Former Big East also-ran Temple on future slate
AAC commissioner says schools will meet in 2020, 2023.
CORAL GABLES — Miami gets a little taste of the former Big East every year when it faces Pittsburgh and Virginia Tech, who compete with the Hurricanes in the ACC’s Coastal Division. Sometimes, the schedule includes a Big East alum from the Atlantic side, like Syracuse or Boston College.
The Hurricanes will add another dash of Big East to their diet in 2020 and 2023.
American Athletic Conference Commissioner Mike Aresco said Tuesday during the league’s media days that Temple, a former Big East doormat now chugging along in the AAC, will play Miami in a future football series.
The series, yet to be announced by either school, would have Temple visiting Hard Rock Stadium in 2020 and the Hurricanes playing in Philadelphia in 2023.
The Owls, on the minds of many South Florida football fans for being Al Golden’s pre-Miami coaching stop, was a sad-sack program in the old Big East days. UM is 13-1 all-time against Temple and won 13 straight from 19922005 — by an average margin of 34 points. The teams didn’t play in 2004.
Temple’s only win against Miami came in 1930, a 34-0 win in Philadelphia.
From 2006-10, Golden made one of the worst pro- grams in FBS into a bowl squad. Steve Addazio (Boston College) and Matt Rhule (Baylor) used Temple as a springboard to bigger jobs. Geoff Collins takes over a program with higher expectations than ever, one coming off back-to-back 10-4 finishes.
Mid-major home-and-home series have become something of a trend for Miami, which seems like a way to play a reasonably competitive opponent and not have to pay for it.
Most teams, the Hurricanes included, pay “cupcake” opponents to visit, but as SB Nation explored, that can be a drain on finances. UM, a small private school which has struggled for years to raise athletic funds, has recently opted against eating more sugary treats. They aren’t too nutritious.
In recent years, the Hurricanes have played homeand-homes against out-ofstate Group of Five schools Cincinnati (2014-15), Arkansas State (2014) and Appalachian State (2016). This fall, they’ll visit Arkansas State (Sept. 9) and host Toledo (Sept. 23). Future games in that category: at Toledo (2018), vs. Temple (2020), vs. Appalachian State (2021) and at Temple (2023).
The Hurricanes don’t duck heavyweights, though.
Miami opens next season against LSU in Arlington, Texas; opens the 2019 season against Florida in Orlando, and has future home-andhome series with Michigan State (away 2020, home 2021) and Texas A&M (away 2022, home 2023).