Temple was able to overcome a mistake-filled effort by rallying in the fourth quarter for a 30-16 win over lowly Central Florida at Lincoln Financial Field on Saturday night.
Jahad Thomas ran for the go-ahead score with 14:03 remaining in the game. He had a huge night with 199 yards and three touchdowns.
Temple improved to 6-0 (3-0 American Athletic Conference) to maintain the program’s best start since 1974. The Owls also became bowl eligible for the second straight season with the victory.
UCF dropped to 0-7 (0-3 AAC) with the loss.
Turning point
With three more fumbles Saturday — including two muffed punts — who could have guessed that one of Temple’s biggest plays of the night would come on a punt return?
That was the case early in the fourth quarter when defensive back Sean Chandler, who was guilty of muffing the previous punt, fielded one deep in Temple territory and broke free from a wave of bodies to hit the sideline for a 65-yard return to the UCF 21-yard line.
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Two plays later, Thomas found daylight off right tackle and burst into the end zone for what would be the game-winning touchdown.
Big men on campus
It’s all Thomas, all the time for Temple.
The junior running back rushed 31 times for 199 yards and three more touchdowns on Saturday. Thomas now has 11 TDs for the season. Thomas also added three catches for 25 yards in the win.
Redshirt freshman wide receiver Ventell Bryant was active for Temple, with 40 yards on five catches and the first touchdown of his career.
On the defensive side of the ball, Tyler Matakevich racked up eight tackles and an interception to lead the Owls. Jarred Alwan contributed seven stops, while Chandler snagged his second interception in as many weeks.
For UCF, Shaquill Griffin’s 80-yard interception return for a touchdown was the Knights’ lone TD of the night. It was also UCF's first INT of the season.
UCF kicker Matthew Wright made field goals of 48, 27 and 41 yards.
Inside the box score
• Temple fumbled three times on Saturday night. That gives the Owls 15 fumbles (nine lost) this season.
• Temple tailback Thomas has a rushing touchdown in every game this season.
• Matakevich's eight tackles pushed him across the 400-tackle plateau for his career. The linebacker now stands at 407 career tackles.
• Temple scored a touchdown on its opening drive for the first time since last season’s 35-24 win over Tulsa (Oct. 11, 2014).
• The victory moved Temple head coach Matt Rhule into 10th place on the Owls' all-time wins list with 14, ahead of his predecessor Steve Addazio.
History
Saturday marked the third ever meeting between Temple and UCF, with the Owls notching their first win in the series.
The other matchups came in each of the previous two years. The Owls suffered a 34-14 loss in 2014 and a heartbreaking 39-36 defeat to the then-No. 17 ranked Knights in 2013.
What’s next?
Temple has a quick turnaround, as the Owls will travel to face East Carolina at 7 p.m. on Thursday night.
Meanwhile, things don’t get any easier for UCF. The Knights will head home for a noon matchup on Saturday against No. 24 Houston.