December
​Root of it
Mediocre QB
Bandwagon?
Get a grip
Real McCoy
Pick a Chip

November
​Crazy train
Hysteria
Lose nothing
Just a stunt
Time to bail
Bullet dodge

October
​Kid gloves
Where next?
Never dull
A little D
Blame-free QB

September
​Coach Improv
Retiring kind
Who they are
No big deal
Fine in time
Falcons recap
Show starts
Number game
Bye, Barkley
Tebowmania

August
​Bowl, right?
Wake me
Injury concerns
Shut up
Unnecessary
Still preseason
It matters?
Opportunity
Some baggage
Birds chatter
Play new card
Tying knot?
Feeling sorry​

48
​Kelly's games as head coach

26
​Kelly's wins in regular season

21
Kelly's losses in
regular season

0
Kelly's wins in
postseason

1
Kelly's losses in
​postseason

​27.6
​Eagles scoring average in
Kelly's 1st year

29.6
​Eagles scoring average in
​his 2nd year

22.8
​Eagles scoring average in
​his 3rd year

14-4
​Nick Foles record as his starting QB

Didn’t think he had it in him.

With all the hemming, hawing, rationalizing, excuse-making, another-chance-to-make-things-right-granting that has been the signature touch to Jeffrey Lurie’s rein as Eagles owner when dealing with the men he placed in charge of running his team’s on-field activities, Tuesday night’s pronouncement that he had relieved Chip Kelly of his duties seemed so out of character.

Not wrong. Not bad. Just, well, different.

“Good” different, if anything, too.

Having created a pattern of falling head over heels for the football acumen of Ray Rhodes and Andy Reid and then struggling to move past some serious man-crushin’ on each when, clearly, the time to do so had come and gone long before, Lurie seemed to be set for another ’til death do we part tryst with his most recent head coach, especially after entrusting the latter to have full control over personnel.

The gushing he did over Kelly was enough to cause some blushing, especially for any self-aware individual within earshot who may have had an inkling or two that, “Umm, OK, we get it, you like the guy. You can cool your jets a little now.”

So the fact he was able to pull the plug on his latest “hero” so soon and so swiftly comes as a surprise.

A nice surprise.

If Kelly’s arrogance was enough to turn off Lurie somewhat, and his insistence on not surrendering any of his unwarranted power fueled the owner’s fire and led to his release, then hallelujah and praise be to the football gods … and sanity.

Not for nothing, but never got the Chip worship. His hiring in the first place, an almost sneaky, slimy exhibition in which two sides of shysters opted to unite while leaving a school and another coaching candidate in the lurch, had all the earmarks of an uninformed, caught-up-in-the-hoopla ode to hyperbole and hype.

Kelly was the trendy pick. The hot commodity. The “gotta have him” option. Even at the expense of common sense and decency. Never mind that he had been handed the keys to an elite sports car at the University of Oregon, already fully loaded and, even better, fully funded by Nike, and merely drove where just about any coach could have, Kelly was the “it” guy. A genius. A once-in-a-lifetime Xs and Os prodigy the likes of which had never been unearthed before.

Puh-leeze …

Kudos to Gus Bradley landing in Jacksonville and building, albeit slowly, what appears to be a quality, young team, and Oregon’s football program continuing to succeed and reach another national title game two years after Kelly’s departure.

While those entities got squared away elsewhere, Philly got treated to the Kelly experience, where substance took a spot in the trunk while rapid-fire BS blathering and anal-retentive control freakishness battled it out for the front seat.

Win? Hah, who cares about that … as long as the team was doing things Chip’s way, in every way, that’s all that mattered.

Lacking personality and just the everyday sensibility to try to connect with those around him as human beings instead of labeling them as products in his assembly-line mind, you kinda figured his act would implode at some point. Be it here or someplace else. At least some of us did.

