MONROE, La. (Interstat) — Caden Veltkamp threw for 314 yards and two touchdowns, and Florida Atlantic defeated Louisiana-Monroe 45-17 on Saturday at Malone Stadium in an NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision game. The Owls improved to 3-1. The Warhawks fell to 0-4. Florida Atlantic scored 28 points in the first quarter, seven in the second, three in the third and seven in the fourth. Louisiana-Monroe scored 10 points in the first quarter and seven in the second.

Florida Atlantic entered the game at 2-1, having beaten Navy 38-30 and Florida International 16-10, with a loss at Florida. Louisiana-Monroe entered at 0-3, having lost to Mississippi State 62-13, UAB 26-20 and Southeastern Louisiana 38-35. The Owls improved to 3-1 with the win, while the Warhawks dropped to 0-4.

Veltkamp, a 6-foot-5, 220-pound quarterback from Bowling Green, Ky., completed 29 of 38 passes for 314 yards and two touchdowns. He also rushed twice for 2 yards and made two tackles. Drew Devillier, a 6-foot-5, 220-pound quarterback from Plano, Texas, completed 2 of 4 passes for 19 yards. RJ Garcia II, a 6-foot, 172-pound wide receiver from Land O Lakes, Fla., caught two passes for 10 yards. The Owls controlled the game with a balanced offensive attack and a defense that held the Warhawks in check after the opening quarter.

Aidan Armenta, a 6-foot-2, 210-pound quarterback from Albuquerque, N.M., completed 23 of 29 passes for 278 yards and two touchdowns for Louisiana-Monroe. He connected with Jase Hoath, a 6-foot-2, 235-pound tight end from Columbia, Tenn., on a 1-yard touchdown. LT Robinson finished with two receptions for 79 yards and one touchdown. JP Coulter, a 5-foot-11, 185-pound wide receiver from Ocean Springs, Miss., had three catches for 61 yards. Nic Trujillo, a 6-foot-2, 171-pound wide receiver from Rio Rancho, N.M., added two receptions for 47 yards. Bryce Anderson, a 6-foot-5, 250-pound tight end from West Des Moines, Iowa, made five catches for 28 yards. Parker Fulghum had one catch for 18 yards. Cade Callahan, a 6-foot-3, 220-pound tight end from Townsend, Mass., caught two passes for five yards. Brandon Buckhaulter, a 6-foot-1, 205-pound wide receiver from Flowood, Miss., added one reception for three yards. Zach Palmer-Smith, a 6-foot, 205-pound running back from Delran, N.J., ran six times for 14 yards and caught one pass for four yards. Derrick Jameson, a 6-foot, 210-pound running back from Maple Grove, Minn., rushed three times for seven yards and made four tackles. Trevon Kinchen ran twice for two yards.

Florida Atlantic opened the scoring in the first quarter when AJ Johnson rushed 8 yards for a touchdown with 6:56 remaining. Louisiana-Monroe answered at the 3:21 mark of the first when Armenta found Hoath for a 1-yard score. In the second quarter, Veltkamp hit Dominique Henry for a 26-yard touchdown at 14:06. The Owls then scored on special teams when E. Messer returned a Makenzie Ryan punt 73 yards for a touchdown at 11:53. Armenta responded with a 75-yard touchdown pass to Robinson at 11:43. E. Ervin added a 2-yard touchdown run at 4:53, and Abram Murray made a 39-yard field goal for the Warhawks at 1:55. L. Farrow scored on a 1-yard run with five seconds left in the half. In the third quarter, Murray missed a 48-yard field goal at 10:39. Veltkamp then connected with Henry again, this time for 36 yards, at 4:57. Collin Rogers capped the scoring with a 29-yard field goal at 11:01 of the fourth quarter. Rogers made the extra point after each of Florida Atlantic’s first six touchdowns before adding his fourth-quarter field goal. Murray made the extra point after both Louisiana-Monroe touchdowns and added his 39-yard field goal.

Defensively, Florida Atlantic received six tackles from Jayden Sweeney and four from Jonathan Bax. CJ Doggette Jr., Bo Simpson-Nealy, Jay Crable and Blake Burris each had three tackles. Damarius McGhee added two tackles. For Louisiana-Monroe, RJ Hall led the way with eight tackles. Gavin Howard and Chris Payne each made six tackles. Noah Flemmings had five tackles and one quarterback hurry. Marcus Ross, Moses Madubuike, Larell Howling and Ethan Bailey each recorded four tackles. Jabari Tiller, a 6-foot-1, 200-pound defensive back from Sumter, S.C., had four tackles. Jay Harper, a 5-foot-11, 180-pound defensive back from Valley, Ala., also had four tackles. Tyrell Brown, Jonathan Crain, Rickey Banks, Jayden Lewis, Zy Jackson, Taijh Overton and Billy Pullen each had three tackles. Le’Kell Mc’Gowan, Zyan Tremont, Colton Vatne, CJ Wilson, TJ Williams and Armoni Rue each finished with two tackles. Derek Omoregie and Fred Clark each had one tackle. Makenzie Ryan punted seven times for 299 yards for Louisiana-Monroe. Abram Murray handled the kicking duties for the Warhawks, making a 39-yard field goal and missing from 48 yards. Collin Rogers made a 29-yard field goal and added extra points for the Owls.

Florida Atlantic is scheduled to host Texas Southern next. The Owls will then visit Army, host Rice, visit North Texas, host Texas-San Antonio, visit Tulsa, host South Florida and visit East Carolina. Louisiana-Monroe will visit South Alabama next. The Warhawks will then host Louisiana Tech, visit Troy, host Southern Mississippi, visit Arkansas State, host Louisiana, visit Appalachian State and host Marshall.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Louisiana-Monroe 37, Florida Atlantic 36. Interstat’s ELO system gave Florida Atlantic a 52.7 percent probability to win. Louisiana-Monroe had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of -11.5. The combined 62 points finished above the over/under line of 58.5.