Temple University Athletics
Temple University
Charlotte
Temple to Travel to Charlotte for First Road Conference Game of 2025
10.13.25 | Football
PHILADELPHIA - Temple will head to Charlotte next Saturday, October 18 to take on the 49ers at Jerry Richardson Stadium. The American Conference bout will kickoff at 3:30 pm and will be broadcast on ESPN+. The game can be heard at OwlSports.com/Listen.Â
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LAST TIME OUT
The Temple Owls (3-3, 1-1 AMER) narrowly lost to the undefeated Navy Midshipmen (6-0, 4-0 AMER) 32-31 in Philadelphia on Saturday. The game was a tale of two halves that ultimately swung Navy's way at the end of the game. Both teams came out of the gate firing on offense, as Temple marched down the field on the game's opening possession, poised to get three points, but Carl Hardin was off the mark and missed the 39-yard field goal attempt. The Navy offense would not take long to put up the day's first points, as a four-play 79-yard drive was capped off by a rare passing score by the Mids. Quarterback Blake Horvath found Cody Howard wide open over the middle of the field to give Navy the early 7-0 lead. The Owls would respond with a scoring drive of their own. A very Navy-like drive ensued for Temple as quarterback Evan Simon orchestrated a 13-play 6:59 minute drive that ended with the quarterback taking it into the end zone himself on a two-yard rush that would notch the score at seven points. Temple's defense would settle in on the following drive, forcing a quick three-and-out and a punt for Navy before the Owls drove down the field into Navy's red zone as the first quarter expired.
Temple would begin the second by taking the lead on a 23-yard Hardin field goal before the defense would force yet another Navy punt. The game's only turnover would occur on the following offensive possession by Temple. The fumble by Simon and recovery by the Midshipmen would be the first turnover of the season for Temple, however it would not turn into any points for the Navy offense. The Temple offense had a chance to extend its lead heading into the halftime break, and the team did just that. Simon found wide receivers Kajiya Hollawayne and Colin Chase on the 10-play scoring drive to march the Owls down the field, but Temple ultimately found pay-dirt through the ground game on the drive. Jay Ducker punched the ball into the end zone to give Temple a 17-7 lead going into halftime.
The third quarter was a scoring affair by both offenses. Navy came out of the break and quickly made the game a one-score affair. The drive was highlighted by a big fourth-and-three play in which Horvath would connect with Eli Heidenreich for 35-yards to get into the Temple red zone. Horvath would push the ball into the end zone from two-yards out to make it 17-14 Temple. The Cherry & White would quickly respond on the following offensive drive thanks to the arm of Simon and the savvy receiving skills of JoJo Bermudez. Simon threw a precision pass to the front pylon of the end zone to give Bermudez and only Bermudez a chance to haul in the pass, and he did to put Temple back up by ten points. Navy would close out the third quarter with another touchdown drive that would again pull the Mids within three points thanks to a two-yard run by running back Alex Tecza.
The fourth quarter featured scoring by both teams on all but one possession, the last one. Temple would hold a 31-24 lead with 1:16 remaining in the contest and a chance to end the game on defense. Horvath, however, had different plans. Navy sat at its own 49-yard line on fourth-and-one and Horvath found a hole on the line and powered through it to break away for a 51-yard touchdown run. The Mids wanted more than seven points in this instance and attempted a two-point play. Horvath again would save the day as he found Tecza as he was being wrapped up by a defender. The Midshipmen would hold a 32-31 lead with 39 seconds remaining in the game. Temple would move the ball past midfield, but the hail mary would fall short as time expired, giving the Mids the narrow win.
CHARLOTTE IN 2025
Charlotte enters this week's game with a 1-5 record to start the Tim Albin era. Albin joins the American Conference after his success in the MAC at Ohio University. The 49ers are sitting on a three-game losing streak, all losses being to American Conference foes. The lone win for the Niners came in week three when Charlotte topped FCS Monmouth 42-35 at home. During the team's first conference game against Rice, starting quarterback Conner Harrell suffered a season-ending injury to his knee, which is an unfortunate theme for Charlotte this season. Since Harrell went down, the 49ers have split time at the quarterback position between Zach Wilcke and Grayson Loftis. Loftis started for the Niners in the loss to South Florida in week five, and this past week against Army, Wilcke got the nod as the starter.
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SERIES HISTORY
Saturday's matchup will be the third all-time between the two programs. Temple holds a 2-0 series lead against the 49ers, both contests were non-conference games. The Owls took the first meeting back in 2015 in Charlotte by a resounding score of 37-3. The following season the two teams squared off in the City of Brotherly Love where Temple topped Charlotte 48-20. The Owls have outscored Charlotte 85-23 in the two contests. Saturday's game will be the first American Conference game between the two schools.
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UP NEXT
Temple will remain on the road in week nine for a meeting with the Tulsa Golden Hurricane on Saturday, October 25. Kickoff will be announced on Monday afternoon, as well as the TV platform. The game can be heard on OwlSports.com/listen.