Those who automatically assume Kelly will succeed elsewhere are failing to get a clear picture. At Oregon, he was placed in a great situation and reaped the benefits. With the Eagles, he inherited some serious talent and benefitted from two “winning” stretches by Nick Foles, a 7-1 surge to end the 2013 regular season and a 6-2 start to kick off the 2014 campaign, that yielded a pair of 10-6 records and the Great Mind’s determination that a near-complete upheaval of the roster was needed to reach another level.

Well, he got it … a 6-9 plunge into the NFL abyss this season, a fall so dramatic and laced with so much drama that it actually got Lurie’s attention, to the point the owner actually realized change was needed and, even more important, was driven to act on that.

Lurie, frankly, created this mess. He’s the one who supposedly sweet-talked Kelly into taking the gig and not only pulled the trigger on it, but eventually removed anyone in Kelly’s path to attain absolute power.

It was silly on his part, and a lesson he should have learned when he gifted Reid much the same and the team’s demise soon followed.

That being said, Lurie, this time, recognized the error of his ways … and didn’t drag his feet in correcting the problem.

​Thankfully.

​- Jack Kerwin  |  ydkjack1@gmail.com
​

The names will flow for this opening, with the never-ending run-off of the usual candidates bandied about by fans and media, such as Jon Gruden, Bill Cowher, Brian Billick, Tony Dungy and the rest of that ilk. Here, we’ll try to offer a few names that seem more likely to be in the mix.

SEAN McDERMOTT
Panthers defensive coordinator
Former DC here who followed Ron Rivera to Carolina and has flourished the last four seasons in the same position. Put in a difficult position with the Eagles before, taking over for Jim Johnson following his death, McDermott (pictured above) does carry a bit of an asterisk with his recent success since the talent level he has at his disposal in Charlotte is far beyond what is here.

ADAM GASE
Bears offensive coordinator
He, apparently, is the hot assistant coach at the moment, in large part because Peyton Manning thinks so highly of him and hated to see him leave Denver for Chicago. The fact Jay Cutler showed marked improvement, especially with his patience and willingness to make the safer throw, under Gase’s watch this fall does nothing to hurt his chances.

JIM HARBAUGH
Michigan head coach
Yeah, yeah, no college coaches for the Eagles this time around, right? Only Harbaugh comes with big-time NFL experience AND success, having racked up a 49-22-1 record, three NFC title-game appearances and a Super Bowl appearance with San Francisco. The fact he has taken the Wolverines from a dumpster fire right back to the elite ain’t too shabby, either.

DAVID SHAW
Stanford head coach
The former wideout for the Cardinal has led his alma mater to a 53-14 mark and three Pac-12 titles since taking over in 2011, and supposedly is quite happy where he is. But he also has nine years’ experience as an NFL assistant, including one as a quality control coach for the Eagles. He happens to be the only minority on this list, which may appeal to Lurie.

MATT RHULE
Temple head coach
May seem a stretch for him to even be considered, but getting Temple out of a black hole and putting it front and center on a national stage in just three seasons is no small task. Plus, he has NFL experience as well, albeit just a one-year stint with the Giants before taking the gig with the Owls. Being in town already, and having professed his love for it, helps.​

Wildcard
PAT SHURMUR
Interim Eagles head coach
Wouldn’t be my choice, especially since it was his rudimentary passing attack, not Chip Kelly’s, that the Birds have utilized since his return to Philly in 2013. But there can be something said for continuity and familiarity, and perhaps just having Kelly out of the mix is all this team really needed moving forward. Seems unlikely, but maybe it is.

It remains the best sport to me.

The most fun, the most aesthetically pleasing, the most passionately followed for the goings on between the lines, not the betting lines.

Yet, somehow, in some way, college football is just not what it was for yours truly. Thirty years ago. Twenty years ago. Heck, five years ago.

Perhaps too much has changed in too short a time period.

Maybe all the continental shifting of conferences, the coaching hires and fires, the increasing number of transfers and early entries into the draft, the never-ending array of retina-bleeding uniforms created first by Oregon but now seemingly by countless teams across the country, has watered down the product or made it too confusing for an aging mind to follow.

Whatever the reason, or reasons, the sport, while still great, lacks what it seemed to have before.

