GAMEDAY: Florida Atlantic at Troy
December 01, 2007
Florida Atlantic (6-5, 5-1 Sun Belt) at Troy (8-3, 6-0 Sun Belt)
Time: 1 p.m. CST
TV: CSS Radio: 94.7 FM WTBF (man that Jerry Miller’s going to sound good on color), more web information available at http://www.troytrojans.com
Key matchups: Troy’s defense against the FAU offense. FAU is led by sophomore and 3,000-yard passer Rusty Smith, a guy who coach Howard Schnellenberger compares to Hall of Famer Bernie Kosar and says will be a NFL first-round draft pick. Smith is probably the best pure passer in the league, but Troy’s front four will need to get pressure on him to try and render him ineffective. If he handles pressure well and gets his passes off, Troy’s secondary will need to be on alert.
Big question: Can Troy, as it has all season, take care of business, or will it be upset like Middle Tennessee was last year? You remember. MTSU was supposed to win. It didn’t. Troy is supposed to win this year. Will it? Give the team credit - it has answered every challenge thrown its way and, so far, has proven that it wants to go back to the New Orleans Bowl. If the Trojans don’t win, at 8-4, they will still likely be home for the holidays. There would be a couple of open spots in bowls across the country (likely the Armed Forces Bowl, perhaps the Humanitarian Bowl), but look for those to take 7-win teams from power conferences. Hey, it’s their choice.
Player to watch, Troy: QB Omar Haugabook. The senior who grew up less than an hour from FAU’s campus plays his last home game after revolutionizing the position for Troy in his two seasons. Without Haugabook, it’s certain Troy wouldn’t be where it is today. Can he keep the magic going for one more game?
Player to watch, FAU: LB Frantz Simeon. The team and Sun Belt’s leading tackler is a leading candidate for Defensive Player of the Year. He and Cergile Sincere are both very good linebackers and can disrupt any offense.
Prediction: Troy 31, FAU 14. In this conference, Troy’s too good this season.
