Fall Previews 11 of 63: Temple

Temple:

Head Coach: Matt Rhule (8-16)
2014 Record: (6-6, 4-4/6th American)
Basic Offense: Pro Spread
Basic Defense: 4-3
Starters Returning: 21
Starters Returning: 21 (7 offense, 10 defense, 4 specialist)
Starters Lost: 5 (4 offense, 1 defense, 0 specialist)

Offense: 

P.J. Walker

The Owls have the advantage heading into 2015 of a signal caller with experience in junior P.J. Walker (203-381/2,317/13TD passing, 106/324/3TD rushing). The Manning Award Watch List member has made 19 starts in his first two seasons as starter and will bring a sense of calmness to the Temple offense. Walker was the second leading rusher and leading passer for the Owls in 2014 and will be a key player for the upcoming season. Behind Walker is a battle for the backup spot with junior John Loughery and sophomore Tim DiGiorgio both looking to earn a spot behind the junior starter this fall.

At running back, the Owls must get something positive out of a group that combined for only 692 yards and one touchdown in 2014. Junior Jahad Thomas (80/384/0TD) is the leader in the clubhouse and was recently named to the Doak Walker and Hourning Watch Lists. His ability to be a key player in the passing game with 14 catches for 364 yards and one touchdown sets him one step above the rest of the running back stable. Senior Jamie Gilmore (56/229/1TD) was the team's fourth leading rusher in 2014 and should combine with Thomas for a solid duo. Redshirt sophomore Zaire Williams (7/17/0TD) and redshirt freshman David Hood (11/62/0TD) also expect to give the Owls depth in the backfield this fall. Redshirt sophomore Eric Neefe is the only fullback listed on the roster and could see the field on special teams and maybe a few plays on offense.

The Owls do not expect much out of the tight end position in the passing game in the pro spread offense but saw redshirt junior Colin Thompson (11/98/0TD) and redshirt senior Saledeem Major (3/21/0TD) show flashes of skill throughout the season. Redshirt sophomore Cole Boozer (1/5/0TD) was the only other tight end to make a catch in the 2014 season with a single 5-yard catch. It doe seem that the Owls want to put more focus on the tight end position in the future with two redshirt freshman, Chris Myarick and Kip Patton as well as true freshman Alex Carling part of an expanded position group for 2015.

John Christopher

For a team that had a total of 214 receptions for 2,408 yards and 13 touchdowns on the season, losing 53 catches, 730 yards, and six touchdowns is tough to replace. That is the case for the Owls in 2015 with only senior John Christopher (24/194/0TD) a reliable player heading into the upcoming season. Christopher has played in 35 total games with 20 starts during his career with Temple. His 20 starts are more than the rest of the wide receiver corp combined. Senior Brandon Shippen (12/165/1TD) made nine starts for the Owls in 2014 after previously playing on defense. He is a raw player that should show significant improvement in 2015 after making only 12 catches last fall. Redshirt junior Romond Deloatch (14/169/3TD) has the size to go up can get passes up for grabs but has to show he has the overall skills to be a wide receiver and not just a red zone threat. Keith Kirkwood (4/69/1TD), a transfer from Hawaii and sophomore Broadrich Yancy (6/35/0TD) took steps forward in 2014 and will be depended upon with not much depth at all in the receiver corps. Speedy Derrek Thomas should be able to finally see some playing time and has the ability to be a quality deep threat for the Owl offense if he can earn time on the playing field this fall.

