Temple’s pass rush a bright spot in its latest loss
Linebacker Layton Jordan and lineman Darian Varner shined as the Owls were defeated 27-16 by the Golden Hurricane.
Through seven games, Temple (2-5, 0-3 American Athletic Conference) has developed a strong pass-rush group under first-year defensive coordinator D.J. Eliot. The Owls’ pressure against Tulsa quarterback Davis Brin was one of the positive developments in their 27-16 loss Friday night at Lincoln Financial Field.
Outside linebacker Layton Jordan, who is tied for 10th in the FBS with 6½ sacks, had two of them Friday. The 6-foot-2, 220-pound redshirt junior also had a pick-six when he returned an interception for a 35-yard touchdown to end Tulsa’s first possession.
“[The run-pass option] was a big thing that we had to stop because they were a good team,” Jordan said. “Coach Eliot was harping on, ‘If you get a flat route, jump it.’ As soon as I saw the flat route, I turned my head a little bit just to see where the ball was coming. I jumped it and it just fell in my hands. And I just went to the end zone.”
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Defensive lineman Darian Varner also disrupted the Tulsa offense with a career-high 3½ sacks. Varner, who earned a single-digit uniform number (9) this offseason, is tied with Jordan at 6½ sacks.
Varner brings different attributes to the dynamic duo that helps buoy Temple’s front seven. In the Owls’ new 3-4 scheme, he is capable of moving around the defensive line.
“I think Darian has done a really nice job of being kind of the Swiss Army knife for us,” said Owls football chief of staff Everett Withers, speaking Monday in place of coach Stan Drayton, who was out with flulike symptoms. “He has done a nice job of being able to play inside in a three-technique and also being on the edge in a five-technique or a nine-technique, rushing on the edge.”
Varner, a 6-foot-2, 260-pound sophomore, has emerged after showing flashes and finishing with three sacks last season. He credits defensive line coach Antoine Smith for his development.
“All he preaches to me is we are going to double what happened last season,” Varner said. “We are going to flip it around, turn it around. That is exactly what he did.”
Jordan and Varner are supported by a group of teammates who can also get after AAC quarterbacks with five games left.
In the fourth quarter, redshirt sophomore linebacker Yvandy Rigby, who finished with a career-high 12 tackles, sacked Brin with a little more than three minutes left. Rigby’s sack forced a punt with Tulsa’s lead at 24-16, but the Temple offense failed to pick up a first down after four straight incompletions.
Said Drayton after the game: “Rigby has a series where he gets a tackle for loss and two plays in a row where he is making a play to give our offense a chance to get the ball back.”
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The pass defense has stood out at times, but the Owls have struggled to stop the run. At the beginning of the fourth quarter, Tulsa’s Deneric Prince had an 84-yard touchdown run to boost the Hurricane’s lead to 24-10; he finished with a career-high 231 yards in 20 carries.
On average, the Owls’ defense gives up 4.3 yards per rush attempt. Temple visits Navy (2-5, 2-3) on Saturday in another AAC matchup. It will be a challenge, as the Midshipmen run a triple-option offense and produce 4.3 yards per rush.
“We just have to clean up the little things for us to execute great, for us to take it to the next level,” Jordan said. “We are doing all the big things right, we just have to do the little things.”