Last week, Florida Atlantic University’s football team (1-2, 0-1 AAC) gained their first win of the season after defeating their South Florida rivals, Florida International University Panthers (1-2), 38-20. 

The Owls head back on the road this Saturday to play the University of Connecticut Huskies (1-2) at 7 p.m. in East Hartford, Conn.

The Huskies are coming off a 26-21 loss to Duke University (3-0). Going into the third quarter, UConn was winning 21-17 but Duke came back in the fourth with a field goal. Then, with 11:49 to go, Duke completed a 20-yard pass for a touchdown, but the two-point conversion was unsuccessful. 

Here are the University Press sports staff predictions for Saturday’s game against UConn.

Megan Bruinsma, Sports Editor 

The Owls finally proved that they could get it done and doing that in a rivalry game was especially important to keep the fans’ support. Last week’s game against FIU finally gave viewers a good look at FAU’s offensive scoring ability. FAU scored 17 points combined in their first two games against Michigan State and Army. Against FIU, they doubled their season average in just one game, scoring 38.

Cam Fancher moved the ball well, throwing for 161 yards and rushing in the endzone for two touchdowns. He didn’t have any turnovers, a trend that needs to continue. But, the true offensive showcase was running back Zuberi Mobley. He accounted for three of FAU’s touchdowns and rushed for 134 yards on 20 carries. In the previous two games, he was hardly utilized and only had 10 carries against MSU and three against Army.

FAU got back into their defensive flow. Army’s triple-option offense clearly threw off the Owls’ defense but after seeing their performance during FIU’s game we can still say that the defense looks solid. But, they need to be prepared for the rush game. 

UConn is coming off a rough fourth-quarter collapse that cost them the game. The turning point was quarterback Terry Moore throwing an interception at the start of the fourth quarter. Duke capitalized and on their drive off the turnover, they got their touchdown that won them the game. 

With UConn’s wavering confidence and FAU’s confidence on the rise, the matchup is scripted to be interesting. If this game was a week ago, I would’ve said the Owls were out for the count, but now that they’re finding their footing offensively…is a second win on the horizon?

Prediction: FAU 24, UConn 21

Maddox Greenberg, Staff Writer Following a bitter 24-7 home opener loss to Army, it was refreshing to see some upside out of this 2024 FAU football team. The 38-20 victory over their southern “rival,” Florida International, set worries at ease about how the offense would look, more specifically, worries about Fancher.

Not just that. The defense continued to amaze the fans, keeping FIU to just seven points until the last few seconds of the third quarter. During that span, the defense acquired two interceptions, one forced fumble and a fumble recovery.

But that was last week. This upcoming week FAU travels to East Hartford, Conn. for the second time in program history and the first time since 2002. UConn, under third-year head coach Jim Mora, are coming off of a 26-21 road loss to Duke University, in which they came back down 17-0 to lead 21-17. 

This UConn team won’t be easy to defeat for FAU. It was so important for them to win their seventh-straight Shula Bowl at home, sending them on the road with confidence.

UConn’s offense, led by quarterback Joe Fagnano, averaged 30 points per game, 181.7 rush yards per game, 234.33 pass yards per game and had 13 touchdowns this season. 

On the upside, UConn’s defense has allowed 31 points per game, 171.3 rush yards per game, 267.67 pass yards per game and 11 touchdowns this season. 

In order for FAU to defeat UConn, they have to trust the defense will make a concerted effort to stop Fagnano and come away with some picks. The offense, though, needs to be riding off of that momentum from last week and win the time of possession. UConn’s opponents overtake the clock by almost 37 more minutes. 

The offensive line needs to provide some gaps for running backs Zuberi Mobley and CJ Campbell Jr. to push the ball downfield. More importantly, the offensive line needs to protect Fancher at all costs to give him time to find his receivers.

This UConn defense has only six sacks on the season and seven quarterback hurries and one player with an interception. The odds work in the Owls’ favor, but they have to seize it, that’s the most important thing. Even last week, in the beginning of the first quarter, the Owls offense was a little shaky and went three-and-out on their first couple of drives. 

While the defense’s performance has been spectacular, you cannot always rely on the defense to bail you out with savior moments like e a turnover on downs inside the opponents 25-yard line. When the opponent punts you the ball, you have to frivolously drive the ball down the field.

I imagine this game bodes well for FAU, they just have to do three things: trust the defense will do their thing, the offensive line protects Fancher and gives him time in the pocket to find his receivers and win the time of possession. The weather won’t be friendly, nor will the fans, but if the teams follow these three concepts, they will walk away 2-2 on the season before heading back home.

Prediction: FAU 28, UConn 24 

John Burke, Contributing Writer

Coming off an emotional high after a big rivalry win is never easy, especially when you have to go out on the road the very next week. Saturday’s game will be a big test for FAU not only on the field, but mentally as well. 

Vibes are high for the Owls after defeating FIU in convincing fashion last week, but the reality is that this is still a 1-2 football team. They can’t afford another loss at this point in the season if they want to go bowling this year. 

Coming in as slight underdogs, FAU will need to put last week behind them and focus on the challenge ahead. UConn is also 1-2 on the year, and they will be hungry for a victory after just barely falling short against Duke last week. 

On offense, FAU will need to build off of the momentum from last week and continue to run the ball effectively. UConn’s defense has not been good against non-FCS teams this year, as both Maryland and Duke were able to move the ball with great efficiency against them. Maryland in particular had a whopping 629 total yards in week one against UConn, 248 of which came on the ground. If the offense can limit the mistakes and stay ahead of the chains, the opportunities will be there on Saturday. 

On defense, the formula should be quite straightforward. Eliminate wide receiver Skyler Bell from the game plan and make someone else beat you. Bell is the clear alpha in the receiver room, as he ranks 12th in the nation through three games with 304 receiving yards on the season. He is by far the favorite weapon for QB Nick Evers who peppered him with targets last week, throwing to Bell on almost 50% of his attempts. 

The quarterback situation is a tad bit fluid for the Huskies. In their week one game, Evers got replaced by quarterback Joe Fangnano due to injury, who flourished in their week two matchup against Merrimack College. Despite the standout performance, Fagnano was relegated to the backup role once again when Evers was healthy enough to return last week vs. Duke. Neither has looked particularly good against non-FCS schools and this could be a nice opportunity for a big day from the Owls’ defense. 

Ranking 5th in the nation with 9 turnovers forced, it seems FAU’s defense has done everything but score themselves this year. The key to being successful on Saturday will be scheming Skyler Bell out of the game, potentially doubling him on big possessions and 3rd downs. He is the one guy on this Huskies offense who scares me, and it will be interesting to see how FAU’s secondary fares against the best WR they’ve played all year. 

Overall, this sort of feels like a trap game for FAU. It’s weird to call a game where you’re not favored a trap game, but the point stands. I’m intrigued to see how focused the Owls will be to start off the contest. I think that FAU is a better team than UConn, but with everything I just mentioned along with Saturday being a road game in a hostile environment, this one feels like a coin flip to me. 

The keys to winning are simple. Don’t turn the ball over on offense and don’t let Bell beat you on defense. I think that FAU will start slow, but the defense will make enough plays to give the offense enough opportunities to take advantage of UConn’s subpar defense.  

Prediction: FAU 20, UConn 17

For information regarding this or other stories, email mbruinsma2022@fau.edu or DM the staff on Instagram: Megan Bruinsma (@megan_bruinsma), Maddox Greenberg (@Maddoxblade04) .