Temple’s win streak is snapped as the Owls are humbled at home by East Carolina

Entering Saturday’s game against East Carolina, there was optimism that Temple could soar to its first bowl game since 2019. That will have to wait another week, as the Owls found themselves on the losing end of a 45-14 rout at Lincoln Financial Field that snapped their two-game winning streak.

Temple (5-4, 3-2 American) allowed 614 yards of total offense, and quarterback Evan Simon threw his first interception of the season.

Down 14 points early in the first quarter, the Owls got a spark when a fumble recovery set up Jay Ducker’s 4-yard touchdown run.

However, the Owls were outmatched, as Simon threw for just 80 yards, and East Carolina (5-3, 3-1) limited Temple to just 233 yards.

“As my wife said to me as I came off the field, ‘It was a long day at the office,’” said Owls coach K.C. Keeler. “I thought they played really well, and we just made way too many mistakes. My message to the team was simple: ‘You lost to a good football team. We did not play our best football. … I don’t think they’ll panic over this, but it was disheartening, because I think we made such progress.”

Temple’s offense came into the game riding high. The Owls had scored 30 points or more in their last three games, and their 33.6 points per game ranked sixth in the American Conference.

But the Owls looked out of sync for most of the game, with just 11 first downs and Simon completing 11 of 20 pass attempts.

“Look at every game we played. When we do well, it’s when we do well on first down,” Simon said. “We’re not hurting ourselves and going second-and-10, now we’re off schedule. So it’s very uphill when you’re not efficient on first down.”

When Temple looked to catch a break, it was often squandered. Following an interception by safety Pooh Lawton, Simon threw an interception. Temple took advantage of a short field after a recovered fumble by TJ Engleman to give Temple the ball on the East Carolina 27-yard line. Ducker scored four plays later.

Temple scored again on the next drive when running back Keveun Mason broke two tackles for a 29-yard touchdown.

“[Those] 14 points [we scored] are when we’re doing the right things,” Simon said. “Kudos to the defense, getting a couple stops and turnovers. Then we go dry, and it’s not Temple’s offense doing Temple’s offense.”

Temple had a chance to mount a comeback to start the second half, trailing by 14, but it never materialized. The Owls’ first five drives failed to cross midfield and all ended in punts. In all, Temple managed just 85 yards of offense after halftime.

When Temple got back into the red zone, quarterback Gevani McCoy was in to relieve Simon, and the game was out of reach.

With Temple’s offense in disarray, the defense was left to pick up the pieces, and, like the offense, it started poorly. Quarterback Katin Houser marched ECU down the field on a six-play, 75-yard touchdown drive, capped by a 9-yard pass to wide receiver Yannick Smith in the first quarter.

ECU’s 614 yards of offense were the most the Owls had allowed since their loss to then-No. 12 Oklahoma on Sept. 13. Also, the Pirates had 358 yards on the groundwere the most Temple allowed all season.

“They totally out-physicaled us. Everywhere, offense, defense, special teams,” Keeler said. “That’s disappointing, but at the same time, that’s a good football team.”

Temple has three games left this season and only needs one more win to qualify for a trip to a bowl game. However, the Owls’ last game against North Texas in Denton, Texas, was recently moved. Originally scheduled for Nov. 29, it will now be played on Friday, Nov. 28 (3:30 p.m., ESPN).

The game against the Mean Green will be the Owls’ second nationally televised game this season. Both teams are in the top half in the conference, with North Texas sporting only one conference loss and just having celebrated a win against Navy.

As of one of the team’s seniors, Simon is making it his mission to end the season on a high note.

“So for a lot of us, our clock’s ticking on our college football careers,” he said. “I can either sit on this for 48 or 72 hours, or I can move on and study my butt off and look at Army and put these seniors in the best position possible so they can dance after winning their [sixth] game.”

Temple will travel to Army (4-4, 2-3) on Saturday (noon, CBS Sports Network).