Owls roll over Akron for 8th straight win

AKRON, Ohio - The Temple football team still is out to prove itself.

Even after extending their winning streak to eight games with a 56-17 victory over Akron last night - virtually assuring a shot at a postseason bowl for the first time in 30 years - the Owls are far from satisfied.

"This is 3 years in the making," Temple coach Al Golden said. "Our guys have bought into the process and all the things that the process entails. We are trying to get them to finish the prescription and stay away from the poison, which unfortunately is [the media].

"Hope they can stay humble and hungry, because we have a few big games ahead of us starting this week with Kent State."

Temple (8-2, 6-0 Mid-American Conference) jumped out early on the Zips (2-8, 1-5) with a 63-yard touchdown pass from sophomore quarterback Chester Stewart to Michael Campbell 2 minutes, 26 seconds into the game.

The Owls, however, gave up 17 unanswered points to Akron over the next 10 minutes as the Zips took a 17-7 lead with 3:06 remaining in the first quarter. That span included an interception, a fumbled snap recovered in the end zone for a touchdown, and five penalties for 45 yards against Temple.

"We had a little adversity early on, but I thought our guys were locked in pretty well, almost to the point where they were too locked in," Golden said. "It's been this team's style all season to have poise and flip the switch and be able to play the next play. They did a great job of answering back."

The Owls were able to regain the lead on a 66-yard punt-return touchdown by Delano Green with 6:15 left in the second quarter, taking the air out of the crowd of 10,927.

Owls freshman running back Bernard Pierce, the nation's third-leading rusher, carried 19 times for 97 yards and one touchdown. The 2-yard TD run just before halftime was his 15th touchdown of the season, tying the school record set by Paul Palmer in 1986 and matched by Walter Washington in 2004.

Temple outrushed the Zips, 258-112, which included 104 rushing yards for the Owls in the second quarter. This was the fourth consecutive game and the fifth time this season in which the Owls rushed for more than 200 yards.

Temple's defense was able to contain Patrick Nicely and the Akron offense after the first quarter, holding the Zips to just 150 total yards in the last three quarters. Nicely, who finished 15-for-29 for 99 yards and one touchdown, was 6-for-7 with passes to four receivers in the first quarter.

Stewart completed six of 11 passes for 145 yards. He also had a 24-yard TD pass to Joe Jones in the third quarter, and also rushed for two scores. He finished wiht 36 yards rushing.

"We started off slow and couldn't get them off their script earlier in the game," Golden said. "As the game went on, I thought our defense did a much better job of executing and tackling."

Although the Owls, whose last bowl appearance was in the 1979 Garden State Bowl, might not express excitement of their first winning season since 1990, it is becoming evident on their faces in the locker room and their play on the field.

Golden said last week's 34-32 victory over Miami (Ohio), in which the Owls prevailed on a field goal by freshman Brandon McManus, was an eye-opener for his players.

"We take it game by game; that's all you can do," Golden said. "You can't take any of these points with you, so you have to take this game for what it's worth and prepare for Kent State."

The last time the Owls recorded 56 points was Oct. 30, 1999, in a Big East contest against Rutgers. Typically, this would be a team expected to lose by that same margin 10 years later.

This is a new team.

Whether everyone else believes in the Owls yet remains to be seen. *