Rivalries built on regional proximity, not sky-rocketing budgets.

Traditions built on history, not sneaker company-driven heresy.

Legends built on performance, not public relations campaigns.

Funny thing is, you’d figure the creation of a playoff system at the sport’s highest level – the Football Bowl Subdivision – would be the one shining symbol of improvement, the oasis to take old-timers, or middle-timers such as myself into a nice, cozy landing spot so we could maintain some semblance of that “happy place” we long associated with following the sport.

But, really, honestly, it’s been kind of a letdown. Like watching your team line up to go for it on fourth-and-1 during a crucial part of a game … only to realize it did so merely in a futile
​attempt to draw the defense offside in order to gain a first down by penalty.

The inaugural foursome of eventual champ Ohio State, Alabama, Florida State and Oregon certainly carried some street cred. But the games were nothing special, aside from awakening the rest of the nation to what Ohio State fans already knew about running back Ezekiel Elliott.

In Year 2 of the College Football Playoff, we actually have the classic David vs. Goliath scenarios set up in the semifinals. Nothing against Clemson or Michigan State, especially since they’re two of my favorite programs and have been for quite some time, but they don’t carry the same cachet as Oklahoma or Alabama – regardless of what the rankings say.

With that, it seems like it should be easy for an underdog lover to get on board and really be excited about what awaits on New Year’s Eve, and, hopefully, by then some of us get there. But, right now, meh.

It’s almost alarming. Wanted to go to Clemson. Love the school, even the school colors – yep, actually quite good with mixing orange with purple, or orange with anything, really. The state (South Carolina) is cool. The town is cute. The campus is gorgeous. The football stadium is spectacular, especially if you like that looking down from the heavens view.

Have followed the Tigers grid program since the days of Steve Fuller in the mid- to late-1970s. Watched Ohio State coach Woody Hayes uppercut a Clemson linebacker after the youngster intercepted a Buckeyes pass attempt to secure the 1978 Gator Bowl for the Tigers, and a victory for Danny Ford in his first game as their head coach. Three years later Ford was putting the finishing touches on a 12-0 season with a 22-15 victory Orange Bowl win against Nebraska to seal Clemson’s first and, so far, only national championship.

Remember watching some great players, such as Terry Kinard, William “The Refrigerator” Perry, Levon Kirkland and C.J. Spiller perform. Heck, even my second favorite player of all time for the Eagles, Brian Dawkins, starred there before truly blossoming in Philadelphia.

So, a connection … it’s there. With Clemson, no question, and, really, with Michigan State, too. Even admire the coaches for both programs as well.

But the interest in general, right now, is not … at least not what it should be, for the sport or its featured event.

​- Jack Kerwin  |  ydkjack1@gmail.com
​

AAC ... ouch
Arguably the biggest story this side of the power-5 outlets, the American Athletic Conference made major headway on the national scene during the regular season, having four teams earn spots in the top 25 at one point or another, three get off to 7-0 starts and one 10-0. An amazing eight member schools received bowl bids. Then the bowl season started, and, uhh … let’s just say the good words haven’t been spread any further. The circuit took an 0-for through the first five bowls its teams competed in before Navy finally got the AAC off the schneid with a convincing 44-28 victory against Pittsburgh of the ACC Monday afternoon in the Military Bowl. Memphis gets next crack at trying to wipe a little egg off the conference’s face, squaring off with SEC member Auburn in Wednesday’s Birmingham Bowl before AAC champ Houston takes on ACC member Florida State in the Peach Bowl on New Year’s Eve.

Win bowl, remain a loser
In direct contrast to the AAC’s plight, the Big Ten got even more of a boost to its already booming reputation this season as two of its 5-7 teams, Nebraska and Minnesota, not only got bowl bids, but actually showed up and won the damn games, looking pretty good in the process. Not sure how UCLA and Central Michigan try to sell the positives to their administrations and fan bases of going bowling and falling to teams that still have losing records, but, hey, this is the college football world we live in anymore.

