<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=2Nmp5l_0vlZpW8t00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=2Nmp5l_0vlZpW8t00" width="678" height="381" ><figcaption>Temple allowed 417 rushing yards in its 42-14 loss to Army on Thursday night. | NILI SCHREIBMAN / THE TEMPLE NEWS</figcaption></figure>On the opening drive of Thursday’s game against Army, Temple quarterback Evan Simon launched a ball to wide receiver Antonio Jones for what appeared to be a 49-yard touchdown. But before the Owls could even celebrate, left tackle Diego Barajas was called for a holding and the points were wiped away, forcing Temple to punt the ball.Everything went downhill for Temple from there, and Army only needed three plays to get a stranglehold of the game. Slotback Noah Short took a rush 61 yards to the house to take the lead and the Black Knights never looked back. Army put the clamps down and Temple never recovered on the way to its fourth loss of the season.Temple (1-4, 0-2 American Athletic Conference) was pummeled by Army (4-0, 3-0 AAC) 42-14 Thursday night at Lincoln Financial Field. Army finished the game with 417 yards on the ground, the most that Temple has allowed all season.“We did everything out there today that warrants losing the ballgame,” said head coach Stan Drayton. “Just didn’t protect the quarterback very well today, got to figure that out. A lot of miscommunication going on out there.”The Owls entered Thursday’s game on a high note following a 19-point victory against Utah State on Sept. 21.The Owls prioritized starting fast after being forced to overcome double-digit deficits the previous two weeks but were unable to do so yet again.Simon attempted to get the offense churning on the second Owls drive. The unit held the ball for eight plays but only moved 26 yards and were forced to punt for the second straight drive of the game. Punter Dante Atton pinned the Black Knights at the 11-yard line and Temple had a chance to get a good field position if it could force a punt.Instead, Army capitalized on the sluggish Temple start by executing a methodical 13-play drive. The Black Knights marched 89 yards down the field in eight minutes to put Temple on the ropes. The AAC’s third-leading rushing quarterback Bryson Daily put an exclamation point on the drive with an eight-yard touchdown run to extend the Black Knights’ lead.The Owls were in prime position to get on the scoreboard in the second quarter. Army cornerback Jaydan Mayes muffed a punt and for a split second it looked like Temple was able to pounce to have the ball in the red zone. However, officials declared that Army came out of the dog pile with the ball after review.Temple held the Army offense in check for the rest of the half after Daily’s touchdown run. The next two Black Knight drives resulted in punts. However, the offense was unable to help, with every drive ending in a punt. “We’re just going to continue to trust the staff and and do what they tell us,” Simon said. “ At the end of the day, it’s the players. It’s not the coaches. It’s the little details that we’re not able to do all the time, that’s leading us to losing by four scores.”After missing the first four games, linebacker Diwun Black made his return and nearly gave Temple the break they needed with 11 seconds remaining before halftime. Black strip-sacked Daily but it was later overturned and ruled an incomplete pass. Temple went into the locker room being outgained by 133 yards but was within striking distance, only down 14 points.Any source of offensive production Temple had in the first half was zapped coming out of the break. Simon came into the game tied for second in the AAC in passing touchdowns but had just two Thursday. Wide receiver Dante Wright continued to be a security blanket for whoever has been under center, finishing with eight catches for 98 yards and the Owls’ first touchdown in the third quarter.The Owls’ rushing attack vanished against the Black Knights. Following two straight games of more than 100 yards on the ground, Temple sputtered for negative five rushing yards against the 16th-best rushing defense.“We had to take shots, we had to take the pressure off,” Drayton said. “You’re not running football, just trying to take the pressure off the front by trying to threaten them deep.Army, on the other hand, had its way with Temple’s defense and attempted to quickly put the game out of reach. The Owls’ heads were left spinning against the Black Knights’ potent triple-option offense. Daily scored again when running back Kanye Udoh strolled into the endzone to extend the Army lead to 28 in the third quarter.Temple attempted to crawl out of the 28-point hole with Simon threw touchdown passes on back-to-back drives, but the feeling was quickly dashed after Daily scored his third touchdown of the game. Simon attempted to lead a third straight touchdown drive but his pass found the mits of Mayes instead, seemingly closing the door on any comeback happening.After scoring 65 points in the previous two games, the Owls were held in check by the nation’s eighth-best scoring defense. Simon finished with 224 yards but was heavily pressured in the pocket and was sacked seven times against an Army defense that came into the game searching for its first sack.“Credit to Army. Everyone will tell you they were the better team today,” Simon said. “They’re a physical team. They play hard, and we just didn’t play as well as we could of.”The Owls will hit the road after a three-game homestand to play UConn (2-2, 0-0 Independent) on Oct. 5 at 3:30 p.m.</div></body>

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Temple brought back to earth in loss to Army

On the opening drive of Thursday’s game against Army, Temple quarterback Evan Simon launched a ball to wide receiver Antonio Jones for what appeared to be a 49-yard touchdown. But before the Owls could even celebrate, left tackle Diego Barajas was called for a holding and the points were wiped away, forcing Temple to punt the ball.