Temple Drops Final Non-Conference Game to No. 18 Georgia Tech

Saturday, September 20

4:30 p.m.

Temple University

2-2 , 0-0

Georgia Tech

4-0 , 1-0

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

Temple

Georgia Tech

Temple Drops Final Non-Conference Game to No. 18 Georgia Tech

9.20.25 | Football

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ATLANTA -- The Temple Owls (2-2, 0-0 American) fell to the No. 18 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (4-0, 0-0 ACC) 45-24 in front of 45,123 at Bobby Dodd Stadium.

How It Happened

The Owls took the opening kickoff and started on offense for the second consecutive week but had a slow start on that side of the ball. A three-and-out gave Georgia Tech and quarterback Haynes King the ball at their own 29-yard line. King and running back Jamal Haynes connected early, starting the drive with a quick pass that resulted in a 34-yard gain. Four plays later, King called his own number and rushed into the end zone for a 17-yard score. The Yellow Jackets held an early 7-0 lead with 11:37 to go in the opening frame. Another methodical drive by the Yellow Jacket offense ensued after a short offensive drive by the Owls. King beat the Temple defense with his arm on the score. From 24-yards out, wide-out Malik Rutherford hauled in a King pass, and beat a few defenders on his way to pay-dirt. The Ramblin' Wreck added to their lead, making it 14-0 with 7:37 left in the first. The Georgia Tech offense showed no signs of slowing down on their third possession of the game. King connected from 37-yards out to his wide receiver Isiah Canion to put the Jackets on top by three touchdowns.
The second quarter started with a bang for the Temple offense. The offense found a rhythm it hadn't in the first quarter and added the team's first points of the day. The drive was highlighted by Evan Simon's legs. The quarterback ran for 34-yards to get Temple in the red zone. This was the longest run of Simon's career. Five plays later, on fourth-and-goal, the Owls punched it in thanks to tough running from Jay Ducker. The score sat at 21-7 Georgia Tech with 12:29 left in the first half. Both teams exchanged punts as the Temple defense settled in to stifle the Yellow Jacket offense. By the 5:01 mark in the second quarter, Avery Powell led the way on defense with five total tackles, two of which being solo tackles. On the third offensive possession for Georgia Tech, the Temple defense remained stout. On third-and-10, Cam'Ron Stewart burst into the backfield to blow up a play and sack King for a nine-yard loss. After the two-minute timeout the Owls' offense got the ball back with a chance to add points before the half. Temple got within striking distance for kicker Carl Hardin, allowing him to attempt a 61-yard field goal as time expired, but Hardin came up just short. The score going into the break was 21-7 Georgia Tech.
The second half started as strong as the first half ended for the Temple defense. On the second play of the third quarter, a fumble by King was scooped up by Eric Stuart. This set the Owls' offense up in Georgia Tech territory early in the third. Two plays into the ensuing offensive drive, the Owls struck. From 28-yards out, Simon found wide receiver JoJo Bermudez for the touchdown. The Owls now were down 21-14 with 13:53 remaining in the third quarter. The following drive for Georgia Tech was its best since the opening frame. It was capped off by a 34-yard touchdown run by Malachi Hosley. The running back bounced to the outside of the offensive line and sped past any defenders that came near. The Yellow Jackets extended the lead to 28-14 with 11:47 left in the third. The running game for Georgia Tech continued to roll in the second half. A four-play scoring drive by the Yellow Jackets increased the lead to 21 points. All four plays on the drive were on the ground. Hosley recorded his second score of the evening on the two-yard touchdown rush.
Temple started with the ball to start at the beginning of the fourth quarter. The offense managed to get into Georgia Tech territory but fell half a yard short of the line to gain on a fourth down attempt. The following drive marked the first field goal made in the game. Georgia Tech's Aidan Birr connected from 32-yards out with 8:50 remaining in the game to extend the home-team's lead to 24 points. The second offensive possession for Temple featured the longest play of the day for the Owls. Ducker burst through the middle of the line for a 42-yard gain that would eventually set up Hardin with a 41-yard field goal attempt. The redshirt-sophomore put the ball through the uprights to add three points for Temple. Running back Daylon Gordon continued the success the Yellow Jackets were having on the ground. Gordon rushed for the longest touchdown by either team, this being a 47-yard run with 5:15 left in the game. As time expired, quarterback Gevani McCoy led the Temple offense down the field for a touchdown. The drive ended with McCoy finding wide receiver Xavier Irvin for the touchdown. This was Irvin's first touchdown of his career.

Statistically Speaking

Quarterback Evan Simon notched the longest run of his career in the first half of the game, running for 34-yards on what ended up being a scoring drive for the Owls.
After a shaky start for the Temple defense, the second quarter proved to be the complete opposite. The Owls held Georgia Tech scoreless in the second frame, which is only the third quarter this season where the Yellow Jackets haven't been able to add points.
Temple held Georgia Tech to only nine yards of offense in the second quarter. This is the lowest number of yards the Ramblin' Wreck has had in a quarter at this point in the season.
Wide receiver Xavier Irvin secured his first career touchdown in today's contest.

Up Next

Temple will head into the first of two bye weeks in the 2025 season. Following the bye week the Owls will begin American Conference play by hosting the UTSA Roadrunners in Philadelphia. The time for the contest has yet to be announced.