Kyle Friend

The biggest reason for hope heading into the 2015 season for the Temple offense is that the offensive line is extremely experienced this fall. The offensive line play starts in the middle with Rimington Award Watch List member Kyle Friend (33 career starts) back for his senior year. The 6-2, 305 pounder has been a staple for the Owls at center for his entire career and could end up with 45-47 starts for his career depending on how the season goes. At the guard slots, senior Shahbaz Ahmed (13 career starts) will man the left side and junior Brendan McGowan (13 career starts) will man the right side. Both are large individuals in the 6-3, 300 pound and have to show improvement and an ability to stay healthy in 2015 to keep the line cohesive. Redshirt sophomores Brian Carter (1 career OL start) at 6-3, 309 pounds and Semaj Reed (1 career start) at 6-6, 305 pounds will push the starting duo to their limits and it would not be a huge surprise to see either backup find a spot as a starter before the season is over. Redshirt senior Eric Lofton (12 career starts) may be fourth on the offensive line in career starts but has seen playing time in 25 career games and should be able to start all 12 games again at right tackle again in 2015. At left tackle, redshirt sophomore Leon Johnson (1 career start) will be moving outside after seeing his playing time in 2014 at the left guard position. He is another massive individual at 6-6, 320 pound and if he can show the finesse to play left tackle, he could be a highly sought after player in the 2017 NFL draft. Senior Julio Derosier and redshirt sophomore Adrian Sullivan should see some playing time as backups.

Defense:

Praise Martin-Oguike

It is very rare for a team with a defense as good as Temple was in 2014 to return so much talent for the upcoming season. The Owls return 73 career starts from eight different players and have the ability to realistically go nine deep in the trenches. Senior defensive tackle Matt Ioannidis (46 tkl, 11 tfl, 3.5 sacks) led the defensive line in tackles and tackles for loss and was just a massively disruptive force in the middle of the defense. Fellow senior Hershey Walton (32 tkl, 4.5 tfl) is a monster in the middle at 6-4, 314 pounds, forcing the opposition to double team him and leave the linebackers freedom to make tackles. Junior Averee Robinson (8 tkl, 1.5, tfl, 1.5 sacks) and redshirt freshman Freddie Booth-Lloyd should work their way into the rotation in the middle to give breaks to the starting duo. At one defensive end spot, redshirt junior and Lombardi Award Watch List member Praise Martin-Oguike (36/9.0/7.5) had a big year in 2014 and is expected to be even better this fall with his weight up to 255 while still showing great quickness. Junior Sharif Finch (35 tkl, 7.5 tfl, 2 sacks) will start on the other side for the extremely deep and strong defensive line. Redshirt junior Avery Ellis (20/4.5/2.0) and sophomore Jacob Martin (13/1.5/0.0) should be more than capable backups. Brandon Chudnoff (8/1.5/1.5), Haason Reddick (23/7.0/1.5), and Jullian Taylor (4/1.5/1.0) all have the ability to work into the defensive line rotation.

Tyler Matakevich

At linebacker, Temple returns one of the best in the nation with senior Tyler Matakevich (117 tkl, 10.5 tfl, 1.5 sacks). Matakevich is on the Butkus Award Watch List, Lombardi Award Watch List, Bronko Nagurski Award Watch List, and Bednarik Award Watch List and is the only linebacker returning in 2015 with over 300 tackles. The senior weakside linebacker have made 30 starts and should be in the running for AAC Defensive Player of the Year. At the strong side linebacker spot, redshirt junior Avery WIlliams (34 tkl, 3.5 tfl, 1 sack) should be ready to take over the full time starting spot after making six starts in 2014. At 5-10, 200 pounds, he is undersized but should be able to hold his own this fall. Middle linebacker could get a bit confusing as 2014 starter Nate D. Smith (71 tkl, 2 tfl) is currently listed on the defensive line with junior Jarred Alwan (24 tkl) looking to take over the position. Either or both could see playing time at middle linebacker but it will be interesting to see how Smith is used this fall after making 27 career starts for the Owls. Redshirt junior Stephaun Marshall (31 tkl, 2 tfl, 2 sacks) is listed as the backup to Matakevich but is realistically the backup at all three linebacker spots and will see significant playing time this fall. Redshirt freshman Jared Folks, senior Michael Felton (16 tkl, 2 tfl), sophomore Rob Ritrovato (2 tkl), and redshirt junior Rob Dvoracek should all be able to contribute this fall.

