Penn’s Jared Richardson is chasing history, Temple is itching for bowl eligibility, and Eastern U. is so fun to watch

Usually, Temple or Penn State kicks off our weekly college football roundup, but we’re switching things up this week to highlight one of the best college football players locally.

Penn wide receiver Jared Richardson ranks sixth in the FCS with 817 receiving yards and is tied for third in receiving touchdowns with nine. When combining FBS and FCS statistics, Richardson’s 116.7 receiving yards per game rank second behind San Jose State receiver Danny Scudero (135.6).

Richardson’s breakout season, surpassing his totals from each of the last two seasons in fewer games, is a big reason the Quakers (5-2, 3-1 Ivy) are off to their best start in league play since 2022.

» READ MORE: Temple’s defense is banged up but coach K.C. Keeler says the Owls must ‘bounce back’ against Army

He played his high school ball at Bethlehem Catholic in Northampton County and was an all-conference quarterback and punter. A dual-sport athlete, Richardson also played for Bethlehem Catholic’s basketball team and won the District 11 Class 4A championship in 2022.

Richardson became the sixth receiver in school history to eclipse the 2,000-yard threshold with his 157-yard, three touchdown performance at Columbia. Quakers offensive coordinator, Greg Chimera called Richardson “the full package” last year because of how explosive he is for his size (6-foot-2, 220 pounds).

He is closing in on becoming just the fourth Penn receiver to eclipse 1,000 yards in a season and would become the first since Justin Watson did so in 2017 (1,083). Watson holds the program record for receiving yards in a season with 1,115, which means Richardson would need 299 receiving yards over the next three games to eclipse the mark set in 2016, beginning with Cornell on Saturday (1 p.m., ESPN+).

Watson is still playing in the NFL with the Houston Texans and won Super Bowls with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Kansas City Chiefs. Richardson certainly has the NFL’s attention after appearing on the preseason 1,000 list for the East-West Shrine Bowl, an all-star game that features top junior and senior players.

306: That’s the number of yards Eastern University amassed in a 35-0 rout of Widener on Saturday to improve to 7-1. The Eagles will play their regular-season home finale at Valley Forge Military College against FDU-Florham on Saturday (1 p.m., watch live).

Temple’s defense couldn’t stop the bleeding last weekend against East Carolina, which ran the ball at will — 358 of its 614 total yards came on the ground.

It won’t get any easier against American Conference foe Army, college football’s fourth-highest rushing offense at 265.3 yards per game. Temple hasn’t beaten the Black Knights since 2013, losing the last three matchups, and hasn’t won in West Point since 2012.

If there is one area of Army’s defense to attack, it’s the rushing defense, which ranks 64th nationally in yards per game allowed (145.1), and tied for 76th in yards per rush (4.2).

Jay Ducker mustered only 45 yards on 15 carries last week against ECU. Sustaining long drives and getting Ducker rolling will help take the pressure off Evan Simon and the Temple passing game

The Owls (5-4, 3-2) ended a long road losing streak with a resounding win over Charlotte on Oct. 18 and escaped Tulsa the following week. They will need another win to reach bowl eligibility for the first time since 2019.

» READ MORE: When does Penn State need to have its new coach in hand? History suggests it could be soon.

We asked CBS Sports analyst Adam Breneman, who is on the call for this weekend’s Temple-Army matchup, to give us his thoughts on not just the game but the Owls’ chances. Here’s what he had to say:

“You can just feel that Temple’s starting to find itself again under K.C. Keeler. He’s brought a real sense of belief and toughness back into the program. You watch them now … they play hard, they play with confidence, and they’ve got a clear identity on both sides of the ball. Evan Simon’s playing the best football of his career, and the offense finally looks explosive again. After so many tough years, to see Temple sitting on the edge of bowl eligibility says a lot about the culture Keeler’s building.

“Another thing that’s really jumped out to me is that Temple finally looks like a team with a standard again. Keeler’s not just rebuilding talent ... he’s rebuilding belief. It’s been a long time since you’ve seen Temple play with this kind of confidence and organization. They’re not beating themselves anymore. That’s usually the first sign a program’s turning the corner.”

And for Saturday’s game?

“What makes this one interesting to me is how different these two styles are. Temple wants to spread you out and move fast, and Army’s trying to slow the game down and control every possession. That’s what makes it such a chess match. Temple showed earlier this year against Navy that they can handle the physicality and the discipline it takes to play a service academy. If they can keep Army behind the sticks and finish drives on offense, they’ve got a real shot to go on the road and win this one.”

🏈 With Curt Cignetti and Matt Rhule out of the picture, here’s a look at some other coaching candidate possibilities for Penn State.

🏈 Also, based on previous offseason coaching changes, here’s when we can predict the Nittany Lions will need to have their new coach in hand (spoiler alert: soon).

🏈 How will the money breakdown work when it comes to the new 12-team College Football Playoff bracket? We’re seeing how it might work potentially for Big Ten and SEC teams in real time.

No. 3 Texas A&M at No. 19 Missouri (3:30 p.m., 6ABC)

The keys to the Missouri offense have been handed over to Spring-Ford alumnus Matt Zollers. He’ll get his stiffest test since taking over for injured starting quarterback Beau Pribula when the Aggies enter Memorial Stadium as 6.5-point favorites. Mizzou head coach Eliah Drinkwitz told reporters that regarding Zollers, “his No. 1 talent is his arm,” describing how the ball “jumps off of his hand.” The Tigers will need that skill against a Texas A&M defense that leads the FBS in third-down conversion percentage.

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