Temple can’t keep up with UTSA, drops first game since coach Stan Drayton’s dismissal

In its first game since firing former coach Stan Drayton, Temple hung tough with a red-hot Texas-San Antonio team in the first half but ran out of offensive steam in the second.

Despite scoring two early first half touchdowns, Temple (3-8, 2-5 American Athletic Conference) lost to UTSA (6-5, 4-3 AAC) 51-27 Friday night in San Antonio, Texas. The Owls now have one game remaining and are in danger of finishing with just three wins for the fourth consecutive year.

Interim head coach Everett Withers said the week leading up to Friday night’s game was one of the team’s best weeks of practice all year.

On two occasions, the Owls were able to move the ball downfield in the first half and find the end zone.

Wide receiver Dante Wright found the end zone on a nine-yard pass from quarterback Evan Simon. Running back Antwain Littleton also scored on a four-yard run — his first of the season.

» READ MORE: Temple athletic director Arthur Johnson’s ESPN interview drowned out by UTSA touchdown

Temple’s defense, which bounced back last week against Florida Atlantic after giving up 50 points in the two games prior, regressed against the Roadrunners. Quarterback Owen McCown ran for a 75-yard touchdown in the second quarter and wide receiver Chris Carpenter returned a kickoff 97 yards for a touchdown shortly after.

Here are three key takeaways from Withers’ first game as the Owls’ interim head coach.

The Owls hung in for a large chunk of the first half despite miscues on both sides of the ball.
Trailing 14-3 early in the second quarter, Simon orchestrated a quick scoring drive capped off by Wright’s nine-yard touchdown to pull the score to 14-10.

UTSA responded by scoring two lightning-quick touchdowns — Carpenter’s 97-yard kick return and an eight-yard run by running back Robert Henry Jr. — but Temple answered back yet again. After Littleton’s score late in the first half, Simon hit Wright over the middle of the field for a 61-yard deep ball to make it a one possession game midway through the third quarter.

The Owls squandered a chance to tie the game after their next possession ended in a Simon interception and allowed a quick UTSA touchdown that broke the game open.

Simon, who has been shaky in recent weeks, finished the game with 219 yards and completed just 13 of his 32 pass attempts.

Wright ranked in the top five in the AAC and top 20 in all of the NCAA in receptions, receiving yards and touchdowns before missing three games during the middle of the Owls’ season.

He returned to the lineup last week against FAU and logged 14 catches for 147 yards. On Friday, he added five more catches for 128 yards and two touchdown receptions.

» READ MORE: Interim coach Everett Withers: It’s ‘business as usual’ for Temple as he preps for its last two games

Wright has been a bright spot in an otherwise rough season for Temple. He now has 61 catches for 792 yards and six touchdowns on the season. He is having one of the best seasons for a Temple receiver in recent memory and has a real chance at finding a spot on an NFL roster in April.

Temple picked off McCown twice on Friday — the first time the Owls’ have recorded two interceptions in a game all season. Single digit team captain D.J. Woodbury recorded his first career interception and safety Andreas Keaton, who has been one of the team’s best defenders since transferring from Western Carolina during the offseason, also added an interception.

Despite the turnovers, the Owls yet again failed to stop their opponent on the ground. Henry Jr. finished the game with 178 yards on 16 attempts.

The Owls’ defense also allowed more than 50 points for the fourth time this season. Despite one of the team’s best offensive performances of the season, the Owls were never in the game in the final quarter.

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Temple will look to reach four wins in a season for the first time since 2019 when they host North Texas (5-5, 2-4 AAC) on Nov. 30 (noon, ESPN+) in their season finale.