SportsDirect Inc. staff
Aug 31, 2012
Temple 41, Villanova 10: Matt Brown rushed for 141 yards, including 56 on a late first-half touchdown jaunt, as the Owls pulled away in the fourth Mayor’s Cup game in Philadelphia.
Quarterback Chris Coyer threw for one touchdown and ran for another as Temple beat Villanova for the third straight year. The Owls rushed for 302 yards - 183 in the first half.
Vaughn Carraway broke the game open with two takeaways in the second quarter. The senior defensive back picked off a Chris Polony pass and weaved his way 58 yards for a touchdown with 11:24 remaining. Three plays after Carraway recovered a fumble, Coyer zipped up the middle for a 19-yard score and the Owls led 21-3 with 9:08 left in the first half.
Backup quarterback John Robertson brought the Wildcats within 11 points with a 5-yard touchdown run, but Brown broke free for his long TD run with 21 seconds left in the second quarter for a 28-10 halftime lead. It was Brown’s 10th career 100-yard rushing game.
Temple went 78 yards in 14 plays to score on its first possession of the season, when Kenneth Harper took Coyer’s shovel pass and found the end zone from 8 yards. Harper added a 38-yard run early in the third quarter to make it 35-10.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Temple has won 16 of its last 19 at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia. … Villanova leads the all-time series 16-15-2. … Brown also had 124 return yards. … Temple finished 2011 with four straight wins.