Gameday preview: Temple at Army

Temple (5-4, 3-2 American Conference) at Army (4-4, 2-3 American Conference)

Game time: Noon

Streaming: CBS Sports Network

Location: Michie Stadium

Temple-Army history: Series is tied, 7-7.

Last meeting: Army 42, Temple 14 on Sept. 26, 2024.

Temple’s hopes of bowl eligibility took a blow with last week’s 45-14 loss to East Carolina. If the Owls are to return to a bowl game for the first time since 2019, a win over the Army Black Knights may be their best remaining chance. Army is having a down year compared to last year’s 12-win team but is fresh off an emotional win over Air Force.

Find out the key matchups, players and statistics below.

WHEN TEMPLE IS ON OFFENSE

After averaging 39.3 points per game headed into last week’s matchup, Temple’s offense had arguably its most disappointing performance of the season in the loss to East Carolina. The Owls put up just 233 yards of offense, a significant portion of which came in mop-up time, and just 14 points. A ground game that had rushed for at least 170 yards in three straight games was held to just 82 yards. A quarterback, Evan Simon, that had not thrown a pick yet this season threw one early on in the first quarter.

Simply put, the offense that had been one of the team’s calling cards this season looked nothing like itself against the Pirates.

Well, Simon and the rest of the Temple offense, which is still No. 51 in the nation in scoring offense at 31.4 points per game, won’t have much time to sulk if it wants to help the Owls return to a bowl game for the first time since 2019.

Army’s defense is No. 57 in scoring defense and has given up just 23.1 points per game. That number, however, is heavily assisted by Army’s offensive time of possession, which leads the nation at 35:19 per game, and an opportunistic defense that has forced 11 turnovers. Essentially, Army’s defense and offense work together to limit the number of scoring opportunities for its opponents. And for a Temple offense that is at its best when its taking shots, that could be an issue if things don’t go the Owls’ way at first.

If the Temple offense wants to help out its defense, it may need to have sustained drives of its own.

“We’re at our best when we’re aggressive offensively but also, when we get those (long) drives, we can keep our own defense off the field,” Temple coach K.C. Keeler told reporters this week. “Because it’s brutal when they have an 11-minute drive or an eight-minute drive or whatever and you’re three and out and you put your defense back out there. That’s really how they become a most effective Army… when they can get those drives and they can get those three and outs.”

“We did a good job keeping Navy off the field,” Keeler added about Temple’s October loss to Navy. “That’s kind of what we have to do this week against Army. If we can get some of those drives and sustain them and keep Army off the field, it’d definitely be a benefit for us.”

Army’s defense is anchored by its backfield. All six of the team’s interceptions this year have come from the safety position as Casey Larkin and Gavin Shields, both New Jersey natives, have snagged two apiece, while Collin Matteson and Stephen Nnadozie have grabbed one each.

When it has failed to force turnovers, however, Army’s defense has had trouble getting off the field. That could prove to be an advantage for a Temple offense that leads The American in turnover margin and has turned the ball over just twice this year. Opponents have converted 45.2% of their third-down attempts against the Black Knights, the No. 119 mark in the nation. And when opponents have had the ball, Army has given up 5.5 yards per play, which ranks the Black Knights 71st in the nation. Army’s opponents have averaged 7.4 yards per pass attempt, 80th in the nation.

For the Owls to have success against the Black Knights, their offense will need to be productive on first down. While that sounds obvious, it’s been the difference between when Temple’s offense has scored points and when it’s sputtered out.

“You look at every game we’ve played, and when we do well is when we do well on first down,” Simon said after the loss to ECU. “We’re not hurting ourselves and going second-and-10. OK, now we’re off schedule, and they’re probably going to drop eight on a passing down, so it’s very uphill when you’re not efficient on first down, and it’s all over the tape.”

Edge rusher Jack Bousum leads Army with two sacks, which have come in the last three games, and 14 quarterback pressures. Linebacker Kaleb Fortner is right behind Bousum with 10 quarterback pressures to go along with seven tackles for a loss. As a team, Army is near the bottom of the nation in sacks with just nine this season. Linebacker Andon Thomas is No. 3 in The American with 69 tackles.

For the season, Simon has thrown for 1,690 yards, 21 touchdowns and the aforementioned pick. He’s closing in on the program record of 23 passing touchdowns in a season, which was set by EJ Warner in 2023. Running back Jay Ducker has averaged 5.3 yards per carry en route to a team-high 683 rushing yards. Ducker has eight total scores this season, the most since current Buffalo Bill Ray Davis recorded 10 total touchdowns in 2019.

Temple’s passing game has heavily relied on four players this season in wideouts Kajiya Hollawayne (33 catches, 439 yards, six touchdowns), Jojo Bermudez (29 catches, 405 yards, four touchdowns), Colin Chase (26 catches, 264 yards, two touchdowns) and tight end Peter Clarke (24 catches, 383 yards, four touchdowns).

Edge: Temple

WHEN TEMPLE IS ON DEFENSE

Army’s offense has been up and down all season. There have been performances where Army’s offense looks stellar, like when it scored 38 points despite three turnovers against North Texas, but there have also been disappointing games like a six-point output against East Carolina. Overall, Army has averaged 23.4 points per game this season, down from last year’s 31.1 points per game.

Junior quarterback Cale Hellums has started five games, including the last three, for the Black Knights and has rushed for 711 yards and 11 touchdowns. Through the air, the Texas native has completed 24-of-46 passes for 376 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. Last week against Air Force, Hellums threw for 102 yards and a touchdown while also rushing 26 times for 98 yards and a score.

