Cold Snap

On a cold afternoon, the Temple offense was stopped cold in a 16-3 loss to Western Michigan in its season finale on Saturday at Waldo Stadium in Kalamazoo, Mich. The Owls concluded the 2007 campaign with a 4-8 record, its best since 2002.

Sophomore quarterback Vaughn Charlton completed 6 of 25 passes for 92 yards and was sacked six times in the contest. He didn’t get much help from his receivers, who dropped some catchable passes, or his offensive line, which failed to protect him at key times. And the running game was generally ineffective.

As usual, the Owls played well on defense, holding Western Michigan to its second-lowest point total of the season. Junior defensive tackle Terrance Knighton blocked a field goal and an extra point and had two tackles for losses.

But the Owls couldn’t keep the Broncos out of the endzone from start to finish. Sophomore quarterback Tim Hiller engineered a 77-yard TD drive in the first half and a 61-yard TD drive to start the second half, and that was more than enough to secure the victory.

Temple only threatened to score on two occasions. In the second quarter, sophomore tailback Jason Harper accounted for 42 yards on a 53-yard drive that culminated with Jake Brownell’s 24-yard field goal. In the fourth quarter, Charlton scrambled for a 25-yard gain and the Owls advanced to the WMU 18 before Charlton was sacked twice to kill the drive.

Temple went three-and-out on its first five possessions and totaled just six first downs in the contest. The offensive line was hurt by the absence of left guards Colin Madison and Lloyd Codada. For the first time all season, the Owls went most of the way with five linemen.

The Cherry and White defense stopped Western Michigan on its first three drives, the last of which ended with a failed fourth down pass attempt at the Temple 33. But on his next fourth down throw, Hiller completed an 18-yarder to wide receiver Jordan White at the Temple 5. The Broncos scored on their next play.

Knighton blocked the extra point, and after another three-and-out by the Owls offense, Temple got the ball back when freshman linebacker Amara Kamara dove to intercept a deflected pass. Brownell’s field goal followed.

The score was 6-3 at halftime, thanks to Knighton’s blocked field goal as time expired. Earlier, the Owls were helped in the field position battle by Charlton’s 58-yard punt when the offense was facing 3rd-and-21 at their own six-yard line. (Note: Adam DiMichele made one quick kick last season. He’s not the only one who can do it.)

After missing some chances in the first half, the Broncos wasted no time re-establishing control in the third quarter. On 3rd-and-4 at his own 45, Hiller completed a 40-yard pass to tight end Branden Ledbetter. Two plays later, tailback Mark Bonds went wide left for a one-yard score. WMU added a field goal on its next drive.

Even after getting a 45-yard kickoff return from freshman Jamal Schulters, the Owls were unable to pose a scoring threat. Their next three drives produced no first downs.

After consecutive sacks killed Temple’s last offensive thrust, Bonds ran the ball to drain the clock. He finished with 24 carries for 105 yards. Hiller finished 24 of 39 for 276 yards.

But it wasn’t Western Michigan’s offense that won the season finale. It was the defense. The Broncos finished the season with a record of 5-7.