Temple @ SMU preview
Gerald J. Ford Stadium
Temple and Southern Methodist each picked up a much needed win last Saturday. This weekend, the new American Athletic Conference rivals will face off for the first time since 1946 when the teams meet on the Mustangs’ home field. Temple notched its first win of the year last week against Army, while SMU defeated Memphis to snap a three-game slide.
The two keys to this matchup could be turnovers and scoring first. The Owls forced four Army turnovers in last week’s 33-14 triumph, while the Mustangs, who were 10th in the nation in turnover margin in 2012, currently rank 116th with a minus-7 turnover differential. On the bright side for SMU, it has won 17 of its last 18 games when scoring first, although the Mustangs have lost 16 straight games when giving up the first points.
TV: 3 p.m. ET, ESPN3. LINE: Southern Methodist -12.5.
ABOUT TEMPLE (1-6, 0-3 AAC): Last week’s victory was the first for Temple coach Matt Rhule, a former Owls assistant who spent last season as the New York Giants’ assistant offensive line coach. Since quarterback P.J. Walker was inserted into the lineup three games ago, he has connected with Jalen Fitzpatrick for a touchdown in each of those contests. On the defensive side of the ball, linebacker Tyler Matakevich stepped up with 13 tackles, an interception and a fumble recovery to fuel Temple to its first victory of 2013.
ABOUT SMU (2-4, 1-1): Garrett Gilbert ranks second in the nation with 34.7 completions per game, while placing fourth in passing yards (349.3), as well as total offense (370.5). His top two targets, Jeremy Johnson and Darius Joseph, each rank in the top five in the country in catches per game, combining for nearly 20 grabs on average. Mustangs defensive end Beau Barnes will be a point of focus for Temple after he set or matched career highs in tackles (seven), tackles for a loss (2.5) and sacks (two) in last week’s 34-29 victory at Memphis.
EXTRA POINTS
1. In the 10-team AAC, Temple ranks eighth in passing defense, 10th in rushing defense and 10th in total defense.
2. Only three schools have played more true freshmen than Temple (13) this season.
3. Gilbert has thrown for at least 300 yards in five of the Mustangs’ six games.
PREDICTION: SMU 45, Temple 19