Florida Atlantic Owls men’s basketball team released their non-conference schedule via Twitter (X) and Instagram on Tuesday. 

The program is entering the 2024-2025 season under a brand new coaching staff led by first time NCAA head coach John Jakus. Assistant coach Todd Abernethy is the only staff member who was retained from the Dusty May era at FAU.

“We’re just feeling excited. [I] heard that the home games are unbelievable. They sold out the last 31 of them. So kind of always had this vision in my head of what it would be like the first time we get to walk out there as a team and experience it,” said Jakus. “I would say we’re building towards that moment, but we know in the meantime, there’s a lot of hard work to be done.”

Jakus went to work recruiting and brought in 11 new players, five coming from overseas. Only four players from last season were retained: forward Tre Carroll and guards Jack Johnson, Devin Vanterpool and Jakel Powell. 

“I think we’ll be a very good team. We’re very skilled. We got a lot of people that can do very different things. I think we’ll shock everybody. We should be a [Associated Press] top 25 team or one of the best teams in the country,” said guard Kaleb Glenn, a sophomore transfer from Louisville. 

The Owls’ non-conference schedule is made up of four away, five home and five neutral site games. 

Oct. 26 vs. Saint Leo University Lions

FAU begins their season with a home exhibition game, which will not count towards their record, against the St. Leo Lions. The last time the two teams met was in 1992. The Owls hold a 5-2 record over the Lions.

Nov. 4 against Indiana State University Sycamores 

Now entering regular season play, FAU will travel to Xenia, Ohio for a neutral site matchup against the Sycamores. It’ll be the first time in history that they meet. Last season, Indiana State went 32-7 and 17-3 in their Missouri Valley Conference under former head coach Josh Schertz, an FAU alumnus who was reported to be in the running for the head coaching job at FAU. The Sycamores are now led by former South Alabama head coach Matthew Graves, an Indiana native.

Nov. 8 vs. College of Coastal Georgia Mariners

The Owls will fly back home to play Coastal Georgia, a school in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). The contest will count towards FAU’s record, but not towards the Mariners. Continuing the trend of new beginnings in the season, the teams will meet for the first time. Coastal Georgia finished the 2023-24 season with a record of 11-14. 

“We felt like we needed a home game to just take a breath and get our feet underneath us before we leave our families and go on the road for 20 days. The thought of that is more just taking care of ourselves…we trust that between UCF, the Field of 68, College of Charleston, we’ll really know what we’re at by the end of the month,” said Jakus.

Nov. 12 at University of Central Florida Knights

FAU begins their six away game stretch in Orlando, Fla. to play the UCF Knights. UCF dominates in the teams matchup history, 22-10. However, the last time they met in 2018, the Owls took a one point win.  

Nov. 15 and 16, the Field of 68 Tip-off

In 2023, the Field of 68, a media production covering college basketball, launched a series for elite mid-major teams, selecting FAU, the College of Charleston Cougars and Liberty University Flames. This year, it is hosted by the Cougars at their home arena in Charleston, SC. 

Entering the second year of the tip-off, FAU begins with a game against Charleston on Nov. 15. Last year when they played, the Owls flew away from the Cougars in a 90-74 win, it was the first time they ever beat Charleston. 

The following day, the Owls are set to play Liberty. FAU showcased their strength over the Flames last year and won 83-58, pushing them to an overall lead of 2-1 in the teams history. 

Nov. 21-24, Charleston Classic 

FAU gets to stay in place for the Charleston Classic tournament. 

Their first matchup will be the Oklahoma State University Cowboys. The last time they played in 2006, the Cowboys stomped on the Owls with a 95-50 win. OSU competes in the Big-12 Conference, so a high-level of play is expected. 

Depending on who wins, FAU will play either the Drake University Bulldogs or the University of Miami Hurricanes. Drake made it to the NCAA tournament last year but lost 66-61 in the first round to the Washington State Cougars. The Hurricanes, a fellow South Florida team, had a record of 15-17 last season after making it to the Final Four along with FAU in 2023. They ended up falling 72-59 to the soon-to-be national champion University of Connecticut Huskies. 

“It’s gonna be good to have those games early to see where we’re at as a team. It’s like a measuring stick to play those games to come back for practice and see where we’re at,” said Glenn. “Just work on the things we’re not good at then have those things improved by conference play.”

If they beat Drake or Miami then they will head to play in the championship game and if they lose they play for fifth place. 

Nov. 30 vs. Florida Gulf Coast University Eagles

After their extended stay in Charleston, the Owls head back home to play other birds, the Eagles. Last year, the Owls made a 10-point run at the end of the second half to tie the game against FGCU, but with 1:16 to go they were unable to score again. The Eagles won the matchup 72-68. 

Dec. 4 at Florida International University Panthers 

The Owls head back to the west coast of Florida to play their long-term rivals, FIU. Last year, FAU defeated the Panthers 94-60, but FIU still holds a two game win in their history. 

Dec. 10 vs. Jacksonville University Dolphins 

FAU begins their two game home streak with a visit from the Jacksonville Dolphins. They haven’t met since 2014 when the Owls won 68-50. The Dolphins compete in the ASUN Conference and completed their 2023-24 season with a record of 16-17. 

Dec. 14 vs. Texas State University Bobcats

To finish their last home game of non-conference play, FAU hosts the Bobcats. The teams have only played once in 2016 and the Bobcats won 61-57. Texas State finished last year with a 17-18 record. 

Dec. 21 at Michigan State University Spartans

FAU wraps up non-conference play by heading to East Lansing to play MSU. The Owls and Spartans have met once and MSU took a 82-55 win. The Spartans compete in the Big 10 Conference and have made it to the NCAA tournament 37 times. Under head coach Tom Izzo’s leadership they had 29 straight appearances, with the 2023-24 season ending that streak. 

“We feel like we have five or six real chances at what could be quad one wins, so we wanted to take our swings at those before Christmas and then we’ll do the best we can in the league,” said Jakus. “But right now, I think we’re just getting over the mental piece of you got to schedule hard if you really want to make a tournament.”

Megan Bruinsma is the Sports Editor for the University Press. For more information regarding this or other stories email her at mbruinsma2022@fau.edu or DM her on Instagram @megan_bruinsma or Twitter (X) @MeganBruinsma.