To be so close...

To be so close is exciting
To be so close is encouraging
To be so close is excruciating 

Derek Moye was the difference in this one

Anyone who tuned into ESPN at 12 pm on Saturday may have been surprised. Temple is fielding a real football team now, that's for sure. Whoever tuned in saw the Nittany Lions receive a scare from a team that hasn't beaten them in over 70 years.

What may be even more surprising to college football fans out there is that many Owl fans are not satisfied with just giving the Lions a scare. We want more. To lead for the vast majority of the game only to have the win ripped from under us is disappointing to say the least. I wasn't even able to talk about the game for close to 24 hours. Even today, all I can do is envision Chester Stewart sailing yet another deep pass over a wide open C.J. Hammond.

The intensity and talent on Chuck Heater's defense is simply astounding. After losing 1st and 2nd NFL picks, the defense is without a doubt stronger. Leading up to the game I heard a whole host of reasons why Temple's defense couldn't play 4 quarters of football with the smash mouth Nittany Lions offense. Namely, that Temple linebackers were simply to light (that one was hilarious) and that the depth wouldn't be there (a legitimate concern that I shared). The defense did appear to finally begin to wear down at the end of the game but it was hardly because of a lack of depth. They just spent far too much of the game (particularly the 2nd half) on the field. Losing the time of possession battle is a recipe for a tired defense.

Stewart saw action but looked the same

After the first Temple possession, Mike Gerardi was nonexistent. He was so nonexistent that he was replaced by senior Chester Stewart. Stewart proved to be the same quarterback as last year and he was again yanked in favor of Gerardi. Stewart threw a pass that nobody in the stadium knew who it was intended for. He then followed that up with his signature overthrow on a deep ball. If Stewart hit C.J. Hammond in the endzone, that would have been the nail in the PSU coffin.

Gerardi came in and threw 2 inexcusable interceptions that likely cost Temple the game. The way the defense was playing combined with the poor PSU kicking game meant the Owls would have had a very good chance to win the game even if they didn't get another first down all game.

Missed opportunities were the name of the game. In the 2nd half alone, Temple blocked a punt and intercepted a pass around the midfield stripe. They converted those two opportunities to zero points. That just isn't going to cut it. The Owls had many chances to put the Lions out of their misery, but let them hang around far too long. 

I said earlier in the week that I no longer want to talk about the woulda, coulda, shoulda.

Unfortunately that's exactly what I'm talking about today.

All will be forgotten if the Owls come up with a big win at Maryland next week.

The Field Has Been Painted!

In my post a few days ago, I mentioned that it's the responsibility of 3 groups of people to make this Saturday everything it possibly can be. Those 3 groups of people were the players, the fans, and the administration.

Well, judging from the image above, the administration has done their job. The field looks fantastic. I wish it were that way every game.

The administration has answered the call. I know the players will answer the call. It's time for the fans to follow suit!

Go Owls! Beat Penn State!

Owls Land Second Committment of Class of 2012

 

Fran Dunphy is getting it done. St. Joseph's Metuchen (NJ) wing Quenton DeCosey has verbally committed to play for Temple. According to ZagsBlog, DeCosey held offers from Penn State, West Virginia, and Virginia Tech, among others.

"Q" is a 6'5" wing that averaged 23.4 points, 11.3 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 3.0 steals and 2.6 blocks per game as a junior en route to being named Home News Tribune player of the year. He makes the game of basketball look effortless at times and is very smooth when he attacks the basket. His jumper needs work, but he has enough of a jumper to keep opposing defenses honest. DeCosey can become a bit lazy on defense at times, but we've seen with countless players (Khalif Wyatt recently), that Dunphy is an expert at changing defensive mentality. DeCosey has the body to excel defensively, so I fully expect for him to be adequate on that end of the ball.

All in all, this is a tremendous pickup for the Owls. DeCosey was on the verge of blowing up and already had a few high major offers. DeCosey joins recent commit Devontae Watson as the second member of the 2012 recruiting class. Look for Dunphy to add another big man and a "best available" player before it's all said and done. A few names to keep an eye on are Sherron Dorsey-Walker who had a good time in his visit last week and Daniel Dingle, a highly regarded forward from New York.

5 Reasons Why Temple Will (And Won't) Pull The Upset

Let's start things out on the end of the spectrum that makes even the most serious Owl fans giddy. Here are 5 reasons why your hometown Owls will pull the unthinkable

Will Bernard Stay Healthy?

