# 2020 Florida Atlantic Owls football team

The 2020 Florida Atlantic Owls football team represented Florida Atlantic University in the 2020 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Owls played their home games at FAU Stadium in Boca Raton, Florida, and competed in the East Division of Conference USA (CUSA). They were led by head coach Willie Taggart, in his first year.

## Preseason
### Awards

Listed in the order that they were released
| Player | Position | Year |
| Desmond Noel | OL | Senior |

### CUSA media days

The CUSA Media Days was held virtually for the first time in conference history.
Media poll (East Division) :
| Predicted finish | Team |
| 1 | Charlotte |
| 2 | FIU |
| 3 | Florida Atlantic |
| 4 | Marshall |
| 5 | Middle Tennessee |
| 6 | Old Dominion |
| 7 | Western Kentucky |
Media poll (CUSA Championship) :
| Rank | Team | Votes |
| TBD |||

## Schedule

Florida Atlantic announced its 2020 football schedule on January 8, 2020. The 2020 schedule originally consisted of 6 home and 6 away games in the regular season.
The Owls had games scheduled against Minnesota, Old Dominion, Stony Brook, and Middle Tennessee which were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Owls also had games scheduled against Georgia Southern, South Florida, and Southern Miss, which were postponed due to the pandemic. The Georgia Southern game is now rescheduled for December 5 and the Southern Miss game is now rescheduled for December 10. They also added a new game against UMass on November 20 to replace their canceled game against Old Dominion, which was previously scheduled for that same weekend.
| Date | Time | Opponent | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| October 3 | 4:00 p.m. | Charlotte | FAU StadiumBoca Raton, FL | ESPNU | W 21–17 | 5,657 |
| October 24 | 2:30 p.m. | at No. 22 Marshall | Joan C. Edwards StadiumHuntington, WV | Stadium | L 9–20 | 12,002 |
| October 31 | 12:00 p.m. | UTSA | FAU StadiumBoca Raton, FL | Stadium | W 24–3 | 5,026 |
| November 7 | 6:00 p.m. | Western Kentucky | FAU StadiumBoca Raton, FL | Stadium | W 10–6 | 5,292 |
| November 13 | 7:00 p.m. | at FIU | Riccardo Silva StadiumMiami, FL (Shula Bowl) | CBSSN | W 38–19 | 0 |
| November 20 | 8:00 p.m. | UMass* | FAU StadiumBoca Raton, FL | CBSSN | W 24–2 | 5,554 |
| December 5 | 6:00 p.m. | at Georgia Southern* | Paulson StadiumStateboro, GA | ESPN+ | L 3–20 | 3,867 |
| December 10 | 6:30 p.m. | at Southern Miss | M. M. Roberts StadiumHattiesburg, MS | CBSSN | L 31–45 | 0 |
| December 23 | 7:00 p.m. | vs. Memphis* | Cramton BowlMontgomery, AL (Montgomery Bowl) | ESPN | L 10–25 | 2,979 |
| *Non-conference gameRankings from AP Poll and CFP Rankings after November 24 released prior to gameAll times are in Eastern time |||||||
    Schedule Source:

## Game summaries
### Charlotte

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| 49ers | 10 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 17 |
| • Owls | 0 | 0 | 21 | 0 | 21 |
| Pregame line | Over/under |
| FAU −5 | 62.5 |
| Statistics | Charlotte | Florida Atlantic |
| First downs | 22 | 15 |
| Total yards | 396 | 315 |
| Rushing yards | 82 | 217 |
| Passing yards | 314 | 98 |
| Turnovers | 1 | 0 |
| Time of possession | 37:49 | 22:11 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Charlotte | Passing | Chris Reynolds | 24/32, 314 yards, 1 TD |
| Charlotte | Rushing | Tre Harbison III | 17 carries, 49 yards, 1 TD |
| Charlotte | Receiving | Victor Tucker | 9 receptions, 118 yards |
| Florida Atlantic | Passing | Nick Tronti | 11/22, 98 yards, 2 TDs |
| Florida Atlantic | Rushing | Nick Tronti | 10 carries, 94 yards, 1 TD |
| Florida Atlantic | Receiving | T. J. Chase | 3 receptions, 31 yards, 1 TD |

