College Football Pick – Temple Owls vs USF Bulls

Owls Try to Get Back on Winning Track

pmroczka

November 7, 2019

This Temple vs USF pick offers the Owls at -1.5. This Temple vs USF matchup has the third-place team in the American Athletic Conference East, the Owls, visiting the fourth-place club in the division, the Bulls.

The Temple Owls (5-3 Overall, 2-2 AAC) come to the Bulls’ home with a 1-2 road record. The USF Bulls (4-4 Overall, 2-2 AAC) are 2-2 at home. The Owls have lost two straight games, while the Bulls are coming off a win. The two teams will meet at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida, at 8:00 pm ET on Thursday, November 7, 2019.

Temple vs USF Pick – Recent Performance

As noted, Temple has lost their last two games. On October 19, #19 SMU destroyed the Owls 45-21. Last Saturday, the UCF Knights took down Temple 63-21. Prior to those two losses, they had gone 5-1. Over the span of those six games, Temple beat #21 Maryland 20-17 and #23 Memphis 30-28.

Last Saturday, the Bulls were victorious over the East Carolina Pirates, beating them 45-20. The Bulls have had an uneven season, losing their first two, then exchanging a win and a loss, and winning two straight. Those two wins were against UConn and BYU. After those two wins, on October 19, Navy beat USF 35-3.

Temple Owls

Temple is scoring on average 27.6 PPG. Their dilemma is they are allowing opponents 27.8 PPG. Offensive yards per game and defensive yards per game also matchup, as the Owls come in at 402.3 YPG and 402.9 YPG respectively. On offense, they are passing for 264.8 YPG while rushing for 138.5 YPG. The defense is giving up 235.4 YPG in the air and 167.5 YPG on the ground.

Our Temple vs USF pick notes that QB Anthony Russo has thrown for 1,873 yards, connecting on 16 TD passes while completing 58.0% of his passes. Russo has tossed eight interceptions and has been sacked 11 times. Three wideouts have each grabbed 40-plus passes with Branden Mack taking in 43 for 629 yards and five scores. Running backs Re’Mahn Davis and Jager Gardner have each rushed for five scores. Davis is averaging 4.9 YPA and has accumulated 655 rushing yards. Gardner, who has 405 total yards, has been good for 4.0 YPA.

Owls Defense

The Owls have accumulated 20 sacks, five INTs, and 27 PD. Corner Harrison Hand tops the team in picks with three and PD with three. Hand is second on the team in tackles with 42. LB Shaun Bradley has the most tackles with 53. Ifeanyi Maijeh has accumulated six sacks for 50 yards. Maijeh has posted 35 tackles.

USF Bulls

The Bulls are performing in the same manner as the Owls. They’re scoring 26.1 PPG and allowing 28.4 PPG. Their offense is a bit less productive and a little bit stingier than the Owls’. USF is averaging 353.3 YPG on offense and 385.0 on defense. Their rush attack, which is their strength, has been good for 180.4 YPG. On defense, the Bulls have been able to control opponent passing games, allowing just 185.9 YPG.

Freshman QB Jordan McCloud has thrown 10 TD passes and six INTs. McCloud’s completing 55.6% of his passes and has thrown for 776 yards and been sacked 18 times. Senior QB Blake Barnett has also seen action, completing 51.9% of his passes. He’s hit for four scores and given up two picks. The receiving group is led by TE Mitchell Wilcox. Wilcox has caught 15 passes for 254 yards and four scores. There are five receivers who each have a minimum of a dozen catches. RB Jordan Cronkite leads the rush attack. On 108 carries, Cronkite has 587 yards and four TDs. He’s averaging 5.4 YPA. McCloud has run for four scores, averaging 4.1 YPA.

Bulls Defense</h3

The Bulls have posted 20 sacks, nine INTs, and 18 PD. Our Temple vs USF pick observes that the top performers include DE Greg Reaves and DB Nick Roberts. Reaves has 48 tackles, three sacks, and three fumbles recovered. Roberts has accumulated 47 tackles, two interceptions, and one PD. LB Patrick Macon tops the team with 58 tackles. He also has two sacks and two FF.

Our Temple vs USF Pick

Our Temple vs USF pick is taking the Bulls at +1.5. Despite questions at quarterback, we like the Bulls rushing game as well as QB McCloud’s versatility. We also find that the USF defense is deeper. We expect that the Bulls will also get a lifty from being at home.