Temple defensive end Adrian Robinson, who has the eighth-best sack total in the nation, spent a lot of time chasing Miami of Ohio quarterback Zac Dysert when the teams met eight days ago at Lincoln Financial Field.
In a subpar performance by the Owls' defense, Dysert burned Temple for 426 yards in the air and three scores in a game the Owls won, 34-32, when kicker Brandon McManus booted an 18-yard field goal with three seconds remaining.
"I have to give him credit," Robinson said of Dysert. "He could sling the ball as well as run around a lot. It was hard. But sometimes, they get away."
Robinson, a native of Harrisburg who has tackled the quarterback 10 times this season, was shut out against Miami. But his linemates came up with five sacks, and Temple enters tonight's Mid-American Conference game at Akron second-best in that category in the MAC.
The Owls, whose seven-game winning streak has given them a 7-2 overall record, are leading the MAC East Division at 5-0. Akron, coming off a 28-20 upset of visiting Kent State, is 2-7 and 1-4.
"We're catching them at the worst time for us," Temple coach Al Golden said. "They're playing better than they have all year."
Behind Robinson and the rest of the defensive line, Temple is second in the MAC in both rush defense and total defense.
Robinson, a 6-foot-2, 248-pound sophomore, lines up next to 6-5, 301-pound sophomore tackle Muhammad Wilkerson, who had two sacks against Miami. At nose tackle is 6-2, 300-pound senior Andre Neblett; and 6-2, 238-pound junior Amara Kamara is the other defensive end.
Rotating in are defensive ends Elisha Joseph and Morris Blueford, and tackles Kadeem Custis and Brian Sanford.
Kamara, of Newark, N.J., leads the unit in tackles with 40, and Robinson is tops in tackles for losses with 10. The powerful Neblett is in the middle of all the chaos in the trenches.
"I love it," said Neblett, who is from Rahway (N.J.) High. "I played running back and fullback in high school, and my coach told me I was going to go down to the D-line as I put weight on."
Wilkerson, a mountain of a young man from Linden, N.J., with no apparent body fat, has come up with three sacks altogether and five tackles for losses.
"What has made me get to the quarterback so much this year is the push of the defensive tackles," Robinson said. "A lot of it was because of them."
Temple will need its defensive line to be at its best against an Akron team that has run the ball on 268 plays and passed 258 times.
The Zips use multiple running backs, who are averaging 105 yards a game combined. Akron rushed for 168 yards and two touchdowns last week, but coach J.D. Brookhart is aware that his team's running game faces a challenge against Temple.
"This is the best defensive line in the conference, and I've talked to other coaches, and they say the same thing," Brookhart said.
Temple at Akron
Tonight at 8:30, InfoCision Stadium, Akron, Ohio.
TV/Radio: ESPNU; WPHT-AM (1210).
Records: Temple, 7-2, 5-0 Mid-American Conference; Akron, 2-7, 1-4.
Coaches: Temple, Al Golden (fourth season, 17-28); Akron, J.D. Brookhart (sixth season, 29-40).
Series: Temple leads, 11-7.
Contact staff writer Kevin Tatum at 215-854-2583 or ktatum@phillynews.com.
