU athletics have competed in Conference USA.

In 1998, Florida Atlantic University announced it was pursuing the creation of an NCAA football program and that Howard Schnellenberger was going to lead the charge, as director of football operations and head coach. After his success in rebuilding programs at Miami and Louisville, Coach Schnellenberger now undertook the role of building a program from scratch. Much like his time at Miami and Louisville, Coach Schnellenberger did not shy from placing lofty expectations and high goals on his newly created program. Even before FAU would play an intercollegiate game, Coach Schnellenberger explained the goal of FAU football would be to play the best teams it can schedule, in order for the program to aim for a national championship in Division I-A football. These extreme goals were not unusual from a man like Coach Schnellenberger. At Louisville, facing threats from the administration that the football team would be terminated, Schnellenberger made the bold (and now famous) prediction, "[We are] on a collision course with the national championship. The only variable is time.”[2]

On August 29, 2000, the first practice was held at the Boca Raton campus of FAU, and 164 students showed up to try out for the team. Florida Atlantic joined NCAA Division I-AA, now known as Division I FCS, as an independent team for the 2001 season. Its first-ever intercollegiate competition was against Slippery Rock University, which the Owls lost 40–7 in front of 25,632 fans at Joe Robbie Stadium, now known as Hard Rock Stadium.[3]

The team finished its inaugural season at 4–6 and followed the next season at 2–9. Major accomplishments in its first two seasons include the program's first win, which came in its second game, against Bethune–Cookman, 31–28, and won in the first meeting with newly created South Florida rival, Florida International University, 31–21.

On September 15, 2007, FAU defeated its first Big Ten opponent with a 42–39 victory over Minnesota.[4] Led by Rusty Smith, FAU beat Troy in the final game of the 2007 season to become Sun Belt Conference champions and received an invitation to the 2007 New Orleans Bowl, its first ever bowl bid. As a result, in just the seventh year of the football program's history, and the third year playing in Division I, Florida Atlantic set an NCAA mark by becoming the second-youngest program ever to receive an invitation to a bowl game. They were surpassed only by the undefeated 1958 Air Force Falcons, who had played just three years of Division 1 football before being invited to the Cotton Bowl, where they played to a scoreless tie against the TCU Horned Frogs on January 1, 1959.

On August 11, 2011, Howard Schnellenberger announced he would retire at the end of the season.[5] The Owls ended the 2011 season 1–11, with the only victory coming from a 38–35 home win over UAB.[6]

### Carl Pelini era (2012–2013)

[edit]

On December 1, 2011, FAU hired Carl Pelini, the Nebraska Cornhuskers defensive coordinator to become their new head coach, to succeed Schnellenberger.

On October 30, 2013, Pelini resigned from his position after another coach alleged to school officials that he was using illegal drugs, charges that Pelini denied.[7][8] He, along with defensive coordinator Pete Rekstis, officially stepped down from their positions only three days before the school's homecoming game, which they won 34–17 under interim head coach Brian Wright. Under Pelini, the Owls compiled a 5–14 record.

Wright finished the 2012–13 season as the interim head coach, winning the team's last four games and led the Owls to its first bowl-eligible season since 2008–09. The Owls finished 6–6 for the season but were not invited to a bowl game.[9]

### Charlie Partridge era (2014–2016)

[edit]

On December 16, 2013, FAU announced it had hired Charlie Partridge as head coach.[10] Prior to accepting the job at FAU, Partridge was the defensive line coach at Arkansas.[11] On November 27, 2016, FAU fired Partridge after 3 consecutive 3–9 seasons.[12]

### Lane Kiffin era (2017–2019)

[edit]

On December 12, 2016, it was announced that former USC and Tennessee head coach Lane Kiffin would become the Owls' next head coach.[13] Kiffin resigned from FAU on December 7, 2019, after a 49–6 blowout win against the university of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) and before FAU's Boca Raton Bowl appearance against SMU Mustangs to become the head coach at the University of Mississippi (Ole Miss).[14] Kiffin left FAU with a record of 26–13 with two first-place finishes in Conference USA. In December 2019, FAU tight end Harrison Bryant won the John Mackey Award, becoming the first FAU player to win a major collegiate postseaon award, as well as becoming FAU's first consensus, and later unanimous, All-American.[15][16] FAU's first year defensive coordinator, Glenn Spencer, was named the interim head coach to lead the Owls at the Boca Raton Bowl.[17]

### Willie Taggart era (2020–2022)

[edit]

A game between Florida Atlantic and Air Force in 2021

On December 11, 2019, FAU announced the hiring of Willie Taggart as the next head coach.[18] During a shortened season due to the COVID-19 pandemic with no prior spring practice, Taggart led the FAU Owls to a 5–4 record, which includes a loss to the Memphis Tigers in the first and only Montgomery Bowl. He was fired on November 26, 2022, finishing with a 15–18 record.[19] Defensive coordinator Todd Orlando served as interim head coach during the transition period to find a new head coach.

