Owls are chasing another bowl bid
COLLEGE FOOTBALL RANKINGS: NO. 50 TEMPLE
Temple’s inaugural campaign under Geoff Collins was a bit bumpy at times.
The Owls struggled offensively during the first half of the season before heating up after a change at quarterback. The team would go on to win three of its final four regular-season games to qualify for the program’s third consecutive bowl game for the first time in school history.
The team hopes to capitalize on that late-season momentum and is No. 50 in Orlando Sentinel college insider Matt Murschel’s preseason 2018 college football rankings. Murschel ranked all 129 Football Bowl Subdivision teams in the country. The Sentinel staff takes a closer look at a new team daily, counting backward from No. 129 to our projected No. 1 team.
7 Temple
Geoff Collins (7-6, entering second season; 7-6 overall)
7-6, 4-4 in the American Athletic Conference, third in East Division
After backto-back 10-win seasons under Matt Rhule, there was some trepidation whether the program could continue its upward trajectory under first-year coach Collins. While a conference crown wasn’t in the cards, Temple seemed to figure out its offensive identity halfway through last season.
QB Frank Nutile, RB Ryquell Armstead, OL Matt Hennessy, OL Vincent Picozzi, WR Isaiah Wright, DT Dan Archibong, LB Shaun Bradley, DB Linwood Crump, DT Michael Dogbe, LB Sam Franklin, DB Delvon Randall
Quarterback Frank Nutile, who stepped in to replace struggling starter Logan Marchi after he went down with an ankle injury, flourished in the role, helping the Owls to win four out of their final six games. Nutile also was named MVP of the Gasparilla Bowl.
Despite injuries, Ryquell Armstead finished second on the team in rushing yards (604) behind fellow senior David Hood. Hood took advantage of a much larger role in 2017 to put together a career-best year with 638 yards and five touchdowns.
Collins and his staff must replace a handful of players who were all-conference selections last season, including defensive linemen Sharif Finch and Jacob Martin.
Temple also must make up for the loss of its top two receiving targets from last season in Adonis Jennings (742 yards) and Keith Kirkwood (671 yards).
The Owls return several key pieces on both sides of the football but must learn to win away from Philadelphia, especially with road contests against Power 5 opponents in Maryland and Boston College as well as AAC powers Navy, UCF and Houston.