As a team, however, Army had just 295 yards of offense, its second-lowest mark of the year, and scored just 20 points. A lot of that can be attributed to playing another option team, as offensive opportunities were more scarce than usual, but Hellums’ performance was far from perfect, Army offensive coordinator Cody Worley said.

“[Hellum’s] got to be consistent,” Worley told reporters earlier this week. “The plays that he’s capable of making, that was showcased throughout the (Air Force) game but he’s got to be more consistent on the gimmes.”

“Production was there,” Worley added. “It was a gritty performance…Without him we don’t win the game.”

While Hellums is the starter, Army coach Jeff Monken and his staff have shown a tendency to ride the hot hand at quarterback. After Hellums struggled in his first start, the North Texas game, Army made the switch back to Dewayne Coleman, who rallied the Black Knights from a 21-point deficit to force overtime. That performance gave the starting job back to Coleman for a week but Hellums ultimately reclaimed the job.

Regardless of who is at quarterback, Army’s offensive strategy has looked the same, Keeler said.

“They’re both good football players,” Keeler said. “I don’t know, statistically, if there’s any difference but when you kind of watch the stuff they run, it all kind of blends together. It’s not like, ‘Oh, hey, this guy’s in, do this and this guy’s in and do that.'”

Slotback Noah Short is second on the team behind Hellums with 362 rushing yards while Hayden Reed is close behind at 327 yards. As a team, Army has averaged 265.3 rushing yards per game, the fourth best mark in the nation behind Navy, Air Force and Utah. As mentioned earlier, the Black Knights lead the nation in time of possession as a result of their season average of 61.3 rushing attempts per game.

While Army won’t throw the ball as often as Navy has this year, Hellums has thrown for at least 100 yards in back-to-back games. Wideout Brady Anderson has caught just 10 passes this season but has averaged 30.6 yards per catch. Against North Texas, Anderson snagged a 68-yard touchdown reception. No other Army wideout has more than two catches, however, as the West Point offense has relied heavily on its backs when it needs to throw the ball. Short has caught 17 balls for 226 yards and a touchdown while Samari Howard has caught 10 passes for 119 yards.

As for Temple, the defense had one of the worst performances in program history against East Carolina. The Pirates accounted for 614 yards of offense, the 12th-most ever by a Temple opponent, and racked up 45 points. That came a week after Temple gave up 37 points to Tulsa.

Despite the recent lowlights, Temple’s defense has stood out to Monken, he said.

“They play really tough and really sound defense,” Monken said. “There’s been times where, you know, it doesn’t have anything to do with talent or coaching. Sometimes guys just make plays from other teams.”

One thing that would go a long way for Temple’s defense is getting healthy. According to Keeler, single-digit defensive tackle Sekou Kromah may be shut down this week in the hopes of getting him back after next week’s bye. Starting cornerback Jaylen Castleberry, who missed last week’s game, should be back, as should Ben Osueke, who missed time against East Carolina but returned to the field.

At the safety position, starters Avery Powell and Dontae Pollard left last week’s loss in the first quarter. That leaves Javier Morton, Jamere Jones and Louis Frye as the healthiest proven safety commodities. Slippery Rock transfer Pooh Lawton played 64 snaps against East Carolina and should also see extended run if Powell and Pollard miss the game.

Morton and Frye missed the game against Navy, which Keeler identified as a big loss against the option offense. Both of those players played against East Carolina in spite of injuries and should be closer to fully healthy against Army.

“I think it’s a wait and see how we’re going to be in the safety spot,” Keeler said. “I feel better that (Morton and Frye) will be closer to 100 percent against West Point. That will give us two big, physical kids that you hope will match up with these guys.”

Linebacker Curly Ordonez leads Temple with 56 tackles and is second behind Cam’Ron Stewart (8.5 tackles for a loss) with eight TFL. Temple has grabbed seven interceptions, which should not be a factor against Army unless Temple jumps out to a big lead, and recovered six fumbles. Linebacker Katin Surprenant leads The American with three forced fumbles.

For the season, Temple’s defense is down to No. 94 in scoring defense at 28.1 points allowed per game and No. 91 in total defense at 389 yards allowed per game.

Edge: Army

SPECIAL TEAMS

Army kicker Dawson Jones has made just four of his last seven field-goal attempts but did go 2-for-2 against Air Force. For the season, Jones is a perfect 3-for-3 within the 30-yard mark and just 6-of-11 from beyond 30 yards. Temple’s kicker, Carl Hardin, has converted eight of his 10 field goal attempts this season, including a 52-yarder against Tulsa.

Outside of the Oklahoma game, where he had two punts returned for 10 yards, Temple punter Dante Atton has had just three punts returned for a combined minus one yard this season. Atton was named the Ray Guy Award Punter of the Week last week after he averaged 45 yards per punt without a single punt returned. Three of Atton’s seven punts pinned the Pirates within the 20-yard line.

Army punter James Wagenseller has been equally impressive this year, as he’s averaged 42.9 yards per punt and has had just five punts returned for 12 yards.

Army rarely, if ever, returns kicks. For the season, the Black Knights have returned just two kickoffs for 37 yards. By comparison, Temple has returned 18 kickoffs for 305 yards this season.

Army punt returner Lloyd Benson has had two punt returns of at least 20 yards this season, including a 32-yarder in the opening-season loss to Tarleton State. Temple’s Jojo Bermudez, meanwhile, has returned 10 punts for 150 yards this season.

Edge: Temple