BOCA RATON — A new running back emerged along with the defense during Florida Atlantic’s 53-33 win over the UAB Blazers on Oct. 11.
The Owls (3-3, 2-1) opened up a 28-0 lead in the wire-to-wire victory as they snatched their second consecutive win. Running back Kaden Shields-Dutton led the way, rushing for three touchdowns off 79 yards on 16 carries.
Quarterback Caden Veltkamp completed 20 of 30 passes with three touchdowns and one interception. The Owls also accumulated five sacks against the Blazers (2-4, 0-3) in the American Athletic Conference game.
The 53 points by FAU is the most scored in a conference home game since Oct. 2, 2021, making the evening when the football program celebrated its 25th season and the 2025 Athletics Hall of Fame class even more special.
The Owls already have matched their win total from last season and they will look for their third straight victory when they travel to Tampa for a matchup with No. 24 South Florida on Oct. 18.
“Overall, proud of the effort,” FAU coach Zach Kittley said. “Our guys came to play.”
Here are the takeaways from the Owls’ victory:
Owls’ third-string RB Kaden Shields-Dutton excels
FAU has been dealing with injuries in the running back room. Xavier Terrell was held out of the contest against UAB due to injury and Gemari Sands was questionable coming into the game after suffering an injury the week before.
Enter Kaden Shields-Dutton. The Owls’ third-stringer ushered in a primetime performance, scoring a hat trick of touchdowns out of the backfield. He became the first FAU running back to score three rushing touchdowns in a game since Zuberi Mobley accomplished the feat on Sept. 14, 2024 against Florida International.
“There’s no time that I prepared for the role I had,” Shields-Dutton said. “No matter who’s in there, the standard is the standard. I had my opportunity tonight, and I knew I had to make the most of it.”
Caden Veltkamp tosses 3 TD passes
After a rough first couple of weeks in a Florida Atlantic uniform marred by turnover trouble, quarterback Caden Veltkamp seems to be settling into Zach Kittley’s offense. Veltkamp followed up his three-touchdown performance against Rice with another solid performance against UAB. It was Veltkamp’s third game of the season with three or more passing touchdowns.
Over his last two games, Veltkamp has thrown for 587 yards with six touchdowns and two interceptions. After the win, Veltkamp talked about his level of comfortability within the offense improving as the season has progressed.
“Just trying to cut down on turnovers,” Veltkamp said. “I still have to continue to develop in that area and figure out how to stop turning the ball over. But overall, I think I’ve gotten more comfortable.”
Kittley said his junior QB is going in the right direction. “I think he’s going to continue to grow and continue to head in the direction we want him to go.”
FAU defense has big night vs. UAB
FAU began this game with a 28-0 lead, and its defense was a major reason. The Owls came away with five sacks and eight tackles for loss on the night, with CJ Doggette Jr.‘s 2.5 sacks leading the way. He becomes the first FAU defensive player to accumulate multiple sacks in a game since 2023.
“It was definitely fun to open up the bag and work on what I’ve worked on all year,” Doggette Jr. said.
Four of FAU’s sacks came in the first half, setting the tone for the blowout. The team’s defense tapered off after halftime, allowing 19 points in the second half, but its first-half evisceration of the Blazers offense was too much to overcome.
“Extremely proud of how we started,” Kittley said. “We knew that this game could have some highs and lows and some adversity. We talked about it all week, just got to be able to battle the highs and lows and find a way to win as a team.”
Zach Kittley’s gutsy calls sets the tone
With the Owls leading 28-14 in the second quarter, there was a sense of momentum shifting toward the Blazers. With under two minutes to go in the first half, FAU was faced with fourth and six. Kittley elected to go for it, and they delivered as Veltkamp tossed a 43-yard touchdown strike to Dom Henry to push the Owls’ lead to 35-14.
“We’re going to be aggressive,” Kittley said. “Everybody did their job, super easy ball play for us that we’ve repped a million times.”
Additionally, the Owls pulled off a trick play in the first quarter. Veltkamp took the snap, pitched it backwards to wide receiver Easton Messer, who then unloaded a 48-yard touchdown pass down the right sideline to Jayshon Platt.
“He’s a guy that you trust to do it the right way,” Kittley said of Messer. “We had some fun watching him throw that touchdown pass in practice this week, and I’ll tell you what, the one that mattered the most tonight was unbelievable.”
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Florida Atlantic wins second straight with easy victory against Alabama-Birmingham
Reporting by Justin Backer / Palm Beach Post
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
