Dec. 12, 2007

For the second day in a row, the Florida Atlantic University football team continued practice as they gear up for the R + L Carriers New Orleans Bowl on December 21 against Memphis.

Team drills were shorter than usual today. However, the offense was able to get a fair amount of work in as they worked on their shotgun sets during Wednesday's practice. The wide receivers fought through some early struggles. And Rusty Smith was on the money with a couple of passes to Cortez Gent.

The defense continued to work against Memphis' offensive sets. Jermaine Council returned to work with the first string. And on a quarterback rollout, Council was able to get pressure on the quarterback.

Head Coach Howard Schnellenberger ended team drills early in order to get the special teams work on blocking field goals. Dino Cox was able to emerge after the coaches made adjustments and come up with a block.

While a lot of work has been done early in the preparation for the bowl game, Smith knows that the effort will need to improve for FAU to come out on top.

"We know that we need to push the tempo in practice if we expect to go in and get a win," said Smith.

FAU will face Memphis in the R + L Carriers New Orleans Bowl on December 21 at 8 p.m. The game can be seen on ESPN2 and heard on WMEN-AM 640 in South Florida and online at fausports.com. Tickets are still available for the game, and can be purchased by calling 1-866-FAU-OWLS. All proceeds from tickets sold through FAU benefits the Athletics Department. Florida Atlantic University receives no proceeds from tickets sold from any other source. Monday, join FAU for the Coaches Breakfast featuring Head Coach Howard Schnellenberger presented by Dunkin' Donuts at 8 a.m. in the Founders' Lounge of the Tom Oxley Athletic Center. Hear Coach Schnellenberger give his analysis and game-plan of the R + L Carriers New Orleans Bowl.