### At Marshall

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Owls | 0 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 9 |
| • No. 22 Thundering Herd | 7 | 0 | 10 | 3 | 20 |
| Pregame line | Over/under |
| MRSH −19.5 | 50.5 |
| Statistics | Florida Atlantic | Marshall |
| First downs | 17 | 19 |
| Total yards | 234 | 385 |
| Rushing yards | 86 | 134 |
| Passing yards | 148 | 251 |
| Turnovers | 1 | 2 |
| Time of possession | 33:12 | 26:48 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Florida Atlantic | Passing | Nick Tronti | 18/30, 148 yards, 1 INT |
| Florida Atlantic | Rushing | Malcolm Davidson | 8 carries, 62 yards, 1 TD |
| Florida Atlantic | Receiving | Jordan Merrell | 5 receptions, 48 yards |
| Marshall | Passing | Grant Wells | 18/31, 251 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT |
| Marshall | Rushing | Brenden Knox | 25 carries, 101 yards |
| Marshall | Receiving | Corey Gammage | 6 receptions, 79 yards |

### UTSA

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Roadrunners | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| • Owls | 10 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 24 |
| Pregame line | Over/under |
| FAU −5 | 47 |
| Statistics | UTSA | Florida Atlantic |
| First downs | 16 | 19 |
| Total yards | 230 | 332 |
| Rushing yards | 104 | 196 |
| Passing yards | 126 | 136 |
| Turnovers | 0 | 0 |
| Time of possession | 27:54 | 32:06 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| UTSA | Passing | Frank Harris | 12/26, 109 yards |
| UTSA | Rushing | Frank Harris | 14 carries, 66 yards |
| UTSA | Receiving | Joshua Cephus | 5 receptions, 63 yards |
| Florida Atlantic | Passing | Nick Tronti | 11/19, 136 yards, 1 TD |
| Florida Atlantic | Rushing | Malcolm Davidson | 14 carries, 115 yards |
| Florida Atlantic | Receiving | Aaron Young | 3 receptions, 54 yards, 1 TD |

### Western Kentucky

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Hilltoppers | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 6 |
| • Owls | 0 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 10 |
| Pregame line | Over/under |
| FAU −7 | 40.5 |
| Statistics | Western Kentucky | Florida Atlantic |
| First downs | 16 | 18 |
| Total yards | 257 | 273 |
| Rushing yards | 94 | 165 |
| Passing yards | 163 | 108 |
| Turnovers | 0 | 1 |
| Time of possession | 33:49 | 26:11 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Western Kentucky | Passing | Tyrrell Pigrome | 19/39, 163 yards |
| Western Kentucky | Rushing | Gaej Walker | 17 carries, 78 yards |
| Western Kentucky | Receiving | Xavier Lane | 7 receptions, 60 yards |
| Florida Atlantic | Passing | Nick Tronti | 7/16, 108 yards |
| Florida Atlantic | Rushing | Javion Posey | 9 carries, 60 yards, 1 TD |
| Florida Atlantic | Receiving | TJ Chase | 3 receptions, 47 yards |

### At FIU

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • Owls | 7 | 17 | 0 | 14 | 38 |
| Panthers | 0 | 10 | 0 | 9 | 19 |
| Pregame line | Over/under |
| FAU −8.5 | 41.5 |
| Statistics | Florida Atlantic | FIU |
| First downs | 21 | 14 |
| Total yards | 450 | 281 |
| Rushing yards | 370 | 156 |
| Passing yards | 80 | 125 |
| Turnovers | 1 | 0 |
| Time of possession | 29:33 | 27:58 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Florida Atlantic | Passing | Javion Posey | 10/16, 80 yards, 2 TD |
| Florida Atlantic | Rushing | Javion Posey | 18 carries, 140 yards, 1 TD |
| Florida Atlantic | Receiving | TJ Chase | 1 reception, 28 yards |
| FIU | Passing | Max Bortenschlager | 10/18, 82 yards |
| FIU | Rushing | D'Vonte Price | 26 carries, 178 yards, 1 TD |
| FIU | Receiving | Rivaldo Fairweather | 6 receptions, 49 yards |

