FAU gets embarrassed on the big stage, falls to Oklahoma 63-14

The game was over before it started. No really. With the contest being broadcasted on FOX, a lot of viewers were unable to see the start of the game due to some FOX affiliates televising the funeral of the late Senator John McCain. By the time the game was on television, Oklahoma was already ahead 28-0 in the second quarter.

Game over.

Entering the game, the Lane Train received a lot of hype as more than a few pundits believed the Owls could not only cover the 21 point spread, but win outright. Boy were they wrong.

The Owls were outclassed in every way, looking more like the bad FAU teams fans have become all too familiar with. While the result isn’t all the shocking, how we got here is what’s most disheartening. FAU trailed 42-0 at halftime. FAU didn’t score their first touchdown until well into the third quarter, when the game was well out of reach.

With all the hype built into the game, this will go down as one of the most disappointing losses in school history.

FAU started slow last season before ultimately running away with the Conference USA title. That could still happen. Despite today’s result, most fans will still expect that to happen and I’m among them.

But for those that really believed FAU was going to make it to the New Year’s Six bowl, it’s time to come back to reality. The Owls are in much better shape than they were a few years ago, but as we just saw (or not), FAU has a long ways to go before we can realistically expect them to compete with the best teams in the country.

Today was a painful reminder that we’re not all that far away from the Carl Pelini and Charlie Partridge era of FAU football.