Back on track
A couple years ago, Jeff Driskell appeared to be another highly touted high school player who somehow played himself out of the spotlight in college. But after bailing on Florida and the sinking ship run by then-Gators coach Will Muschamp, the youngster resurfaced at Louisiana Tech, played well during the season and then just absolutely lit it up in the New Orleans Bowl, throwing for 458 yards and three TDs in a blowout win against Arkansas State to play himself right back into the minds of NFL personnel peeps.
​
Strength in numbers
As good as the College Football Playoff semifinals hopefully will be on New Year’s Eve, they still might pale in comparison to the gridiron excellence likely to surface the next day as five bowls will take place with all ranked teams: No. 13 Northwestern vs. No. 23 Tennessee in the Outback Bowl, No. 14 Michigan vs. No. 19 Florida in the Citrus Bowl, No. 7 Ohio State vs. No. 8 Notre Dame in the Fiesta Bowl, No. 5 Iowa vs. No. 6 Stanford in the Rose Bowl, and No. 12 Ole Miss vs. No. 16 Oklahoma State in the Sugar Bowl.​

RELATED

Skip 'participation' awards
Temple LB earns accolades
Houston tops in the AAC
Illinois extends mediocrity
​SEC not nation's best now
How do you forget Florida?
Flood watch at Rutgers​​​​​

No Sham Sam
QB Sam Bradford, arguably, was as good as he’s been all season – which may not be saying a ton, but certainly enough to relieve him of any major responsibility for Saturday night’s 38-24 loss to Washington. Completing 37 of 56 passes, he threw for 380 yards and a TD … with no picks. Frankly, couldn’t even keep up with the amount of drops going on out there, either, so no telling how many completions and yardage he would have had with a competent receiving corps.

Yeah, Include Him
For all the raving about TE Zach Ertz busting out with a big effort and getting offensive player of the game honors, holy crap the kid drops an unconscionable amount of easy balls to handle. He was, without question, the Birds biggest offender of the “dropsies” against the Redskins in this one. Plus, he had a fumble. To me, he is major disappointment, even after 13-catch, 122-yard night, not a success story.

Say What?
How the hell Bradford got tagged for the fumble by DeMarco Murray that essentially sealed the deal in this one, since it was returned for a third-quarter score by Redskins DB DeAngelo Hall, is beyond me. The QB was spot on with his pitch to the veteran RB, placing it right on the latter’s fingertips. Was he supposed to hold Murray’s helmet in place to make sure the back kept his eyes on the ball as well instead of looking away before securing it? Ridiculous.

Furthermore
Head coach Chip Kelly getting crushed over the play call right there has some merit because, yeah, Murray had some success bursting up the middle on the previous series and this play called for an outside run. But the RB dropped the friggin’ ball, on a perfect pitch from Bradford. So we’ll never really know if the play was going to work or not.

LBs R Not Us
Not only has the trade for Kiko Alonso made Kelly, as GM, look foolish, but the Birds’ entire linebacking corps really … kinda … sucks. Even Connor Barwin, who has proven to be a front-line quality player not just here but previously in Houston, has done a major disappearing act this season on the field while seemingly being more concerned with earning NFL’s Man of the Year off of it.

They Are What They Are
For all the bluster about this year’s Eagles not meeting expectations, the real question is why were there any expectations? This was never a playoff team, and for those who think a play here or there, or game here or there made the difference, think again. The talent level is dreadful. Remember this: Kirk Cousins, who supposedly sucks, is better than Bradford. By a lot.

RELATED

​Stopping kidding yourself
​Bradford bandwagon?
​Perception of reality?
​Pick your Chip
Riding the Crazy Train​
Time to bail?
​​Lurie won't let Chip go

Actually impressed by the words emanating from Eagles fans.

Many of them. Heck, even some of the sportstalk yakkers in town, too. In the aftermath of another loss.
​
​Hard to believe.

The fact that they’re able to look beyond the obvious, in-your-face coaching and personnel options worthy of their ire and actually point the finger in a higher direction … well, it’s almost like being a member of Rudy’s family while watching him get out on the field at South Bend and, gasp, actually make a play for the Irish.