### UMass

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Minutemen | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| • Owls | 7 | 0 | 14 | 3 | 24 |
| Pregame line | Over/under |
| FAU −32.5 | 50.5 |
| Statistics | UMass | Florida Atlantic |
| First downs | 8 | 16 |
| Total yards | 147 | 368 |
| Rushing yards | 62 | 140 |
| Passing yards | 85 | 228 |
| Turnovers | 2 | 1 |
| Time of possession | 25:10 | 34:50 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| UMass | Passing | Will Koch | 12/22, 67 yards, 1 INT |
| UMass | Rushing | Ellis Merriweather | 11 carries, 48 yards |
| UMass | Receiving | Josiah Johnson | 8 receptions, 42 yards |
| Florida Atlantic | Passing | Javion Posey | 13/27, 203 yards |
| Florida Atlantic | Rushing | Javion Posey | 19 carries, 90 yards, 1 TD |
| Florida Atlantic | Receiving | TJ Chase | 4 receptions, 79 yards |

### At Georgia Southern

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Owls | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| • Eagles | 0 | 10 | 0 | 10 | 20 |
| Pregame line | Over/under |
| GASO −2.5 | 42 |
| Statistics | Florida Atlantic | Georgia Southern |
| First downs | 16 | 18 |
| Total yards | 322 | 339 |
| Rushing yards | 133 | 269 |
| Passing yards | 189 | 70 |
| Turnovers | 4 | 0 |
| Time of possession | 23:15 | 36:45 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Florida Atlantic | Passing | Javion Posey | 7/15, 105 yards, 2 INT |
| Florida Atlantic | Rushing | Javion Posey | 8 carries, 61 yards |
| Florida Atlantic | Receiving | Jordan Merrell | 3 receptions, 67 yards |
| Georgia Southern | Passing | Justin Tomlin | 3/12, 70 yards |
| Georgia Southern | Rushing | Justin Tomlin | 20 carries, 78 yards |
| Georgia Southern | Receiving | Logan Wright | 2 receptions, 65 yards |

### At Southern Miss

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Owls | 7 | 10 | 14 | 0 | 31 |
| • Golden Eagles | 10 | 14 | 14 | 7 | 45 |
| Pregame line | Over/under |
| FAU −8.5 | 41 |
| Statistics | Florida Atlantic | Southern Miss |
| First downs | 19 | 22 |
| Total yards | 326 | 514 |
| Rushing yards | 164 | 305 |
| Passing yards | 162 | 209 |
| Turnovers | 1 | 3 |
| Time of possession | 28:41 | 31:19 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Florida Atlantic | Passing | Nick Tronti | 17/33, 162 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT |
| Florida Atlantic | Rushing | James Charles | 16 carries, 79 yards, 2 TD |
| Florida Atlantic | Receiving | Brandon Robinson | 5 receptions, 72 yards, 1 TD |
| Southern Miss | Passing | Trey Lowe | 13/19, 209 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT |
| Southern Miss | Rushing | Frank Gore Jr. | 9 carries, 111 yards, 1 TD |
| Southern Miss | Receiving | Jason Brownlee | 3 receptions, 81 yards, 1 TD |

### Vs. Memphis (Montgomery Bowl)

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • Tigers | 10 | 8 | 7 | 0 | 25 |
| Owls | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 10 |
| Pregame line | Over/under |
| MEM −9 | 52.5 |
| Statistics | Memphis | Florida Atlantic |
| First downs | 24 | 19 |
| Total yards | 469 | 290 |
| Rushing yards | 185 | 139 |
| Passing yards | 284 | 151 |
| Turnovers | 3 | 2 |
| Time of possession | 30:44 | 29:16 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Memphis | Passing | Brady White | 22/34, 284 yards, 3 TDs, 1 INT |
| Memphis | Rushing | Asa Martin | 15 carries, 96 yards |
| Memphis | Receiving | Javon Ivory | 7 receptions, 126 yards, 1 TD |
| Florida Atlantic | Passing | Nick Tronti | 16/32, 146 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT |
| Florida Atlantic | Rushing | James Charles | 16 carries, 82 yards |
| Florida Atlantic | Receiving | Brandon Robinson | 4 receptions, 39 yards |