After a disappointing start to the second half of the season with their loss to Houston, South Florida will make the trek up to Philadelphia, where the sports world is hot, to take on the ice-cold Temple Owls, a team with only two wins on the year and some similar struggles.
The Bulls started out of the gate strong last week versus a Houston team that has had a roller coaster season from what was projected of them to be, yet, the Bulls couldn’t tame the Cougars’ offense last Saturday, resulting in a loss.
With that being said, USF gets a chance Saturday to square off against a Temple Owls team that has struggled immensely on offense, yet, has shown some bright spots defensively in what has been a lackluster season at best for the Owls.
This game is a great opportunity for the Bulls to step up and grab the bull by the horns to get a win.
Game Preview
Last week, one of the pleasant surprises for this Bulls team was the performance of Katravis Marsh, who is now the starting quarterback for the injured Gerry Bohanon. Marsh threw for 275 passing yards and a touchdown, playing a clean game of football.
The major key for the offense this week is coming out of the gate strong. While this is a USF offense that has not put up the sexiest numbers to this point, they have a great chance to play a full four quarters of complimentary football this week against a Temple team that has struggled.
If you can get the passing game moving early and get out to a 14-plus point lead, the Bulls will then be able to control the pace and get the running game chugging, as you can expect to see Brian Battie finish with 150 yards and at least a touchdown versus the Owls.
Defensively, this needs to be a great rebound game for this squad as South Florida goes up against a Temple offense that only averages about 15 points a game offensively.
The one key player to watch on the Temple offense is going to be EJ Warner.
While he has been unpredictable, he does have quarterback royalty DNA in his veins, being the son of Super Bowl champion and NFL Hall of Famer Kurt Warner.
However, his numbers have been underwhelming, throwing more interceptions than touchdowns this season, making it look on paper like the Bulls could have a field day.
Overall Thoughts
All in all, this game on paper should be a great chance for the Bulls to grab a win.
While the Bulls have had their struggles, the Owls have had more ups than downs and have not been a lethal threat in terms of their offense compared to some of the Bulls’ other season foes.
With that being said, Philadelphia has had some major success in the past month, maybe rubbing off on the Temple Owls.
Beyond that, I expect a low-scoring victory for the Bulls on Saturday and a positive win as the team returns home next week for the Salute to Service game.