IS BUYING CROSS-COUNTRY SKIS
While the combination of Chester Stewart and Vaughn Charlton struggled to complete passes, Ohio quarterback Theo Scott had no trouble finding receivers or the end zone.
Ohio's solid quarterback play and Temple's struggles at the position was the difference in yesterday's game, which clinched the Mid-American Conference East Division championship and a spot in the MAC championship game against Central Michigan on Dec. 4 for the victors.
"They made explosive plays and we did not," Owls coach Al Golden said. "We didn't convert enough on third downs and in the red zone and they did. That was the difference in the ballgame; it's as simple as that."
Scott complicated things for the Temple defense. He led the Bobcats (9-3, 7-1 MAC) to a touchdown on the opening possession and threw a 65-yard touchdown pass that put the Owls in an early 13-3 hole. Yet the Owls (9-3, 7-1) recovered to cut the lead to 13-10 at halftime, thanks to running back freshman Matt Brown, who finished with 172 yards starting in place of the injured Bernard Pierce.
"We felt like we were going to win the whole time," Owls wide receiver Delano Green said. "We just knew that we couldn't fall apart and had to stick together if we were going to pull it through."
But Scott really got going on Ohio's opening drive in the second half when he ran it 17 yards to the end zone. He later added a 43-yard run in the fourth, which gave the Bobcats a 32-17 lead.
"He's a tremendous athlete," Temple linebacker Alex Joseph said. "He stayed in the pocket and made great throws and great decisions."
As the Owls began to fall behind in the second half, they found themselves in an unfamiliar position. During its nine-game winning streak, Temple never fell behind by more than 10 points, but trailed by more than that margin in the fourth quarter.
"That was disappointing," Golden said. "We hadn't been down like that since the Penn State game."
With the Owls trailing, they had to turn away from Brown on the ground and hope for the best in Stewart. He played well through the first quarter when he was 4-for-7 for 62 yards, but as the game progressed and Ohio continued to put pressure on him, he struggled. After that first quarter, he completed only three more passes on 15 attempts the rest of the game.
With the Owls trailing, 32-17, in the fourth, Stewart threw an interception, giving the Bobcats an easy field goal opportunity. That would be his final pass; Golden replaced him with Charlton. Stewart finished only 7-for-22 for 92 yards and the one interception.
Charlton wasn't much better. After an Ohio field goal made it 35-17, Charlton's three drives included a turnover on downs and two interceptions, one of which was a desperation throw with 4 seconds remaining. Charlton finished 4-for-12 for 31 yards and two interceptions.
"We certainly could have played better," Golden said. "We made some mental mistakes with the option and on [their] offense that hurt us and was the difference in the game."
Despite the loss, Temple completes a regular season in which the Owls won nine consecutive games and earned the most wins since 1979 when they were 10-2.
"Nothing is going to diminish what these seniors have done for the program," Golden said. "We had the longest winning streak in the program and won nine games for the first time in forever."
Temple will now wait to hear where it will play its bowl game, its first bowl bid since 1979.
"It hurts, but at the same time, it feels good," defensive tackle Andre Neblett said. "We can only hold our heads high and get ready for a bowl game." *
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