Little goes right for Temple in 61-14 loss to Rutgers

PISCATAWAY, N.J. — Temple’s season opener didn’t go as well as the Owls might have hoped, to put it gently.

Rutgers was in control for all four quarters of a 61-14 blowout Saturday. Coach Rod Carey said the performance was “as bad as we could have possibly played.”

The Owls traveled up to Piscataway on Wednesday night, then back to Philadelphia on Thursday. They made the trip up to New Jersey again after the originally scheduled Thursday evening kickoff was postponed two days because of the aftermath of Hurricane Ida.

A lack of continuity on offensive along with no help from the special teams made life difficult for Temple. The defense had its moments, but being put in disadvantageous field position repeatedly made limiting the Scarlet Knights attack a near-impossible task.

One of the few positive takeaways from an otherwise lackluster performance was the play of starting running back Edward Saydee. The redshirt freshman Saydee finished with 57 yards on 12 carries and a touchdown. Questions about the running back rotation may be answered if he continues to be more than just a serviceable back.

Noah Vedral passed for 138 yards and a touchdown for Greg Schiano’s Scarlet Knights. He also ran for 58 yards.

Temple’s season began with a loss, but the Owls will look ahead to the back half of a two-game road trip, playing at Akron next Saturday.

D’Wan Mathis’ first possession wasn’t under the most ideal conditions.

Rutgers punter Adam Korsak pinned the Owls on their own 1-yard line. On third down, with a designed rollout to the right side, the Georgia transfer was sacked in the end zone for a safety.

His day ended early after he injured his left ankle on a QB sneak for a 3-yard touchdown early in the second half. Mathis, later seen in a walking boot with crutches, completed 8 of 24 pass attempts for 148 yards with an interception in his Temple debut and first live action since November 2020.

Although Carey had named freshman Justin Lynch the second-string quarterback, Mariano Valenti, a redshirt freshman, was first to take over the duties.

» READ MORE: Hot seat? Nope, just a pivotal season for Temple football and third-year coach Rod Carey. | Mike Jensen

Valenti saw just one drive before Lynch took the reins. The 18-year-old held the position the rest of the day, finishing 0-for-3 through the air with an interception and a fumble.

Temple’s inability to march the ball down the field was in part due to the poor protection up front.

An offensive line that has the seventh-highest total of combined starts in FBS and led the American Athletic Conference in fewest sacks per game last season returned four of its five starters. But it didn’t look like it.

Michael Niese, Adam Klein, C.J. Perez, and Joseph Hooper all return to the fold. Isaac Moore is the only new starting face, replacing Vince Picozzi at left tackle.

The Owls’ two longest gains on the ground were a 22-yard quarterback scramble by Lynch and a 15-yard run by Saydee.

Beyond that, they struggled to open gaps up front or give Mathis, Valenti or Lynch enough time to work in the pocket.

It’s clear that Temple has some things to iron out on that side of the ball.

Punter Adam Barry continues to be a masterful piece of the special teams unit.

Despite the pressure he faced, including one roughing-the-punter penalty against Rutgers, he delivered two well-placed punts. Barry skipped back to the sideline, showing off his patented “golf swing” celebration.

As for the rest of Temple’s unit, Saturday’s loss wasn’t much to write home about. Aron Cruickshank led the way for Rutgers in the return game, posting 206 return yards, split between kickoff- and punt-return duties.

The lowlight of the day for the group was a De’Von Fox fumble on a kick return at Temple’s 22-yard line that led to a Rutgers touchdown five plays later. The Owls were later flagged for an illegal formation in the backfield on a punt early in the fourth quarter.

Korsak effectively nailed the Owls deep in their own territory on several occasions. On his six punts, four pinned Temple inside their own 20-yard line.