Temple football will play its second game of the season when it takes on the USF Bulls on Saturday afternoon. Here’s a preview of this weekend’s matchup with a prediction to follow.
USF looking to turn season around
It has been a really tough season so far for Jeff Scott and USF. Scott is the former offensive coordinator for Clemson seems to be in a whole different world in terms of talent, and that has shown so far this season. South Florida’s only win so far this season is against FCS opponent The Citadel as it won 27-3. Since then the Bulls have been outscored 124-31.
In two games against top-25 opponents, they have managed seven points, losing to Notre Dame 52-0 and Cincinnati 28-7. Yes, the Bulls have had a tough schedule so far but after getting blown out at home by East Carolina, it’s time to get back to the drawing board especially on the defensive side of the ball. South Florida is allowing 32.5 points and 369.5 yards per game. Offensively, you can argue it has been worse. Led by sophomore quarterback Jordan McCloud. McCloud so far this season is completing 66.3% of his passes for 567 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions.
USF is averaging 19.3 points per game and 331 yards per game. One bright side for the Bulls is their running game as sophomore running back Johnny Ford leads the way with 197 yards and three touchdowns.
Temple looking to bounce back
The Temple Owls have also not had a great start to their season. Last week they lost their season opener at Navy 31-29. Playing the triple option is never easy, but Temple is simply going to have to play better to avoid going 0-2 for the second time in three seasons. As expected, the offense looked great as senior quarterback Anthony Russo completed 70% of his passes for 206 yards with a touchdown and an interception. The Owls run game was in full effect as they rushed for 166 yards and Re’Mahn Davis showed up with 97 yards and a touchdown. For a team that only returned three starters on the defensive side of the ball, it sure showed. One bright spot was Isaiah Graham-Mobley, who had 14 tackles.
While Temple did not look good in its season opener, USF hasn’t looked good all year. Temple is playing its first home game of the season and is allowed to host 7,500 fans. Head coach Rod Carey and his team will be more prepared as USF struggles once again. Expect a higher scoring game.
Betting trends
The Bulls are 7-16 against the spread in their last 23 conference games. The Owls on the other hand are 6-1 ATS in their last seven games as a home favorite and 7-2 ATS against a team with a losing record. The underdog is 5-1 ATS in the last six meetings between these two teams.
Date: Oct. 17
Time: Noon ET
Spread: Temple -7
O/U: 53.5
*Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook
Prediction: Temple 34, USF 21
Hi, my name is Jason Greene I am a 21-year-old college student at Temple University. My dream goal is to become a sports radio host. I host my own podcast called NoBlockSports and I am a content creator for TheWooderboys podcast.