Coach Stan Drayton on Temple loss: ‘When it’s self-induced, you take it a lot harder’
Drayton was not happy with two defensive penalties that hurt the Owls' chances with the game in the balance against South Florida.
Temple coach Stan Drayton has built a reputation as a mild-mannered coach who rarely lets his emotions get the best of him. However, Drayton didn’t hold back Monday during his press conference following the Owls’ 27-23 loss to South Florida.
Drayton has mentioned several times this season that the Owls have not played 60 minutes of football, and he mentioned it again Monday. “What’s troubling is that we play well in spurts,” Drayton said. “Then there’s times we play God-awful in spurts.”
The Owls (3-7) still had an opportunity to pull out a victory on Saturday in Tampa, though.
With less than six minutes remaining in the game, the Bulls were faced with a third-and-12 from their own 23-yard line. USF quarterback Byrum Brown scrambled out of bounds well short of a first down. However, defensive lineman Zymir Cobbs hit Brown late, drawing a personal foul and awarding the Bulls a first down.
A question about Cobbs’ mistake led Drayton to point to a lack of situational awareness.
“Why would you do that?” Drayton said. “What in your mindset tells you that’s the smart thing to do?”
However, a question about defensive lineman Tra Thomas’ encroachment penalty later in the drive seemed to cause Drayton more frustration. “Key the frickin’ football,” Drayton said emphatically. “It’s not about the hard count. … You should know we’re going to get hard-counted.”
In a game when the Owls defense allowed zero second-half points, the two late-game penalties combined with a pick-6 thrown by E.J. Warner short-circuited chances for a victory.
Drayton and the Owls believed they were the better team Saturday afternoon, which made the loss hurt more than usual.
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“When it’s self-induced, you take [the loss] a lot harder.” Drayton said. “If you sit there and say, ‘We were just outmatched … they were better than us,’ no discredit to South Florida … in our mind that was not the case.”
With the loss, Temple became ineligible for a bowl game for a second straight year, but the team’s approach for the remainder of the season has not shifted. The Owls are still “chasing greatness” and Drayton believes that the team still has an opportunity to not just get better, but win football games.
Temple will get an opportunity against Alabama-Birmingham (3-7) in its final road game of the season at 3 p.m. Saturday (ESPN +). Temple closes its season Nov. 24 against Memphis at Lincoln Financial Field.