1. Special Teams: Coach Addazio really looks to have his guys firing on all cylinders on both kick coverage and kick returns. It's only week 3 and I have already lost track of the number of vicious hits delivered on kickoffs. The owls have only seen 4 kickoffs come their way but 2 of them were returned past the midfield stripe by Joey Jones. McManus had looked a little shaky on field goals but I have all the faith in the world in the Junior placekicker/punter.
2. Bernard Pierce: Temple runs on BP. Pierce is back and stronger than ever. He's had quite a few jaw dropping moves already, not to mention his 6 touchdowns scored in 5 quarters of action. Pierce ripped off 2 touchdown runs in the first quarter in Happy Valley before suffering an ankle injury that seriously hampered the Owls' chance for the upset.
3. Defensive Scheme: I have said it all along. The Owls are not going to be as talented on the defensive side of the ball, but the results will still be better. Gone is the lackluster bend-but-don't-break defense run by Al Golden. It had been replaced by an aggressive defense masterminded by Chuck Heater.
4. Better QB Play: Let's face it. Chester Stewart did not play a good game last year in Happy Valley. He didn't even play a mediocre one. Mike Gerardi looks much more capable of being the game manager that the Owls lacked in last year's contest. Addazio doesn't need his QB to play spectacular. He just needs Gerardi to make the plays that a division 1 quarterback is expected to make.
5. We're Due: Simply put, Temple deserves a breakthrough. We have been excruciatingly close to greatness several times now. This year, it truly is "our time".

Now that we have the good stuff out out of the way, let's take a look at some of the reasons why the Owls won't pull the upset.

Michael Mauti will be called upon to slow down Temple's running game

1. The PSU Running Game: For years the Penn State ground game has given the Owls fits. This year looks to be no different. Silas Redd might not be Bernard Pierce, but he's a very capable back running behind a colossal line. The Owls will need to contain the ground game to have a puncher's chance.
2. PSU Run Defense: Let's face it. Akron and Villanova's run defenses are not at the level of Penn State's. Yeah, the Crimson Tide ran all over them with Trent Richardson, but who doesn't Alabama run all over? We certainly can't expect for Bernard Pierce and company to run for over 300 yards line they did against Akron.
3. Motivation: Penn State has plenty of it. They were just embarrassed on their home field and a loss to Temple just isn't an option. Temple is always motivated for this game. It's their super bowl. This year, Joe Pa's squad will be out for blood though.
4. Injuries: Specifically an injury to Bernard Pierce. I know we don't want to talk about it, but this should be the first game that Bernard has to take a full game of pounding. Coach Addazio says he's learned to tough things out, but we won't know for sure until he gets through this tough stretch of games unharmed.
5. PSU QBs: Yeah, the PSU quarterbacks have not been spectacular but I think Joe Pa is finally ready to go to Bolden and stick with him. It has to be disheartening for Nittany Lion fans to see this QB shuffle situation they currently have. I think the "Nittany Lion Shuffle" ends this week and they finally start to see some continuity in the position.

The Time is NOW

 

Penn State week is upon us. The Owls have handled business in order to make this week potentially a ground breaking week for TU football.

This week is important for all three factions of people associated with Temple

1. The Players: These players are talented. Make no mistake about it. They should not and will not be in awe of the power of Penn State football. They competed last year in Happy Valley. This year, an upset is even more likely in a slightly less hostile environment with what appears to be an even better Temple team.
2. The Fans: While this game is listed as a home game for Temple, I'm hoping for a 50/50 split in attendance on Saturday. More importantly, the fans that do show up need to be loud and proud in their support of the Owls. This game is on national television, so I hope the TU supporters do everything possible to show that this isn't the same apathetic fan base from years past.
3. The Administration: Alright, I'm not huge on the whole "we need our logos on the field" argument that so many TU alums seem to think is so important, but this week is the exception. Once again, I hope the administration sees the need to shed positive light on the university on national TV. Having a huge eagle in the middle of the field just doesn't scream big time to me.

Temple is currently a 9.5 point dog in this game, but various other projection methods have this as an even closer game. Let's not forget that betting lines are set to get the kind of action on both sides that the sportsbook would like to see. It's pretty clear that Addazio and his staff have kept the playcalling very "vanilla" to this point. It will be interesting to see what Loeffler and company have up their sleeves.

There's little to no chance that the Owls will be able to walk out with a victory by just lining up and pounding it down the Nits throats all game. Yes, it would be very satisfying to win that way, but let's face it. That isn't going to happen. Mike Gerardi is going to need to be adequate under center to give the Owls a punchers chance at victory.

Adequate is something that Chester Stewart was not in last year's gut wrenching defeat to the Nittany Lions. He passed for under 50 yards and tacked on 3 interceptions as well. There's no question in my mind that with a 150 yard, turnover free game from Stewart, the Owls would have been able to pull the upset. Woulda, coulda, shoulda.

This year I hope I won't be talking about the "woulda, coulda, shoulda".