Seriously … are you kidding me? They get it, they realize the problem for a 6-9 squad whose consistent trademark is its inconsistency goes beyond the used-car salesmanship of the carpet-bagging head coach or any of his overpaid, underperforming hired guns? That it’s an organizational issue so basic and boring that it often eludes those trying to turn “simple” into “rocket science” stuff?

Almost brings a tear to the eye.

Much like the Eagles 2015 season, only for a different reason …

Thing is, there is plenty of blame to go around. No one on the team or the front office is immune from it. They all played a part, either by what they did or did not do. But it all starts from the top and cascades down.

Frankly, the problem didn’t just kick in this past offseason with the restructuring of a franchise into becoming Chip’s World. Nor did 2015’s descent start with the trades for Sam Bradford and Kiko Alonso or free-agent pickup of DeMarco Murray.

Nah, this goes back to the silly, non-practical, emotionally charged, buddy-system way that owner Jeffrey Lurie has run the Birds since taking over two decades ago.

It’s not so much that it’s bad business. It’s just not ultimately championship-winning business.

Ray Rhodes, Andy Reid and Chip Kelly, all were blessed with varying levels of administrative and coaching skills, with how to build and lead a team, and Lurie stretched the limits with each until they snapped … and with the first two he kept clinging onto each for far too long, displaying a massive case of either guy love or fear or change or some combo of the two.

The fear here is that will continue with Kelly, who should be gone the moment the final whistle blows next week in the Meadowlands.

The owner is not a rash decision-maker in a profession that requires not only constant evaluation, but improvement. That includes letting go personnel, even ones with the primo parking spot reserved for the head coach, when it becomes obvious it is time to let it go.

You know, it is one thing to have faith in your people and give them responsibility. It is quite another to bury them with a pile of their own ego because you’re as afraid of losing them as they are of not having complete control.
It’s sad. Kinda along the same lines of sad in sticking with whatever is “trendy.”

Rhodes was the hot NFL coordinator.

Reid was the out-of-the-box pick.

Kelly was the “just gotta have” college coach.

Ugh, spare me.

None of them were inherently bad choices. They all had their merits. Even Kelly. Perhaps even especially him.
But the amount of genuflecting at his supposed genius done in this town by, first and foremost, the Eagles’ owner and then everyone else associated with the club, through the time of his courting, hiring and through most of his first two seasons was insane.

Kelly, clearly, can succeed at coaching to some degree. His record, even in the NFL following an abysmal third season, proves that. However, he wasn’t the equal of Bear Bryant, Knute Rockne, Frank Leahy and Nick Saban as a college coach, never mind the combination of all he was touted as being.

The reality: Kelly inherited a very good Oregon program that already was a national one, and improved it.

Dramatically? No. The Ducks were a top-10 team the year before he took over; in fact they came in No. 7 (and then 11th after his first year as head coach). They also had finished second in the country within the same decade. By the time he left after four years running the show, they had peaked with ending a season at No. 2 again.

Yes, Oregon was a national power under Kelly. It also had an annoying knack for coming up short in its biggest games. Sound familiar?

Why that was ignored during the vetting process by the Birds remains a mystery. Or the fact he originally turned down the position but suddenly had renewed, last-second interest once the Infractions Police starting snooping around Eugene, Ore.

But he was the popular choice, and Lurie stayed his man-crush course … right through giving the guy total autonomy to essentially run the entire operation before starting even a third campaign in his NFL career.

No, Kelly ain’t the real problem. He’s a byproduct of it, and until it changes, the Eagles are always going to have a problem.

​- Jack Kerwin  |  ydkjack1@gmail.com

​RELATED

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Stadium issue brings 'Philly'
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​Gonna be tough to replace Rube

It’s the giving time of year.

So, in keeping with that spirit, how about we wish the best for everyone, and maybe a little something special for those who seem to need it on the Philadelphia sports scene?

