2009 Florida Atlantic Owls football team

The 2009 Florida Atlantic University Owls football team represented Florida Atlantic University in the 2009 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team was coached by Howard Schnellenberger and played their home games at Lockhart Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The Owls were in their fourth season of competition in the Sun Belt Conference. The Owls finished the season 5–7 and 5–3 in Sun Belt play.

2009 Florida Atlantic Owls football
ConferenceSun Belt Conference
2009 record5–7 (5–3 Sun Belt)
Head coachHoward Schnellenberger (9th season)
Offensive coordinatorDaryl Jackson
Offensive schemePro-style
Defensive coordinatorKirk Hoza
Base defense4–3
Home stadiumLockhart Stadium
(Capacity: 20,450, grass)
2009 Sun Belt Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
Team W L    W L 
Troy $  8 –0     9 –4  
Middle Tennessee  7 –1     10 –3  
Louisiana–Monroe  5 –3     6 –6  
Florida Atlantic  5 –3     5 –7  
Louisiana–Lafayette  4 –4     6 –6  
Arkansas State  3 –5     4 –8  
FIU  3 –5     3 –9  
North Texas  1 –7     2 –10  
WKU  0 –8     0 –12  
  • $ – Conference champion
As of January 6, 2010; Rankings from AP Poll

Preseason

The Florida Atlantic Owls entered the 2009 NCAA Division I FBS football season hoping to rebound on what was considered a disappointing 2008 campaign. The 2008 team ended the season 7–6 (4–3 SBC), despite returning an overwhelming majority of starters from the 2007 conference champion team. Quarterback Rusty Smith entered his senior season. The 2009 team looked to rebuild on defense, losing defensive star, Frantz Joseph, and a number of other key starters.

The Owls looked to shoot for their third-consecutive bowl appearance, as the 2008 squad defeated the Central Michigan Chippewas in the 2008 Motor City Bowl.

The Owls also had to deal with a new offensive system, as Gary Nord, offensive coordinator for Florida Atlantic since 2004, took the same job at Purdue.

Preseason honors

Preseason Sun Belt Players of the Year
  • Sun Belt Conference Co-Player of the Year, Offense: Rusty Smith (QB, Sr.)

Preseason All-Sun Belt honors
  • Rusty Smith (QB, Sr.)
  • Jamari Grant (TE, Sr.)

Schedule
DateTimeOpponentSiteTVResultAttendance
September 57:00 p.m.at No. 22 Nebraska*
PPVL 3–4985,719[1]
September 197:00 p.m.at South Carolina*
PPVL 16–3872,017[2]
September 264:00 p.m.Louisiana–Monroe
L 25–2714,429[3]
October 34:00 p.m.Wyoming*
  • Lockhart Stadium
  • Fort Lauderdale, FL
L 28–3015,744[4]
October 177:00 p.m.at North Texas
CSSW 44–4023,319[5]
October 245:00 p.m.at Louisiana–Lafayette
W 51–2921,135[6]
October 314:00 p.m.Middle Tennessee
  • Lockhart Stadium
  • Fort Lauderdale, FL
L 20–2715,568[7]
November 72:00 p.m.at UAB*
L 29–5617,283[8]
November 144:00 p.m.Arkansas State
  • Lockhart Stadium
  • Fort Lauderdale, FL
W 35–1816,218[9]
November 213:15 p.m.at Troy
CSSL 21–4716,638[10]
November 284:00 p.m.Western Kentucky
  • Lockhart Stadium
  • Fort Lauderdale, FL
W 29–2314,671[11]
December 57:00 p.m.at FIU
CSSW 28–2110,108[12]

Awards and honors

Mid-season awards and honors
  • Week 15 Sun Belt Conference Player of the Week, Offense: Alfred Morris (RB, So.)
  • 2009 Shula Bowl Most Valuable Player: Alfred Morris (RB, So.)

Post-season awards and honors

All-Sun Belt honors
  • First Team All-Sun Belt Conference:
    • Jason Harmon (TE, Sr.)
    • Alfred Morris (RB, So.)
  • Second Team All-Sun Belt Conference:
    • David Matlock (OL, Sr.)
  • Honorable Mention All-Sun Belt Conference:
    • Marcus Bartels (DB, So.)
    • Kevin Cyrille (DL, So.)

Records broken in 2009

The 2009 football season saw numerous school records broken.

StatisticPrevious RecordNew Record
Rushing Yards (Season)Charles Pierre ('08, 1014 yards)Alfred Morris ('09, 1392 yards)
Rushing Touchdowns (Season)Doug Parker ('01, 8 TD)Alfred Morris ('09, 11 TD)
Total Touchdowns (Season)Doug Parker ('01, 9 TD)Alfred Morris ('09, 13 TD)
gollark: Fibonacci sequence?
gollark: Nobody will ever agree on what "nice" means.
gollark: I'm calling `(|%:>` the "irritated fish".
gollark: AAAAAAAAAAAaaaargh, my eyes.
gollark: There are languages with static types which aren't C.

References
  1. "Florida Atlantic Owls vs. Nebraska Cornhuskers Box Score". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on April 9, 2010. Retrieved April 1, 2010.
  2. "Florida Atlantic Owls vs. South Carolina Gamecocks Box Score". ESPN.com. Retrieved April 1, 2010.
  3. "Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks vs. Florida Atlantic Owls Box Score". ESPN.com. Retrieved April 1, 2010.
  4. "Wyoming Cowboys vs. Florida Atlantic Owls Box Score". ESPN.com. Retrieved April 1, 2010.
  5. "Florida Atlantic Owls vs. North Texas Mean Green Box Score". ESPN.com. Retrieved April 1, 2010.
  6. "Florida Atlantic Owls vs. Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns Box Score". ESPN.com. Retrieved April 1, 2010.
  7. "Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders vs. Florida Atlantic Owls Box Score". ESPN.com. Retrieved April 1, 2010.
  8. "Florida Atlantic Owls vs. UAB Blazers Box Score". ESPN.com. Retrieved April 1, 2010.
  9. "NCAA College Football Box Scores". USA Today. Archived from the original on July 17, 2011. Retrieved April 1, 2010.
  10. "Florida Atlantic Owls vs. Troy Trojans Box Score". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on May 7, 2010. Retrieved April 1, 2010.
  11. "Western Kentucky Hilltoppers vs. Florida Atlantic Owls Box Score". ESPN.com. Retrieved April 1, 2010.
  12. "Florida Atlantic Owls vs. FIU Golden Panthers Box Score". ESPN.com. Retrieved April 1, 2010.
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