Florida Atlantic football (1-3, 0-1 AC) traded punches with Memphis (5-0) for three quarters, but a handful of explosive plays and late mistakes turned a one-possession game into a 55–26 loss Saturday night.

In his inaugural American Conference game debut, head coach Zach Kittley was not super impressed with the team’s offensive approach: “Offensively, in the run game, I’m not super pleased with where we are at the run game. Offensively, pass protection-wise … But ultimately, in the run game, offensively, we’ve got to do a lot better,” said Kittley in the postgame press conference.

FAU led twice in the second quarter and went to halftime down just 17–16. The Owls answered an early Tigers touchdown with a 75-yard drive capped by quarterback Caden Veltkamp’s 1-yard keeper three minutes into the first quarter to tie the game 7–7. 

After kicker Gianni Spetic’s 52-yard field goal put Memphis back in the lead, FAU regained momentum in the second quarter when wide receiver Jayshon Platt scored on a 10-yard jet sweep for a 13–10 lead. Place kicker Garrison Smith added a 27-yard field goal with just over two minutes left for a 16–10 advantage before the Tigers finished a two-minute march with a 2-yard run by running back Greg Desrosiers Jr. with 22 seconds left in the first half.

The game turned around early in the third for the Tigers. After FAU’s opening series stalled near midfield, Memphis flipped the field when Desrosiers burst 90 yards on third-and-1 to make it 24–16. FAU responded with its most dangerous shot of the night, a 50-yard strike from Veltkamp to Easton Messer, but settled for Smith’s 29-yard kick to cut it to 24–19 with four minutes remaining in the third quarter.

With the Tigers driving, Leon Hart Jr. sacked Brendon Lewis on third-and-7 and jarred the ball loose; Khmari Johnson returned the fumble 26 yards. Xavier Terrell powered in from the one at 10:20, trimming the deficit to 31–26 and bringing the sideline to life. On the very next snap, however, Lewis found Cortez Braham Jr. on a short crosser, and Braham outran the secondary for a 73-yard touchdown, pushing the margin back to 12. 

A 25-yard Tigers field goal, followed by a Memphis possession aided by a personal foul on FAU, set up Desrosiers’ 1-yard score with two minutes remaining in the third. After a fumble on the ensuing kickoff return, Lewis’ 15-yard keeper closed the scoring for the quarter.

Veltkamp distributed efficiently for long stretches, repeatedly finding Messer and Platt, including completions of 35 and 50 yards to Messer and several chain-movers to Platt. Terrell provided the late touchdown and tough yards in short-yardage. 

FAU’s defense produced key moments, the Hart sack-fumble chief among them, and Dillon Williams and Leon Hart were active throughout the first half against the run. But Memphis’ explosives proved decisive.

The 90-yard run, the immediate 73-yard answer after FAU drew within five, and an early 42-yard completion on the game’s first series that foreshadowed the night. Penalties in the fourth and a special-teams turnover compounded the damage as the Tigers pulled away.

“I’m proud of the effort that we have, and we did get better today. Again, it starts with protecting the football,” said Kittley.

FAU will stay home to take on the Rice University Owls on Oct. 4 at 7 p.m.

Angelina Martell is the Sports Editor for the University Press. Email her at amartell2023@fau.edu or contact her on Instagram @angieemartell for information regarding this or other stories.