Perhaps, say …

• Truth serum for the higher ups in the 76ers corporate conglomeration, so the likes of owner Josh Harris and even newly minted Yoda Jerry Colangelo, who was hired to oversee or overtake (your call) previously minted Yoda Sam Hinkie, can keep a dwindling fan base somewhat informed and, hence, engaged. Or even remotely interested.
• A roster list and neon-bright highlighter pen for Temple coach Matt Rhule, so he can quickly identify quality options not named “Jahad Thomas” to share with offensive coordinator Marcus Satterfield when it comes time to set the tone on offense or kickstart it when it is lifeless or on any fourth-and-short situation.
• A couple receivers with quality hands for Eagles quarterback Sam Bradford to have at his disposal, so we can legitimately end this debate of reality vs. excuses when it comes to judging arguably the most important figure in the city a good portion of each year.
• A personality for new Ruler of the Phillies Universe, Andy MacPhail, so he can cut back on the slow-talking, highfalutin snobbery that will distance the club from those who support it faster than any clueless moves or comments by former GM Ruben Amaro did.
• A spine for Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie, so he can actually pull the trigger on Chip Kelly as either coach, GM or altogether and not let another decade drift on by after an expiration date clearly passed.
• An interpreter for Sixers coach Brett Brown, so the rest of us can grasp the points he’s trying to make in some convoluted Boston accent mixed with big words.
• Reality checks for Flyers and Phillies fans, so they can be crystal clear that title runs will not be in the offing this year, next year, and even the one after.
• A football stadium on Temple’s campus for James Kenney, so the city’s new mayor-elect can have a blast explaining to constituents how he’s all about that school on North Broad.
• A retirement by the Fanatic’s Anthony Gargano for all, so his cheesy, cherubic and forced, if not phony, “Philly, cuz” intonations that come across the airwaves never have to pierce any ears again.

Merry Christmas, everyone.

​
​- Jack Kerwin  |  ydkjack1@gmail.com
​

In the end, it was a disappointment.

Not so much bitter as numbing. Just suck-the-life-outta-ya, pockets-empty numbing.

Nothing more than a game-ending, check-swing strikeout that followed a potential game-winning home run that drifted just foul. Or, in sticking with the correct sport, a failed two-point conversion with no time remaining after a Hail Mary pass had pulled your team within one.

Yes, Temple Football 2015 … we know you. We know you all too well.

Granted, there is plenty of merit to all the well-wishing and thank you’s directed at the Owls for their 10-4 campaign, an effort that yielded a victory against Penn State, a berth in the inaugural American Athletic Conference title game, a spot, for quite some time, mind you, in the Top 25, and a trip to Florida for the postseason.

But, really, with all that has been said and done now, following – let’s face it – a pretty lackluster showing earlier this week in the Boca Raton Bowl, what did it all mean?

Frankly, the “participation award” police were out in full force almost instantly following Tuesday night’s no-win situation ended in a 32-17 loss to Toledo, a quality team and program, but not one recognized as such by the masses, which, sadly, includes those determining the “haves” and “have-nots” in college football.

It was as if all the parents didn’t want poor little Temple to feel badly, that, aww shucks, it had everything to be proud of, because it really went out there and tried hard this season. It had been involved. Wow, imagine that.

Obligatory pat on the helmet, and “good job” to you, Temple.

Ugh, gimme a break.

The reality is, the Owls had a chance to really break through this season, to steal the spotlight from some “name” teams, to show it not only could hang with the best, but had the potential to be among the elite in the future – even if true fan support would be a long ways off in pro-centric Philly, its home base – and they, well, they did NOT do that. Not any of it.

Sorry, they didn’t.

The schedule set up wonderfully. Luck, good luck at that, was not a distant cousin, either, never to be seen as it had been previously. Running back Jahad Thomas emerged into a star, if only for half a season and probably at a position he is ill-suited for at this level in a power ground attack. Quarterback P.J. Walker proved much more efficient. Tyler Matakevich … well, he was his usual self: productive, constant, National Defensive Player of the Year impactful.

