Temple University Athletics
Temple Football Wins Third Straight With 24-17 Victory Over Miami (OH)
10.20.07 | Football
Oct. 20, 2007
Final Stats | Quotes | Notes
PHILADELPHIA - Temple withstood a late Miami rally to hang on for a 24-17 victory at Lincoln Financial Field on Saturday afternoon for its third consecutive victory. The win marks the first time that Temple (3-5, 3-2) has won three consecutive conference games since 1967 when Temple competed in the Middle Atlantic Conference. The win also marks the first time the Owls have won three consecutive games in a season since 1990.
Miami (4-4, 3-1) scored 10 points in the final 1:19 and recovered two onside kicks, but an interception by redshirt sophomore safety Dominique Harris sealed the deal for the Cherry and White.
Sophomore QB Vaughn Charlton came off the bench to throw for 109 yards and a touchdown. He replaced redshirt junior QB Adam DiMichele, who left the game early in the second quarter with a comminuted fracture of his left tibia. Freshman ATH Daryl Robinson led the Owls' rushing with 69 yards and sophomore TB Jason Harper added 60 yards and a touchdown.
"I think it's a tremendous win for our program, and I thought the kids fought hard," Temple head coach Al Golden said.
Despite being outgained by Miami 370-298, Temple's defense came up big when it needed. The Owls stopped Miami twice on fourth down plays inside their own 10 in the fourth quarter.
The key defensive stand for the Owls took place early in the fourth quarter. With the Owls up 21-7, Miami was threatening at the Temple two-yard line following a 15-play, 72-yard drive. But on fourth-and-two, redshirt junior DE Leyon Azubuike leveled Miami running back Cory Jones for a six-yard loss.
After taking over at their own eight-yard line, the Cherry and White marched 87 yards down the field on 11 plays, resulting in a 22-yard field goal by redshirt sophomore Jake Brownell to move ahead 24-7. The field goal resulted from a 35-yard sprint down the field by Robinson. The 24-7 lead marked the biggest for the Owls this season.
Following that possession, Temple's defense would once again stop a Miami drive inside its own 10, stopping Miami on fourth-and-two with 5:05 to play.
Sophomore DE Junior Galette played an outstanding game, leading the defense with six tackles, three sacks, and a forced fumble. Sophomore LB Alex Joseph led the team with eight tackles and freshman CB Jamal Schulters had six unassisted tackles and a fumble recovery.
"The defense is playing much better," Golden said. "We have to finish the job little a bit better. They're just very resilient right now. They're starting to become tough. It's obvious that they have unity, and I like I said to them, you can see the off-season program starting to take off, because we're in good shape."
The Owls took their first two touchdown lead of the season on the second drive of the third quarter. Charlton hit junior WR Bruce Francis on 61-yard pass down the sideline to put the Owls up 21-7 with 8:29 left in the period. The 61-yard pass was a career-long for Charlton, while the 61-yard reception was a career-best for Francis.
Francis led the Owl receivers with 70 yards on two receptions. He also threw a 43-yard pass to DiMichele in the second quarter. Sophomore WR Dy'Onne Crudup had three receptions for 28 yards, and junior TE Kevin Armstrong had three receptions for 27 yards.
The Owls' first score was set up when Galette stripped the ball from Miami quarterback Daniel Raudabaugh. The ball was then recovered by Schulters at the Owl 22-yard line. The forced fumble by Galette was the second of his career, and Schulters' recovery was also the second of his young career.
The Owls capitalized on the turnover when Harper scored on a one-yard TD run to give the Owls a 7-0 lead. The play capped off a six play, 22-yard drive by the Owls.
Miami responded with a nine-play, 79-yard touchdown drive, capped off when Raudabaugh hit TE Jake O'Connell for a 20-yard touchdown pass down the middle, knotting the score at 7-7. The drive was kept alive by a fourth-and-6 conversion when Raudabaugh hit WR Eugene Harris to convert the first down.
Using a bit of trickery on the next drive, DiMichele lateralled the ball to junior WR Bruce Francis, who then threw to a streaking DiMichele down the sidelines for a 43-yard completion. The catch was the second of DiMichele's career and his first this season. DiMichele finished off what he started two plays later as he would plunge into the endzone to give the Owls a 14-7 lead with 14:46 left in the second quarter.
Following a Miami punt, the Temple offense was dealt a devastating blow when DiMichele injured his leg while being sacked by Miami's Clayton Mullins. DiMichele left the game throwing a perfect 4-for-4 for 16 yards and catching one reception for 43 yards.
Miami's last touchdown came on a Raudabaugh pass to TE Tom Crabtree to make the score 24-14 with 1:09 to play. After recovering the onside kick, Miami kicker Nathan Parseghian hit a 33-yard field goal to come within seven, 24-17 with nine seconds left in the game.
A season-high 20 Temple freshmen, including 16 true freshmen, saw action in the game.
Temple has a bye this week and will next travel to Ohio University for a Friday night game against the Bobcats on November 2 (7:00 p.m.).