Sean Chandler

In addition to the experience in the linebacker corps, the Owls are looking good in the secondary with a pair of excellent cornerbacks ready to build upon very good 2014 seasons. Senior Tavon Young (23 tkl, 4 INT) was a shut down cornerback and did a very good job in eliminating a side of the field from the passing game. On the other side, sophomore Sean Chandler (69 tkl, 3 tfl, 1 sack, 1 INT) was the leading tackler in the secondary as a freshman and should be able to put himself in all-conference talks. Senior Khiry Lucas (10 tkl, 1 INT) and 4-start true freshman Kareem Ali will be fighting for playing time with Ali expected to see playing time in nickel and dime defensive formations. The two returning safeties for the Owls had a combined 96 tackles in the 2014 season. Both are seniors and very talented with the ability to clean the middle of the defensive backfield. Will Hayes (45 tkl, 1.5 tfl) will be able to help with the run and pass defense and should be an excellent addition at strong safety. Backup Armire Boye is a bit of an unknown but the coaching staff has high expectations for the senior.At free safety, Alex Wells should be able to add to his 51 tackles in 2014 with backup Nate L. Smith ready to play as well after showing skill in his playing time last fall.

Special Teams: 

Sophomore kicker Austin Jones found a role as a walk-on in 2014 and led the team with 69 total points including 30-30 on PATs and 13-22 on field goal attempts. The Orlando, Florida native will not be given the job as redshirt senior Tyler Mayes was 2-2 on field goal attempts and could see some playing time. Junior Jim Cooper is a straight up kickoff specialist for the Owls with 60 kickoffs and 12 touchbacks in 2014. He was the only kicker to even attempt a kickoff last fall. Punting duties will fall to sophomore walk-on Alex Starzyk. The 6-3, 213 pound punter finished the season with an astonishing 70 punts and a respectable 38.4 yards per punt average. Seven punts went over 50 yards.

Overall:

At 6-6 last fall, the Owls were a bit of an aberration with an offense that was plainly not very good but saved by a defense that was one of the best in the country. If the Owls didn't make such significant strides defensively in 2014, it could have easily been a 2-10 or 3-9 type of season. If they had even an average offense last fall, the Owls could have been 9-3 or better. Basically, the defense returns quite a bit from 2014 and should again be excellent but the offense has to look like a FBS offense to give the Owls a shot at a bowl this fall.

Temple starts the season with a visit from in-state rival Penn State for the season opener on September 5. This game will be a low scoring affair with the Nittany Lions ranking 7th nationally with only 18.6 points allowed per game while Temple was 4th nationally at 17.5 points per game. I don't see any scenarios in which Temple can outscore Penn State and will start the season 0-1. The Owls then start a two game stretch on the road with trips to Cincinnati and Massachusetts to end the month of September. Temple will struggle with the high scoring Bearcat offense can will have the same issue as in the Penn State game, an inability to score a reasonable number of points to win. UMass would have been an east win if we were heading into the 2014 season but this Minutemen squad can score in bunches when they get rolling. At 0-2 and on the road, the trip to UMass is a make or break moment Temple and a game they must win. Expect the defense to do just enough to win in pulling out their first win of the season.

October means a bit of a break as Temple can flex their muscles in a trip to FBS newbie Charlotte followed by a visit from AAC cellar dweller Tulane. Both of those games should be easy wins for the Owls and allow them to break .500 on the season for the first time at 3-2. Another make or break stretch for Temple starts on October 17 with a visit from Central Florida. The Owls do not match up well with the Knights and I cannot see this game going any differently than in last season's UCF win. Following that loss is a visit to an East Carolina team with revenge on their mind. Temple upset the Pirates 20-10 last fall with East Carolina ranked in the top 25 nationally so this should be a fun game. On the road versus a hungry ECU team is too much to handle and the Owls fall to 3-4. Wanting to get back to .500, the Owls will have a tough time on Halloween with a visit from Notre Dame. This game does not seem like a very good matchup for the Owls and it looks like a third straight loss for Temple is in the cards.

The Owls should be favored in the next two games versus South Florida and SMU, which would put them back at .500 heading into late November. A visit from Memphis is winnable but the Tigers are very talented and have learned to play very good football under the current coaching staff. While a loss to Memphis would hurt, the Owls can still salvage a .500 record with what should be an easy win over UConn to go 6-6 again. Best case scenario: the offense is much better and Temple beats Cincy, ECU, and Memphis and goes 8-4. Worst case scenario: the offense doesn't get better and Temple loses to UMass and South Florida and goes 4-8. Prediction: 6-6.