Oh, no doubt, the Owls had some great experiences, obviously highlighted by knocking off the Nittany Lions for the first time in 74 years and selling out Lincoln Financial Field twice, for that game and the Halloween evening affair against Notre Dame, and, for a time, they mastered the art of snatching victory from the jaws of defeat (see: Cincinnati, Massachusetts, East Carolina and, geez, even winless Central Florida). They also were the only team to shut down Memphis quarterback Paxton Lynch in an all-around, dominating late-season effort to top any other by the Cherry & White in 2015.

As noted above, they also reached the AAC championship, achieved national rankings and earned a bowl bid.
​
But they did nothing, or next to that, with any of those.

So, labeling this season a slam-dunk success, as so many concerned citizens out there are, all worried about the delicate egos of Matt Rhule and his players … well, that’s more of an insult to the head coach and his Owls than anything else.

Any athlete, or leader or athletes, worth their salt is not going to be satisfied with wasting opportunities, especially ones that were within their grasp.

• Setting a new school record with 11 wins, or, heck, even 12.
• Beating Notre Dame with the nation watching in prime time.
• Capturing the inaugural AAC championship crown.

All were attainable, and none were attained.

Twice the Owls were embarrassed. First against South Florida, as the Bulls’ superior team speed proved too much for a team still kinda unsettled after seeing an unbeaten season end two weeks prior to Notre Dame. In between, Temple was able to sleepwalk its way past Southern Methodist. But that wasn’t happening in Tampa, Fla., against a USF squad that had turned red hot and would torch preseason AAC favorite Cincinnati a week later.

In a way, that loss was almost acceptable. The Bulls have some serious talent, and, barring any unforeseen injuries or transfers, they’re going to be the conference’s best team next season.

The second undressing came against Toledo, and, no, that wasn’t along the same acceptable lines. Not when you had an extra week to prepare, even if all that time was spent getting over the letdown of receiving the worst bowl bid offered to an AAC squad out of the eight that were handed out.

Temple didn’t even show up the other night. It had checked out long before kickoff, probably the moment reality set in that it would be playing a team from the conference it had escaped, Mid-American, in order to get closer to the big time while seven fellow AAC members, including those it had beaten or proved to be superior than, got to play in better venues and against bigger “name” programs this bowl season.

The Owls performed accordingly, and the resulting defeat was appropriate, if not earned, capping a 3-4 fall from 7-0 grace to complete the season.

My apologies to the PC and positive-light crowd out there, but there is no reason – NONE – to celebrate Temple Football 2015 right now. Yes, of course, it was a good season overall. But it could have been so, so much more.

It was, ultimately, disappointing.

- Jack Kerwin  |  ydkjack1@gmail.com​

GAME 1: Penn State
Preview  |  Recap
Jahad Thomas 133 yards rushing

​GAME 2: Cincinnati
Preview  |  Recap
T. Matakevich 2 INT, 13 tackles

GAME 3: Massachusetts
Preview  |  Recap
P.J. Walker 391 yards passing

GAME 4: Charlotte
Preview  |  Recap
Nate L. Smith punt block TD

GAME 5: Tulane
Preview  |  Recap
Ryquell Armstead 2 TD rushing

GAME 6: Central Florida
Preview  |  Recap
Thomas 199 yards, 3 TD rushing

GAME 7: East Carolina
Preview  |  Recap
R. Anderson 126 yards receiving

GAME 8: Notre Dame
Preview  |  Recap
Owls took lead with 4:45 left

GAME 9: Southern Methodist
Preview  |  Recap
Jager Gardner 94-yard TD run

GAME 10: South Florida
Preview  |  Recap
Gave up 326 yards on ground

GAME 11: Memphis
Preview  |  Recap
Walker 261 yards, 2 TD passing

GAME 12: Connecticut
Preview  |  Recap
Clinched AAC East title with win

GAME 13: Houston
AAC Championship​
Preview  |  Recap
Anderson 150 yards receiving

GAME 14: Toledo
Boca Raton Bowl​
Preview  |  Recap​
Matakevich 12 tackles