FAU takes step back in Tom Herman's rebuild, but it will not throw coach off track | D'Angelo

BOCA RATON — Technically, Army's offense is the triple option.

But Saturday, quarterback Bryson Daily really had just two decisions each time he pulled away from center.

Keep the ball and count on picking up 7 yards.

Or get the ball in the hands of Noah Short and watch Florida Atlantic's defenders chase the running back for about 15 yards each time he touched the ball.

Either way, the Black Knights wore down and demoralized FAU's defense, which carried over to a sputtering offense in an easy 24-7 victory at FAU Stadium.

As heartened as Tom Herman should have been after the Owls ' one-score season-opening loss at Michigan State, the second-year coach was as disheartened after this uninspiring effort.

"I'm angry," Herman said. "I'm angry at myself."

This was a step back in Herman's attempt to rebuild this program, but not one he will allow to derail that task. Spirits were high during camp as he revamped the roster, and the arrow continued to point up when FAU (0-2) returned from East Lansing and a game in which the Spartans' victory was not secured until the final 90 seconds.

But this … this was a complete breakdown.

"We're not going to beat anybody if we don't take the steps necessary to play consistently," Herman said. "We'll get back to work tomorrow. We've got a challenge as a staff. We got a lot to figure out.

"A lot."

Army (2-0) rushed for 405 yards, led by Short's 160. And it didn't matter if Daily, who rushed for 117 yards, stuck the ball in the gut of fullback Kanye Udoh (70 yards rushing), kept it or pitched to Short ... FAU defenders spent the afternoon chasing those black shirts.

And although Daily dropped back just four times to throw, one of those stunned the Owls, ending in a 44-yard touchdown. He did not complete another pass, although he did underthrow a wide-open receiver in the end zone that should have resulted in a second passing score.

But this was quintessential Army, which was playing its first conference game as a member of the American Athletic Conference:

Wear down the opposing defense by pounding the ball, and just when that defense starts to cheat inside, pull the ball and roll out for the keeper or the pitch. And then on days like Saturday, when the on-field temperature peaked at 118 degrees, watch that defense — on the field for nearly 40 minutes — start to gasp and spend time between plays with hands on hips.

What that resulted in was one of the most dominating second halves you will see with FAU's offense on the field for two possessions.

"It's our job to get them off the field, stop them on third down," linebacker Jackson Ambush said. "If your eyes are in the wrong spot, ball is going to past you."

And the second half is supposed to be the portion of the game where the team from southern upstate New York should have started to melt down.

But this is Army. And these are young men, many of whom one day will be defending our country, who spend summer reconnaissance missions in the mountains of upstate New York in foxholes at night, where the temperature can dip into the 40s, and then go through more military training the next day where it can hit 90.

So playing a high-noon game in South Florida in September? This might be one of the easiest assignments in their careers.

And if FAU thought it could engage in psychological warfare with Army when it came to the weather, that's not going to end well, either.

FAU erected white tents on the sidelines for the first time in the 13-year history of this stadium, allowing its players to seek shade between series. Meanwhile, across the field, Army was basking in the searing sun, nary a shady spot in sight.

And the Owls chose all white, forcing Army to pack its iconic black uniforms with gold numbers and ARMY stitched on the back of each jersey.

Those mind games, they do not work against Army.

"They're physical, disciplined," FAU quarterback Cam Fancher said. "We knew that coming in. We knew we had to take advantage of every opportunity we got. We got to do better. I have to do better."

Everyone has to do better, just like Tom Herman said.

Tom D'Angelo is a senior sports columnist and golf reporter for The Palm Beach Post. He can be reached at tdangelo@pbpost.com.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: FAU takes step back in Tom Herman's rebuild, but it will not throw coach off track | D'Angelo