College Football | OWLS GAMENIGHT

AROUND THE NATION

TRAP GAME
Obviously, Temple hosting Notre Dame is the biggest game on the American Athletic Conference slate this week, just as Memphis hosting Ole Miss was a couple weeks ago. That being said, fellow AAC unbeaten Houston isn’t exactly out of the woods this week, either, having the proverbial “umm, hello” game against an improving Vanderbilt squad. The Commodores may not be so special, but their D is, rating right up along Temple’s in points and yards allowed.

STILL ROARING
Penn State DE Carl Nassib leads the nation in sacks with 12.5 in eight games. The true beauty of his output, though, is in its consistency. The 6-foot-7, 272-pounder has registered at least one every week for the 6-2 Nittany Lions, who host my other alma mater – Illinois – today. It will be interesting to see where the former walk-on ends up going in the next NFL draft.

FEELING BLUE
North Carolina blue, that is. After losing their opener to South Carolina, the Tar Heels have ripped off seven straight wins, including Thursday’s 26-19 deal at No. 23 Pittsburgh. Their dynamic offensive trio of QB Marquise Williams, RB Elijah Wood and WR Ryan Switzer was on full display in that one, too. Perhaps now pollsters will be impressed enough to rank UNC.

THAT'S THE TICKET
Not surprised that No. 9 Notre Dame at No. 21 Temple is the highest-priced ticket of the day, starting at $324 on StubHub. But that number marking the most expensive seats thus far in the college football season kinda is. Wow, maybe the Owls already are big-time after all. FYI: The next most pricey today is No. 3 Clemson at North Carolina State.

For Temple to beat Notre Dame tonight in South Philadelphia, QB P.J. Walker will have to serve as the maestro to some special plays by the Owls' offense.

Temple’s What 2 Watch vs. Notre Dame
No. 21 Owls (7-0) vs. No. 9 Fighting Irish (6-1)
​LINCOLN FINANCIAL FIELD, TONIGHT, 8, ABC, 97.5 FM THE FANATIC

​1. Sh!t just got even more REAL
The more success you have, the more the stakes go up. Sorry, scaredy-cat Owls supporters clinging to this silly notion that there is “no pressure” on their team in this one, that’s reality … and, frankly, it’s a good sign. Means the program is progressing. More is demanded of it, more is expected from it. That’s the way of the world … if you want to be big-time. Which Temple, under the guidance of Matt Rhule, does. ESPN GameDay. National TV. Prime time. Sold-out stadium. Actual coverage from an insanely pro-centric Philly media. All at one time. Totally new experience for the Owls, and should they perform well or, for the non-believing faint of heart as well as the normal pooh-poohers, even – gasp – win, more of the same would occur. Everything that Temple has achieved up to this point, right or wrong, has been tied to this game. Everything after it will mean more or less, depending on what happens in this game. That’s reality.

2. Time to open it up AGAIN
RB Jahad Thomas has been a blessing who defies description this season. He not only has been the bell cow for the offense, but he’s given it something that had been sorely lacking – a bona fide threat that opposing defenses had to worry about every week. This week will be no different. In fact, ND’s sole focus on defense likely will be to shut down Thomas and the Owls’ ground game, making them a one-option attack. OK, fine. It’s time QB P.J. Walker put on a magic show anyway. He certainly has the physical tools to do so. The Owls attempted that somewhat last week, but the rust in Walker’s arm showed a little and in his receivers’ hands a lot. Down the stretch, though, he and they were “money” and sparked arguably the Owls’ greatest Houdini act to date in a final-minutes comeback win at East Carolina. A more consistent, if not persistent, aerial effort will be needed to beat the Irish.

3. Pass rush ... no messing around
The feast or famine cliché was made for such entities as Temple’s pass rush. The Owls either go-crazy, go-nuts there as they did against Penn State (10 sacks) or ECU (6) or they pretty much go in the tank as they did in every game other than those other two. The latter certainly isn’t going to fly against ND, not if they hope to have any chance at winning. Even if they can’t get to elusive QB DeShone Kizer, they better put serious pressure on him in order to disrupt the visitors’ passing game. DT Matt Ioannidis, more than any other game, will be crucial to the Owls’ efforts here. He has to collapse the pocket as much as possible with quickness and sheer strength to provide avenues for his linemates or blitzing LB Tyler Matakevich to get after Kizer.

4. Supporting actors need to star
Robby Anderson FINALLY came to the party last week … just in time. Without him stepping up late in the fourth quarter, Temple isn’t unbeaten heading into this game. A repeat performance, if not a better one, would be a good idea against Notre Dame, and not for nothing, but can Rhule get back to utilizing Ryquell Armstead again. The backup to Thomas is like a bull in a china shop … with bad intentions. Get that dude the ball a few more times and turn him loose. If only to have ND defenders get the heebie-jeebies a bit after trying to tackle him. Frankly, the John Christopher-to-Walker option pass is a nifty little cross-‘em-up play the Owls utilize well and likely will try again tonight. But how about actually using the kid in the passing game? For someone who is credited with very limited skills, Christopher seems to make more than his share of key catches at crucial junctures. He’s a player.

5. All-American needs to be Heisman-winning worthy
Gonna say it, because it’s about time … Matakevich is the best player to ever don a Temple uniform. That doesn’t mean he’ll be the best pro, or that he’s the most athletically gifted Owl of all time, but over the course of a college career, no one has been as consistently good and productive as the senior ’backer. Year in, year out, he has been THE defensive stalwart for Temple, and often its only defensive stalwart. Whether or not he sets a school record for tackles doesn’t even matter anymore. His presence, his timing, his knack for making the big play, for creating the turnover desperately needed takes him to a level rarely seen at any school. Last week, the Owls needed a massive effort from him in order to survive at Greenville, N.C. They got 13 tackles, a sack and an interception. Typical T-Mat. Unreal. All-American worthy. They need an even better performance from him this week. So don’t be surprised if they get one that actually has people then inserting him in Heisman discussions.

- Jack Kerwin  |  ydkjack1@gmail.com​