### Tom Herman era (2023–2024)

[edit]

On December 1, 2022, FAU announced the hiring of former Houston and Texas head coach Tom Herman as the next head coach.[20] Herman was fired by FAU on November 18, 2024, after a 6–16 record through two seasons.[21] FAU's assistant head coach, tight ends coach, and special teams coordinator Chad Lunsford served as interim head coach for the remainder of the season.

### Zach Kittley era (2025–present)

[edit]

Zach Kittley, former offensive coordinator at Houston Baptist, Western Kentucky, and Texas Tech, was hired as the next coach at FAU on December 2, 2024.[22]

## Conference affiliations

[edit]

* Independent (NCAA Division I-AA) (2001–2003)
* Independent (NCAA Division I-A) (2004)
* Sun Belt Conference (2005–2012)
* Conference USA (2013–2022)
* American Athletic Conference (2023–present)

## Championships

[edit]

### Conference championships

[edit]

Florida Atlantic has won three conference championships, two outright and one shared.

Season  | Conference  | Coach  | Overall Record  | Conference Record

|
|
|
|

2007† | Sun Belt Conference | Howard Schnellenberger | 8–5 | 6–1
2017 | Conference USA | Lane Kiffin | 11–3 | 8–0
2019 | Conference USA | Lane Kiffin / Glenn Spencer‡ | 11–3 | 7–1

† Co-champions
‡ 2019 Boca Raton Bowl win coached by Glenn Spencer

### Division championships

[edit]

As a member of Conference USA since 2013, Florida Atlantic competes in the East Division. The Owls have won two division titles.

Season  | Division  | Coach  | Opponent  | CG result

|
|
|
|

2017 | CUSA East | Lane Kiffin | North Texas | W 41–17
2019 | UAB | W 49–6

## Bowl games

[edit]

Florida Atlantic has played in 5 bowl games, compiling a record of 4–1.

Season  | Coach  | Bowl  | Opponent  | Result

|
|
|
|

2007 | Howard Schnellenberger | New Orleans Bowl | Memphis | W 44–27
2008 | Howard Schnellenberger | Motor City Bowl | Central Michigan | W 24–21
2017 | Lane Kiffin | Boca Raton Bowl | Akron | W 50–3
2019 | Glenn Spencer (interim) | Boca Raton Bowl | SMU | W 52–28
2020 | Willie Taggart | Montgomery Bowl | Memphis | L 10–25

## Head coaches

[edit]

Coach  | Tenure  | Seasons  | Record  | Winning %

|
|
|
|

Howard Schnellenberger | 2001–2011 | 11 | 58–74 | .439
Carl Pelini | 2012–2013 | 2 | 5–15 | .250
Brian Wright (interim) | 2013 | 1 | 4–0 | 1.000
Charlie Partridge | 2014–2016 | 3 | 9–27 | .250
Lane Kiffin | 2017–2019 | 3 | 26–13 | .667
Glenn Spencer (interim) | 2019 | 1 | 1–0 | 1.000
Willie Taggart | 2020–2022 | 3 | 15–18 | .455
Tom Herman | 2023–2024 | 2 | 6–16 | .273
Chad Lunsford (interim) | 2024 | 1 | 1–1 | .500
Zach Kittley | 2025–present | 1 | 0–0 | –

## Rivalries

[edit]

### Florida International

[edit]

Main article: Shula Bowl

The Shula Bowl is a bitter rivalry game with Florida International. It was first played in 2002 and has been played every year since then. The winner receives the Don Shula Award. The game and trophy are named after former Miami Dolphins head coach Don Shula. The game is typically either in Boca Raton or Miami, though there have been meetings in other locations in the Miami metropolitan area, including Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens.

In total the two squads have met 21 times with Florida Atlantic holding a 16–5 lead as of the 2023 season conclusion. The 2005 game does not count with FIU having to vacate their victory due to NCAA violations and penalties.

Both schools have stated they will keep the rivalry alive as they will endure a five game series starting in 2024.

