Will the 2024 schedule allow for FAU football to have a bounce-back year?
The Florida Atlantic Owls are on the march in their journey to build a competitor again in Boca Raton. In their first year under head coach Tom Herman, the Owls went 4-8 and had a 3-5 record in the American Athletic Conference. It was a solid first year and laid the foundation for the program to build upon. Heading into 2024, the Owls are looking to take a leap and elevate their play to a higher level. Will they be able to accomplish that goal, or will they stay relatively stagnant? Follow along as we predict the entire 2024 regular season schedule for FAU football.
FAU Football 2024 Schedule Predictions
Game 1 (8/31): FAU @ Michigan State
The Owls have an extremely tough opponent to open up their campaign, traveling to East Lansing to take on the Michigan State Spartans.
Michigan State did not play to their usual level in 2023, going 4-8 and struggling in all areas. However, they are in a position to bounce back sooner rather than later. As a Big Ten school, their baseline talent level is very high, even in rebuild mode, and Spartan Stadium is one of the tougher places to play in college football.
These two teams last played in 2011, with the Spartans winning by a score of 44-0. FAU has a more talented roster than in years past and should keep the game competitive, but I see the Spartans narrowly edging out the Owls.
Game 2 (9/7): FAU vs. Army
FAU gets a much easier matchup in their home opener, welcoming one of the service academies to Boca Raton.
Army, now an AAC member once again, brings a unique offense to the table that can give the defense issues. Despite this, they only averaged 20.5 points per game, which ranked 113th out of 133 schools.
With a improved overall roster, the Owls should have enough offensive firepower and defensive strength to get their first win of the season against the Black Knights.
Game 3 (9/14): FAU vs Florida International University
After hosting their newest conference opponent early in the schedule, FAU football welcomes an old rival to town on September 14th.
In the Shula Bowl, the Owls have a 16-5 record against the Panthers. They won the last meeting in 2022 handily by a score of 52-7 and have not lost to FIU since 2016.
The Panthers are also in rebuild mode, having a 4-8 overall record and a poor 1-7 record in Conference USA. They struggled on defense and failed to score many points.
FAU has a much higher baseline than FIU on both sides of the ball, which should allow the Owls to get their second victory of the season.
Game 4 (9/21): FAU @ University of Connecticut
The Owls will be facing UConn in their second ever matchup, and their first since 2002.
Unlike the previous game, FAU has the much better roster than the Huskies. The Owls have an offense than can take advantage of the 100th ranked defense in the FBS and have the talent to shut down the 121st ranked offense.
Unless the Owls mightily struggle on the road, they should defeat UConn and get their third win of the year.
Game 5 (9/28): FAU vs. Wagner
After UConn, FAU hosts another opponent from the Northeast.
The Wagner Seahawks went 4-7 in 2023 and struggled in NEC competition as well. As an FCS school facing a talented FAU roster, the Owls likely cruise to their fourth victory.
Game 6 (10/12): FAU vs. North Texas
The Owls firmly arrive into conference play on October 12th, welcoming North Texas for a bout in Boca.
While not sporting a great defense, the Mean Green have an electric offense. They ranked 21st in the country in points scored and averaged 304.7 yards per game.
It is arguably on of the toughest tests for the FAU defense up to this point of the season. But with a very talented secondary and an offense that can exploit the Mean Green’s defense, FAU improves to 5-1 on the year.
Game 7 (10/19): FAU @ UTSA
After facing the Mean Green, the Owls travel to San Antonio for another AAC battle.
UTSA was one of the best, if not the best team, in the AAC in 2023. They have a strong offense and defense under head coach Jeff Traylor and are set up to be a force in 2024 once again.
FAU likely has the defense to compete with the Roadrunners’ offense. However, it will all come down to how the offense performs. As of today, I see the Owls coming up short and falling to 5-2.
Game 8 (11/1): FAU vs. University of South Florida
Retiring to Boca, the Owls host a fellow Florida school to open up November.
The Bulls of South Florida went 7-6 last season, elevated by the 33rd ranked offense and dragged down by the 113th ranked defense.
Once again, the Owls theoretically match up well with a conference opponent. They have the defensive firepower to slow down the raging Bulls’ offense while having enough new additions to get some points on the board.
It’s a coin flip game, but I give FAU the edge to improve to 6-2 and become bowl eligible.
Game 9 (11/7): FAU @ East Carolina
After a hard fought battle the week prior, the Owls have a trap game in the form of East Carolina.
The Pirates were bad in 2023, having a 2-10 record and a 1-7 conference record. This was mainly due to the 127th ranked offense, which averaged 17.3 points per game.
However, the Pirates had a top 40 defense. Combined with the Owls possibly overlooking their conference rival, and this is likely a game that slips away from the upstart Florida team.
Game 10 (11/16): FAU @ Temple
While the Owls dropped a winnable game against East Carolina, that is not the case against Temple.
The Owls had a poor record of 3-9, had a bad offense that averaged 21.1 points per game, and gave up 35.7 points per game.
FAU, in 2024, would have shown a talented offense and staunch defense already. As a result, the Florida-based Owls cruise to victory and move to 7-3
Game 11 (11/23): FAU vs. Charlotte
Based on 2023 records, FAU football has yet another easy matchup on the schedule in the form of the Charlotte 49ers.
One of the bottom tier teams in the AAC, the 49ers had an offense ranked 126th and a defense ranked 91st. They are another team in the midst of rebuilding to contender status.
The Owls, hosting Charlotte on their home turf, make easy work of the 49ers and move to 8-3 on the year.
Game 12 (11/30): FAU @ Tulsa
To wrap up their season, the Owls travel to take on the Tulsa Golden Hurricane.
The offensive was not strong, evidenced by their meager 23.4 points per game. Their defense struggled significantly, allowing 33.8 points per game.
However, Tulsa played FAU very tightly last year. Even with an improved roster, I predict that the Golden Hurricane gets the better of the Owls, leaving their final record at 8-4.
