Defense looks sharpest in Temple intrasquad scrimmage

With a healthy crowd of 4,000 lining up three and four deep along a sideline yesterday at Edberg-Olson Hall, Temple concluded its spring football drills with its annual intrasquad scrimmage on Cherry and White Day.

In a game that had no kickoffs or punts, Team White won, 10-0.

"Our [first-string] defense on the White team played really well, and the Cherry offense had too many penalties, turned the ball over, and dropped too many passes to get anything going," said Owls coach Al Golden, who is preparing for his fourth season at Temple. "From that standpoint, I was disappointed in those guys. They know what they have to do to be a more disciplined team. That's not acceptable."

The Cherry offense was manned by eight returning starters, not including quarterback Vaughn Charlton, who redshirted last season as Adam DiMichele finished up his eligibility.

The 6-foot-4, 230-pound Charlton played well as a sophomore in 2007 when he was forced into action after DiMichele went down with a broken leg in the eighth game of the season. He is competing with 6-3, 225-pound Chester Stewart for the starting quarterback position.

Stewart, a redshirt sophomore, started three games last season as DiMichele recovered from a shoulder injury. Yesterday, Stewart guided the winning team. He was 14 for 29 for 197 yards, including a 30-yard touchdown pass to tight end Anthony Pekarski with 10 minutes, 59 seconds remaining.

A 19-yard field goal by Jake Brownell gave Team White a 3-0 edge with four seconds left in the first half. Brownell missed a 44-yard attempt in the third period. Jeff Wathne, who kicked for Team Cherry, went for a 50-yarder in the fourth quarter and wasn't close.

Charlton finished 14 for 31 for 125 yards, with three interceptions. Stewart made his biggest miscue when he was flagged for a personal foul with his team in scoring position at the 5-yard line. He had reacted after being run out of bounds.

"It's going to be a battle, and it'll probably be settled 10 days out," said Golden, referring to the team's preseason camp this summer. "I thought Chester helped himself today. I thought Vaughn had a really good second scrimmage, and Chester had a good third scrimmage [yesterday] working with the second unit. It's going to get interesting here, come August."