Temple football notes: CB Christian Braswell makes the most of his second career start

Temple redshirt sophomore Christian Braswell knew mid-week that he would be making his second career start at cornerback and he was more than up for the challenge.

Braswell was starting in place of senior Linwood Crump, who suffered a hand injury during practice and had surgery on Friday, according to coach Rod Carey. It is not known how long Crump will be sidelined.

Braswell more than held his own during Saturday’s 20-17 win over No. 21 Maryland at Lincoln Financial Field.

“I felt comfortable out there,” Braswell said.

It looked it.

Even though he was credited with just one tackle, Braswell was solid in coverage. Maryland quarterback Josh Jackson, who threw seven TD passes in his first two games, completed just 15 of 38 passes for 183 yards, one touchdown, and one interception against the Owls.

What made the win more special for Braswell was that he is from Washington, D.C. and knows many of the Maryland players. He was greeting many after the game.

“I know a lot of players on the team and knew the tendencies they have,” he said. “It felt good to be able to contribute so much to this win.”

In addition to losing Crump, Temple was without corner Ty Mason for the first half after he was ejected for targeting during the second half of Temple’s opening win over Bucknell.

The other starter opposite Braswell, junior Harrison Hand, led Temple with 10 tackles. He also had an interception and one pass break-up.

Hand is a junior transfer from Baylor via Cherry Hill West who has made an immediate impact in the Owls secondary.

He said facing a Maryland team that averaged 71 points in its first two wins provided plenty of incentive.

“It is very motivating,” Hand said. “All week they were talking about putting up 63 [points against Syracuse]. We know what type of defense and coach we have and we weren’t worried about that.”

Receiver Randle Jones missed the game due to an unspecified injury. … Redshirt sophomore defensive tackle Ifeanyi Maijeh, who had three tackles for loss, including two sacks, left the game with under four minutes left in the fourth quarter and didn’t return. After the game, he said he was fine and was just suffering from cramps.

Redshirt sophomore receiver Jadan Blue has more than 100 receiving yards and one touchdown in each of the first two games. He caught 10 passes for 117 yards and a touchdown in the opening 56-12 win over Bucknell. In Saturday’s win over Maryland, he had five receptions for 132 yards, including a 79-yard scoring pass.

Temple will visit Buffalo in Saturday’s 3:30 p.m. game. Last year, Buffalo beat the Owls, 36-29, at Lincoln Financial Field.