You can get your college football weekend started early this week with a Friday afternoon American Conference game between the Army Blacks Knights and the Temple Owls. Army comes in at 1-1 after a 59-3 win over Bryant and a 28-24 loss to South Florida. Temple is 1-2, with their last two losses coming 27-9 against Penn State, and 49-48 to Toledo. Both teams should be excited for this matchup, with the setting being Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia.
The question for any Army game is whether their opponent can stop their running game. Like years past, Army has shown to be a run-heavy team. In their opening two games, Army ranks first in college football with 394 rushing yards per game. In total, to show how much they run the ball, they average 497 total yards per game. Quarterback Cale Hellums has fit the mold of a stereotypical Army quarterback. He has only thrown 19 passes this season, but has 142 rushing yards and two touchdowns.
So, does Temple have the personnel to stop Army’s ground game? From what we have seen so far, the answer is no. Temple’s defense is ranked 118th in expected points added and 120th in opponent rushing success against. We have seen opponents stack the box against Army in the past and still not be able to stop them. I’m not sure Temple’s defensive front is up for the challenge. As a bonus, Army had a bye last weekend, allowing them an additional weekend of rest and preparation. I’m hoping head coach Jeff Monken will have some creative plays to burn Temple if they stack the box too heavily.
Army vs Temple prediction: Army -3 (-110) available at time of publishing. Playable at that number.