## Notable alumni and personnel

[edit]

See also: List of Florida Atlantic Owls in the NFL draft

### Current NFL players

[edit]

[23]

Player  | Position  | Team  | First year  | Draft round

|
|
|
|

Azeez Al-Shaair | OLB | San Francisco 49ers | 2019 | Undrafted
Brandin Bryant | DE | Buffalo Bills | 2016 | Undrafted
Harrison Bryant | TE | Cleveland Browns | 2020 | 4
Trevon Coley | DE | Tennessee Titans | 2016 | Undrafted
B.J. Emmons | RB | Las Vegas Raiders | 2021 | Undrafted
John Franklin III | WR | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 2018 | Undrafted
Trey Hendrickson | DE | Cincinnati Bengals | 2017 | 3
Gregory "Buddy" Howell, Jr. | RB | Houston Texans | 2018 | Undrafted
Greg Joseph | K | Minnesota Vikings | 2018 | Undrafted
Cre'Von LeBlanc | DB | Miami Dolphins | 2016 | Undrafted
Herb Miller | CB | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 2018 | Undrafted
Alfred Morris | RB | New York Giants | 2012 | 6
Sharrod Neasman | S | New York Jets | 2016 | Undrafted
James Pierre Jr | CB | Pittsburgh Steelers | 2020 | Undrafted
Devin "Motor" Singletary | RB | Buffalo Bills | 2019 | 3
Rashard Smith | LB | Philadelphia Eagles | 2020 | Undrafted
Andrew Soroh | LB |  | 2019 | Undrafted
Adarius (Glanton) Taylor | LB | Carolina Panthers | 2014 | Undrafted
Brandon Walton | OT | Pittsburgh Steelers | 2020 | Undrafted
Kerrith Whyte | RB |  | 2019 | 7

### Former NFL Players

[edit]

[24]

Player  | Position  | Teams  | Years played  | First year  | Draft round

|
|
|
|
|

Rob Housler | TE | Arizona Cardinals, Chicago Bears, Cleveland Browns | 2011-2015 | 2011 | 3
Lestar Jean | WR | Houston Texans | 2012-2013 | 2012 | Undrafted
Randell Johnson | OLB | Buffalo Bills, New York Jets | 2014-2016 | 2014 | 7
Michael Lockley | LB | Jacksonville Jaguars | 2011 | 2011 | Undrafted
Keith Reaser | CB | San Francisco 49ers, Kansas City Chiefs | 2014-2017 | 2014 | 5
D'Joun Smith | CB | Indianapolis Colts, Tennessee Titans | 2015-2016 | 2015 | 3
Rusty Smith | QB | Tennessee Titans | 2010-2012 | 2010 | 6
Lucky Whitehead | WR | Dallas Cowboys | 2015-2016 | 2015 | Undrafted

## Future non-conference opponents

[edit]

Announced schedules as of May 7, 2025.[25]

2025  | 2026  | 2027  | 2028  | 2029  | 2030  | 2031

|
|
|
|
|
|

vs Florida A&M | at Florida | at FIU[26] | at UCF |  | at Iowa | vs Missouri
at FIU[26] | vs FIU[26] | vs ULM |  |  | at Missouri |
at Maryland | at ULM | at Missouri |  |  |  |
vs UConn |  |  |  |  |  |

## Individual national award winners

[edit]

John Mackey Award
Best Tight End

2019 – Harrison Bryant

### Consensus/Unanimous All-Americans

[edit]

10 Florida Atlantic players have been awarded as All-Americans, with one Florida Atlantic player being awarded as a consensus All-American, later becoming a unanimous All-American.

Consensus All-Americans

Year(s)  | Name  | Number  | Position
2019 | Harrison Bryant | 40 | TE

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Florida Atlantic University Visual Standards". May 4, 2018. Retrieved July 10, 2022.
2. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on January 12, 2009. Retrieved September 23, 2007.`{{cite web}}`: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
3. ^ "FAU vs Slippery Rock".
4. ^ "FAU vs. Minnesota". Archived from the original on June 4, 2011.
5. ^ "Schnellenberger to Retire as Football Coach". Florida Atlantic University Athletics. Retrieved December 22, 2019.
6. ^ "2011 Football Schedule". Florida Atlantic University Athletics. Retrieved December 22, 2019.
7. ^ "FAU now says Carl Pelini has been fired with cause". CBSSports.com. November 26, 2013. Retrieved November 26, 2022.
8. ^ Evans, Thayer. "Ex-FAU coach Carl Pelini files suit over drug allegations". Sports Illustrated.
9. ^ "Football's 2013 Season Has Officially Ended". Florida Atlantic University Athletics. Retrieved December 22, 2019.
10. ^ "Florida Atlantic hires Partridge of Arkansas". December 15, 2013.
11. ^ "Florida Atlantic University to Introduce New Head Football Coach". Archived from the original on December 17, 2013. Retrieved December 17, 2013.
12. ^ "FAU fires coach Charlie Partridge as Owls continue seeking relevancy". CBSSports.com.
13. ^ Low, Chris; McMurphy, Brett (December 12, 2016). "Alabama OC Lane Kiffin to be next head coach of Florida Atlantic". ESPN. Retrieved December 12, 2016.
14. ^ "Lane Kiffin Hired by Ole Miss as Next Coach". The New York Times. Associated Press. December 7, 2019. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
15. ^ Taylor, John (December 12, 2019). "FAU's Harrison Bryant named Mackey Award winner as nation's best TE". NBC Sports. NBC Universal. Retrieved February 11, 2020.
16. ^ "Bryant Now Officially a Unanimous All-American". FAU Sports. Florida Atlantic University. Retrieved February 11, 2020.
17. ^ Elman, Jake. "FAU football: Owls players endorse interim coach Glenn Spencer for full-time head coaching job". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Retrieved December 21, 2019.
18. ^ "FAU turns to Taggart to replace Kiffin as coach". ESPN.com. December 11, 2019. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
19. ^ "Florida Atlantic fires Taggart after three seasons". ESPN.com. November 27, 2022.
20. ^ "Ex-Texas coach Tom Herman accepts Florida Atlantic job". ESPN.com. December 1, 2022. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
21. ^ "FAU fires coach Tom Herman amid 5-game losing streak". ESPN.com. November 18, 2024. Retrieved December 3, 2024.
22. ^ "FAU makes Texas Tech OC Zach Kittley youngest FBS head coach". ESPN.com. December 2, 2024. Retrieved December 3, 2024.
23. ^ "Owls in the Pros". Retrieved April 6, 2021.
24. ^ "Florida Atlantic Players/ Alumni". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved April 19, 2021.
25. ^ "Florida Atlantic Owls Football Future Schedules". FBSchedules.com. Retrieved May 7, 2025.
26. ^ a b c "FAU and FIU Ink Four-Game Series". FAUSports.com. Retrieved September 26, 2022.

