Temple’s late rally came up just short as the Owls couldn’t overcome Navy’s dominant ground game in a 31-24 loss in their home opener at Lincoln Financial Field Saturday afternoon.
The Owls (1-1) allowed the Midshipmen (1-1) to rack up a whopping 487 yards rushing in their first defeat of the season.
Despite its run defense getting gashed, Temple still had a chance to tie things up in the game’s final seconds.
Turning point
Temple’s defense bent but finally didn’t break in the final minutes, forcing Navy into a 43-yard field goal attempt by kicker Nick Sloan that sailed wide right.
The Owls took over on downs with 2:08 remaining and marched down the field, converting on three separate fourth downs to give themselves a chance to tie the game.
On a crucial 2nd-and-10 from the Midshipmen’s 31-yard line with half a minute left, Temple quarterback P.J. Walker couldn’t find anyone open and scrambled for seven yards. However, with the Owls out of timeouts the clock continued to wind as they got set for one final play. With all of his receivers blanketed once again, Walker tried to run his way in for the game-tying score only to get crunched at the 10-yard line and fumble to end the game.
Big man on campus
The Owls simply had no answers for Navy’s option attack led by quarterback Keenan Reynolds.
The junior QB read Temple’s defense perfectly all game (outside of a fumble on a pitch during Navy’s first offensive play). He knew exactly when to give the ball to the fullback, when to dish it out to the split backs and when to keep it himself.
Reynolds finished the game with 173 yards rushing on 21 attempts and two touchdowns before exiting with a right knee injury in the fourth quarter.
Numbers game
• Temple is now 3-7 in its last 10 home openers.
• Navy had six players average at least 6.0 yards per carry.
• After coming up with seven turnovers in their season-opening win over Vanderbilt, the Owls remained opportunistic Saturday. They recorded three fumble recoveries against the Midshipmen.
• Walker finished the game 29 of 49 for 240 yards with two TDs and one interception.
• Reynolds was a modest 4 of 8 for 30 yards in the game.
• The Midshipmen won the time of possession battle, 36:05 to 23:55.
History
With the loss, Temple fell to 5-6 in the all-time series that dates back to 1988.
Prior to Saturday’s matchup, the two programs had not played since 2009. That one will be remembered for then-Temple freshman and current Baltimore Ravens running back, Bernard Pierce, rushing for 267 yards in a 27-24 Owls win in Annapolis. Pierce also had two touchdowns in that win, which made the Owls bowl eligible for the first time since 1990.
Surely the nearby Ravens got an up close look at that performance before selecting Pierce in the third round of the 2012 NFL draft.
What’s next?
Temple heads into a bye week before returning to Lincoln Financial Field on Sept. 20 to face Delaware State.
Navy remains on the road next Saturday when the Midshipmen travel to take on Texas State.