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“I was real ugly to the guys at halftime,” Blakeney said. “It looked like they knew everything we were doing and were intimidating us after the whistle.”
One big interception and three deep passes later, Troy (4-5, 3-2 Sun Belt) had a 28-14 Homecoming win over Florida Atlantic after being behind 14-7 at the half.
“He was all after us,” linebacker Leverne Johnson said. “He challenged us to go out there and hit them in the mouth and let them back up, and we did.”
Julian Foster threw for a Troy true freshman record 277 yards and three scores, and Adrian Ghent’s third quarter interception kept the Owls (1-8, 1-5) out of the end zone, sparking the rally.
Troy tied it on a 14-yard pass from Foster to Smokey Hampton, who had six catches for 125 yards. Troy took the lead on Foster’s 41-yard touchdown strike to Darius Williams, and added the final score on a 6-yard pass from Foster to James Earl Cray.
“Give the young guy (Foster) credit,” Blakeney said. “He hung in there after getting harassed pretty good early. He stood in the pocket and put pretty good touch on the deep ball.”
After Kenny Cattouse’s 6-yard touchdown run, FAU quarterback Danny Embick threw touchdown passes of eight yards to Mike Wilds and 35 yards to Frantz Simeon to give the Owls the lead.
Troy was outgained 210-122 at the half.
“I made sure our guys knew they needed to respond and fight,” Blakeney said. “Fight within the NCAA rules and regulations, but fight.”
Ghent’s third-quarter interception came on the Troy 9-yard line. Blakeney and offensive coordinator agreed that the interception and a 39-yard pass play from Foster to Gary Banks on a third and 10 were the two biggest plays of the game.
The pass to Banks preceded the 41-yard touchdown pass to Williams.
“They were going to score something,” Blakeney said. “Adrian made a huge play and turned the momentum.”
The win gives Troy a glimmer of hope in the Sun Belt race, especially after league leader UL-Monroe lost to last-place Florida International.
“It was something we really needed,” Johnson said. “This should give us some momentum these last couple of games. You never know what can happen.”
Though the Owls had only one win coming in, Blakeney was happy to see them leave. FAU head coach Howard Schnellenberger has been a part of four national championships as a coach in his career.
“(FAU) has been here three times and they’ve scared me all three times,” Blakeney said. “It’s good, anytime you can beat a coach like Howard Schnellenberger. You know he’s got coaches that know what they’re doing and you know they’re going to get good players who will do what they want.”
Embick completed 18-of-32 passes for 177 yards, but left the game with a thumb injury. The Owls have struggled this year and were reeling off the effects of Hurricane Wilma, which affected South Florida during FAU’s bye week.
“I’m proud of the way our guys played,” Schnellenberger said. “Troy is a good football team. Playing like we did against them proves we can play in this league.
“Winning the game is what it’s all about. We’re going down a path to maturity, one not just to compete, but to win.”