## External links

[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Florida Atlantic Owls football.

* Official website

* v
* t
* e

Florida Atlantic Owls football

Venues|

* Pro Player Stadium (2001–2002)
* Lockhart Stadium (2003–2010)
* Flagler Credit Union Stadium (2011–present)

Bowls & rivalries|

* Bowl games
* FIU: Shula Bowl

Culture & lore|

* Florida Atlantic Marching Owls

People|

* Head coaches
* Statistical leaders
* NFL draftees

Seasons|

* 2001
* 2002
* 2003
* 2004
* 2005
* 2006
* 2007
* 2008
* 2009
* 2010
* 2011
* 2012
* 2013
* 2014
* 2015
* 2016
* 2017
* 2018
* 2019
* 2020
* 2021
* 2022
* 2023
* 2024
* 2025

* v
* t
* e

Florida Atlantic University

Located in: Boca Raton, Florida

Colleges|

* Social Work and Criminal Justice
* Arts and Letters
* Business
* Education
* Engineering and Computer Science
* Honors
* Medicine
* Nursing
* Science
* The Graduate College

Academic/research affiliations|

* Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute
* Lockheed Martin
* Max Planck Society
* NASA Imaging Technology Space Center
* Pine Jog Environmental Education Center
* Research at FAU
* Research Park
* Scripps Energy & Materials Center
* Scripps Research Institute
* Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies
* University Press of Florida

Campuses and buildings|

* Boca Raton
* Dania Beach
* Davie
* Fort Lauderdale
* Fort Pierce
* Jupiter
* Port St. Lucie
* Carole and Barry Kaye Performing Arts Auditorium
* Library
* Florida Atlantic University High School

History|

* Alumni and faculty
* History

Athletics|

* Florida Atlantic Owls
* Baseball
* Men's basketball
* Final Four season
* Women's basketball
* Football
* Men's soccer
* Swimming and diving
* Howard Schnellenberger
* Shula Bowl
* American Athletic Conference

* Athletic facilities:
* The Burrow
* Flagler Credit Union Stadium
* FAU Baseball Stadium
* FAU Soccer Stadium

Student life|

* Greek life
* FAU Marching Owls
* Broward County
* Palm Beach County
* University Press

* Founded: 1961
* Students: 30,808
* Endowment: 275 million

* v
* t
* e

American Athletic Conference football

Current teams|

* Army Black Knights
* Charlotte 49ers
* East Carolina Pirates
* Florida Atlantic Owls
* Memphis Tigers
* Navy Midshipmen
* North Texas Mean Green
* Rice Owls
* South Florida Bulls
* Temple Owls
* Tulane Green Wave
* Tulsa Golden Hurricane
* UAB Blazers
* UTSA Roadrunners

Championships & awards|

* 1991-2012 standings
* 1991-2012 awards
* Conference champions 2013-
* 2013- standings
* 2015-Championship Game
* 2013-Awards

Seasons (1991-2012)|

* 1991
* 1992
* 1993
* 1994
* 1995
* 1996
* 1997
* 1998
* 1999
* 2000
* 2001
* 2002
* 2003
* 2004
* 2005
* 2006
* 2007
* 2008
* 2009
* 2010
* 2011
* 2012

Seasons (post-breakup)|

* 2013
* 2014
* 2015
* 2016
* 2017
* 2018
* 2019
* 2020
* 2021
* 2022
* 2023
* 2024
* 2025

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