ANNAPOLIS, MD - After holding a 17-14 halftime lead, the Owls failed to score after the break and suffered a 38-17 loss to Navy Saturday afternoon before 30,261 fans at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium. The game was eighth-year head coach Bobby Wallace's final contest at the helm and provided Temple with its first winless season since 1959 (0-9).
The final score was not indicative of the tightly-fought contest. Temple (0-11) was poised to get the ball back trailing 24-17 with five minutes to play. The Owls were flagged for a roughing the punter penalty, however, and Navy (6-4) retained possession. The Midshipmen, who became bowl eligible with the victory, then put the contest out of the reach, 31-17 on a four-yard Adam Ballard rush with 3:05 remaining.
The score was further skewed when Temple QB Mike McGann fumbled while being sacked. Navy's John Chan recovered the miscue and raced 41 yards to the end zone with 2:33 on the clock to register the 38-17 result.
The loss overshadowed several outstanding individual performances for the Owls. Senior DT Antwon Burton made a career-high 14 tackles (six solo) as the Owls' played with five defensive lineman in an attempt to limit Navy's potent rushing attack. True freshman DT Terrance Knighton made 11 stops (five solo) in his first collegiate start as four Temple players (Garrett Schultz, 11; Justin Johnson, 10) had double-digit stop totals.
Offensively, junior WR Bruce Gordon made a career and game-high 10 receptions for a career and contest-best 125 yards. It marked the first time a Temple player made double-digit catches since Zamir Cobb had 10 grabs versus Rutgers in 2003. Senior RB Umar Ferguson capped his Temple career by rushing for 116 yards on 22 attempts, while McGann completed 24 of 38 passes for 245 yards and a score to register his 13th career 200-yard passing game.
Temple had the opportunity score on the game's opening possession. After Schultz's first career return gave the Owls the ball at their own 32, McGann drove the team downfield with assistance of Gordon. McGann, who completed his first eight passes, connected with Gordon four times for 41 yards on the opening drive as the Owls advanced to the Navy 14. Faced with a third-and-five, however, a reverse to slot receiver Brian Allbrooks lost nine yards and Temple attempted a 41-yard field goal. Ryan Lux's attempt was wide left and the Owls came away empty handed.
Navy looked to capitalize on its good fortune and drove the ball on five plays, aided by a 44-yard Ballard rush, to the Temple six-yard line. On a third-and-goal play from the five, Burton came up big for the Cherry & White, and stripped the ball from Lamar Owens. Burton rumbled 19 yards with the ball to squelch the drive and silence the home crowd.
The first quarter ended with the zeros on the scoreboard. The Midshipmen posted the contest's first points when Marco Nelson carried 22 yards to pay dirt with 14:24 on the second quarter clock.
The Owls answered in definitive fashion. After Schultz returned the ensuing kickoff 43 yards to midfield, McGann engineered a seven-play drive that culminated with a one-yard Josh Bundy plunge to tie the score at 7-7. The teams then traded scores on consecutive possessions. Owens scored on a three-yard run to give the Midshipmen a 14-7 advantage before Gordon caught a 22-yard aerial from McGann to tie the score with 3:38 remaining before intermission.
The Temple defense forced a Navy punt and the Owls re-gained possession deep in its own territory. With under two minutes to play before halftime, the Owls decided to drive downfield from their seven yard-line rather than sit on the ball and take a tie into the locker room. 14 plays and 67 yards later, Lux booted a career-best 42-yard field goal to provide Temple a 17-14 halftime lead.
The Owls committed five penalties for 49 yards in the second half after not committing a single infraction in the opening two quarters.
Temple will officially conclude its 2005 season when it holds its annual team banquet, this Monday evening, November 21, on campus.
