49ers’ season ends Saturday. Can they make Brad Lambert a winner in final game as coach?

The Charlotte 49ers wrap up their football season Saturday at Florida Atlantic. The only thing at stake for Charlotte (4-7, 3-4 Conference USA) is if they can edge the Owls (5-6, 3-4) for fourth place in the league’s East Division.

FAU, on the other hand, can somewhat salvage what’s been a disappointing season by becoming bowl eligible.

What’s more important to they 49ers will be how they play in coach Brad Lambert’s final game. Lambert, the only coach the program has had in its six-season history, will coach the team after being fired Sunday.

Charlotte has lost three games in a row - certainly the final and deciding factor in athletics director Mike Hill’s decision to dismiss Lambert. Some of what got the 49ers to a 4-4 record a month ago has slipped away, most notably their rushing defense, which at one point ranked second nationally.

But after allowing a season-high 196 yards on the ground last week against Florida International, Charlotte might now seem like an attractive target to the Owls, who have the league’s top running back in Devin Singletary (1,260 yards, 22 touchdowns). Another FAU running back, Kerryth White, is fifth in the league (841 yards). FAU’s offense averages 247.8 yards rushing per game.

Charlotte counters with its own strong ground game. Junior Benny LeMay is ranked second in the league behind Singletary with 1,055 yards. LeMay is the second player in 49ers history (Kalif Phillips in 2014) to rush for more than 1,000 yards in a season. In addition to being second in C-USA in rushing, he’s third in all-purpose yards (120.9 per game).

The 49ers also got a boost in a loss last week against Florida International from senior quarterback Hasaan Klugh, who started for the first time and threw for 253 yards and ran for 64 more. The 49ers didn’t make Lambert or any players available to media this week, so it’s unknown who will be the starter against FAU.

▪ 49ers offensive guard Nate Davis accepted an invitation to play in the Senior Bowl on Jan. 29 in Mobile, Ala.

This story was originally published November 23, 2018 at 1:29 PM.