Temple Owls vs Wyoming Cowboys Match Player Stats On Dec 17, 2011

SportsDirect Inc. staff
Dec 17, 2011

Junior Bernard Pierce scored two touchdowns in what may have been his final collegiate game and Temple scored on its first three possessions en route to a convincing 37-15 victory over Wyoming in the Gildan New Mexico Bowl on Saturday.

Pierce, who many believe will enter the NFL draft, rushed for 100 yards to lead the nation’s seventh ranked rushing attack and finished with 1,481 this season to go along with 27 touchdowns.

The Owls rushed for 255 yards against the nation’s 115th ranked run defense and finished the season with a 256.5 average.

Temple (9-4) improved to 2-2 in bowl games and just missed setting a school record for points in a season with 398. The 1979 Owls, who defeated California in the Garden State Bowl 28-17, scored 399.

Quarterback Brett Smith, the Mountain West Conference Freshman of the Year, threw three interceptions and two touchdown passes as the Cowboys (8-5) were held to 267 total yards.

Wyoming had its two-game bowl winning streak snapped and fell to 6-7 in bowl games.

The Owls scored on their opening possession for the ninth time this season when Pierce ran in from the 1 yard line. Earlier, Pierce kept the 13-play, 90-drive alive with a 6-yard run on fourth-and-1 from the Temple 43.

Pierce’s second touchdown also came from a yard out and Matt Brown’s 1-yard plunge made it 21-0 with 10:21 left in the half.

Smith connected with Josh Doctson for a 21-yard touchdown on fourth-and-3 with 37 seconds to go until halftime, but the Cowboys lost what little momentum they had after the ensuing kickoff.

Chris Coyer threw a 61-yard touchdown pass to Rod Streater on the next play, made possible when cornerback Marqueston Huff slipped and fell, to give Temple a 28-7 halftime lead.