Florida Atlantic?s offense isn?t just about the running game, as Marshall coach Doc Holliday pointed out in his press conference Tuesday.
It?s about running, running, running at a quick tempo.
Conference USA teams have become well acquainted with new coach Lane Kiffin?s Owls and running back Devin Singletary. The 5-foot-9, 200-pound native of Deerfield Beach, Florida, already has rushed for 1,000 yards in eight games, a year after needing all 12 games to gain what Holliday called ?a quiet 1,000.?
But imagine getting a dose of Singletary or fellow back Greg Howell every 15 or 20 seconds. The Owls are running 74.5 plays per game, not quite the 90.6 plays Marshall?s offense ran in 2012, but that is dragged down by early games in which they were dominated in time of possession.
In league play, FAU ran 79 plays against Middle Tennessee, 91 against Old Dominion, 83 against North Texas and 79 against Western Kentucky. And bear in mind there were several plays in each game where the Owls got off the field the optimum way ? by scoring long touchdowns.
That?s what Marshall faces Friday night when it enters FAU Stadium for a battle at the top of Conference USA?s East Division. Kickoff time is 6 p.m., with the game airing on CBS Sports Network.
Holliday said the Thundering Herd (6-2, 3-1 C-USA) had to throw a few wrinkles into its second six-day prep period in three weeks.
?[Monday] night, we took two different sets of skill guys, ?carded them up? [had them mimic FAU?s plays] and got [after] it as fast as they can,? Holliday said. ?But they do a good job with their pace. We?ve done a little bit of that in practice, not near what they do. They do it primarily all the time.
?We?ll do the best we can to prepare for it this week.?
The Owls? run-pass split is about 63-37, about as high as you?ll see this side of a triple option. It surely takes a load off quarterback Jason Driskel, who himself averages 6.2 yards per rush.
Driskel, who emerged from a quarterback battle that lasted into September, is expected to play his third game against the Thundering Herd. The last two haven?t gone that well ? 23 of 48 for 354 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions.
But now, Driskel is dangerous as anybody in that backfield. His 49-yard pass to Willie Wright gave FAU the lead for good last week at Western Kentucky, and he has a 69-yard TD pass against Old Dominion.
It stands to reason the junior has developed under the offensive-minded tutelage of Kiffin and offensive coordinator Kendal Briles. But that running game is such a help. Holliday said some coaches he knows consider Singletary an NFL-caliber back.
?I think the first thing is they?re running the ball so well,? Holliday said. ?His big plays have come off play-action passes, because you?ve got to get that extra hat in the box to stop that run with Singletary and Howell. ? They don?t ask him to throw 30 times a game.?
After the FAU game, the schedule will get no easier in the final three games. It is likely MU?s last five opponents will go to bowls.
?This is as deep as our conference has ever been,? Holliday said. ?We?ve got 10 teams right now on the brink of being bowl-eligible, with five wins. Louisiana Tech is sitting there with four wins. You could have as many as 11 teams in our conference who are bowl-eligible.?
That number is a little high, but not much ? Marshall is eligible with six wins, seven teams have five wins and Louisiana Tech has four.
n And finally, Holliday isn?t thrilled with having two short-week games in three weeks, though another win will alter that thinking. After all, Marshall won handily two weeks ago at Middle Tennessee.
?I don?t know if we?re the only team in the league who plays two Friday night games; we probably are,? Holliday said. ?I don?t totally understand. That said, we?ve done it, probably played our best overall game with the preparation we had prior to the Middle Tennessee game, which we?ll have the same preparation this week.
?Our kids have done it, were successful doing it, and we?ll do the same thing this week and hopefully get the same results.?
It?s about running, running, running at a quick tempo.
Conference USA teams have become well acquainted with new coach Lane Kiffin?s Owls and running back Devin Singletary. The 5-foot-9, 200-pound native of Deerfield Beach, Florida, already has rushed for 1,000 yards in eight games, a year after needing all 12 games to gain what Holliday called ?a quiet 1,000.?
But imagine getting a dose of Singletary or fellow back Greg Howell every 15 or 20 seconds. The Owls are running 74.5 plays per game, not quite the 90.6 plays Marshall?s offense ran in 2012, but that is dragged down by early games in which they were dominated in time of possession.
In league play, FAU ran 79 plays against Middle Tennessee, 91 against Old Dominion, 83 against North Texas and 79 against Western Kentucky. And bear in mind there were several plays in each game where the Owls got off the field the optimum way ? by scoring long touchdowns.
That?s what Marshall faces Friday night when it enters FAU Stadium for a battle at the top of Conference USA?s East Division. Kickoff time is 6 p.m., with the game airing on CBS Sports Network.
Holliday said the Thundering Herd (6-2, 3-1 C-USA) had to throw a few wrinkles into its second six-day prep period in three weeks.
?[Monday] night, we took two different sets of skill guys, ?carded them up? [had them mimic FAU?s plays] and got [after] it as fast as they can,? Holliday said. ?But they do a good job with their pace. We?ve done a little bit of that in practice, not near what they do. They do it primarily all the time.
?We?ll do the best we can to prepare for it this week.?
The Owls? run-pass split is about 63-37, about as high as you?ll see this side of a triple option. It surely takes a load off quarterback Jason Driskel, who himself averages 6.2 yards per rush.
Driskel, who emerged from a quarterback battle that lasted into September, is expected to play his third game against the Thundering Herd. The last two haven?t gone that well ? 23 of 48 for 354 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions.
But now, Driskel is dangerous as anybody in that backfield. His 49-yard pass to Willie Wright gave FAU the lead for good last week at Western Kentucky, and he has a 69-yard TD pass against Old Dominion.
It stands to reason the junior has developed under the offensive-minded tutelage of Kiffin and offensive coordinator Kendal Briles. But that running game is such a help. Holliday said some coaches he knows consider Singletary an NFL-caliber back.
?I think the first thing is they?re running the ball so well,? Holliday said. ?His big plays have come off play-action passes, because you?ve got to get that extra hat in the box to stop that run with Singletary and Howell. ? They don?t ask him to throw 30 times a game.?
After the FAU game, the schedule will get no easier in the final three games. It is likely MU?s last five opponents will go to bowls.
?This is as deep as our conference has ever been,? Holliday said. ?We?ve got 10 teams right now on the brink of being bowl-eligible, with five wins. Louisiana Tech is sitting there with four wins. You could have as many as 11 teams in our conference who are bowl-eligible.?
That number is a little high, but not much ? Marshall is eligible with six wins, seven teams have five wins and Louisiana Tech has four.
n And finally, Holliday isn?t thrilled with having two short-week games in three weeks, though another win will alter that thinking. After all, Marshall won handily two weeks ago at Middle Tennessee.
?I don?t know if we?re the only team in the league who plays two Friday night games; we probably are,? Holliday said. ?I don?t totally understand. That said, we?ve done it, probably played our best overall game with the preparation we had prior to the Middle Tennessee game, which we?ll have the same preparation this week.
?Our kids have done it, were successful doing it, and we?ll do the same thing this week and hopefully get the same results.?
