Monthly Archives: September 2018

09.30.18
by

Patenfraud and The Light Side Defense

Somewhere, Dave Patenaude, err, Patenfraud, is lighting up a cigar figuring he did a great job getting 27 points on the board for the Owls (remember seven came as a result as a fumbled kickoff).

Nothing could be further from the truth.

patenfraudpoll

Nobody in Philly likes him and he doesn’t care

Saturday’s 45-35 loss to Boston College was a team loss, no doubt, but one man who does not understand Temple football is getting in the way of greatness for this team and that’s Patenfraud.

Not only was his play-calling abysmal–now the ESPN announcers are seeing what we have been all year and hammered him for it–his personnel groupings are horrendous.

We won’t get into names here but Nos. 80 and 81 should be disqualified from the field for the rest of the season, not for targeting, but for being targeted in any play package going forward. Both not only dropped touchdown passes in each of the last two weeks but committed the exacta of having balls bounced off their hands and chests into drive-killing interceptions. Those two dropped certain beautifully thrown touchdown passes from Anthony Russo at BC. Isaiah Wright and Ventell Bryant should be the permanent wide receivers, period, end of story.


Nitro should be the
full-time fullback
leading the way for
Ryquell Armstead.
Russo, Armstead,
Nitro, Bryant and
Wright are by far
… BY FAR … your
best offensive players.
Keep them on the field.
There’s no need for
backups unless the
starters get hurt

Imagine if the two dropped passes were thrown to either Wright or Byrant, instead of 80 and 81?

We’d be talking about two touchdowns and a Temple win right now, and two touchdown passes by Russo in addition to four touchdown runs by Ryquell Armstead.

How is it that Rob “Nitro” Ritrovato makes a great play in special teams that results in a touchdown and he doesn’t see the field except for six more plays the rest of the game?

Nitro should be the full-time fullback leading the way for Ryquell Armstead. Russo, Armstead, Nitro, Bryant and Wright are by far … BY FAR … your best offensive players. Keep them on the field. There’s no need for backups unless the starters get hurt.

So far, they haven’t gotten hurt.

Put your best players on the field and accept the consequences, which probably will be quite good. Don’t lose the game messing around with backups and that’s what Patenaude has done all season in addition to a scatterbrained offensive scheme that doesn’t in the least resemble what Temple did in double-digit win seasons.

You want facts? How is it possible that Towson–with freaking TOWSON talent–scores 45 points on Villanova, Stony Brook 29 points and Temple scores only nine offensive points on that FCS team? How it is possible that a team with a terrific young quarterback in Russo, a great tailback in Armstead, a great fullback in Nitro and two great wideouts in Bryant and Wright gets ranked 112th in total offense (out of 127 teams)?

Patenaude, err, Fraud, that’s how.

Those are the facts, Jack.

Is the Towson offensive coordinator available?


Collins should be able
to see that the good
of organization must
supersede professional
coaching friendships.
Matt Rhule saw that
with his OC,
Marcus Satterfield,
and only by demoting
him after Year Two
allowed Temple to play
for a championship in
Year Three and win one
in Year Four. These Temple
kids are too talented
to wait that long
this go-round

Run Rock behind Armstead getting lead blocks from Nitro, control the clock and keep the sticks moving with the occasional play-action toss to either Bryant or Wright. Football isn’t rocket science. Those guys are your money players on offense. Keep them on the field for all four quarters. Give them the ball. No need to give it to anyone else, with the possible exception of the tight ends or the sure-handed Branden Mack.

That way, the game is managed with long drives, scores and that helps your defense.

If Geoff Collins doesn’t realize by now that Patenaude is the problem, then HE is the problem. Collins’ job is not nor should not be in jeopardy, but athletic director Pat Kraft can nudge him to put Ed Foley or Adam DiMichele in the OC role. Patenfraud is killing Temple. The coordinators are on year-to-year contracts and Temple won’t be out any money replacing them. Collins should be able to see that the good of organization must supersede professional coaching friendships. Matt Rhule saw that with his OC, Marcus Satterfield, and only by demoting him after Year Two allowed Temple to play for a championship in Year Three and win one in Year Four. These Temple kids are too talented to wait that long this go-round.

Defensive coordinator Andrew Thacker should also be on notice. Everybody and his kid brother knew Boston College tight end Tommy Sweeney was that team’s best receiver all week. How do you not stick your best safety, Delvon Randall, on him and tell him to be in his face all afternoon?

Speaking of that, can Collins please stop calling his defense The Dark Side Defense? No defense that gives up 45 points to anyone can be called a Dark Side defense. Until they shut someone out, like Chuck Heater’s defense did in back-to-back games in 2011, call them the Light Side Defense.

Stop the gimmicks and nicknames and play hard-nosed Temple football. If Collins and Patenfraud don’t know what that looks like, just pop in the tapes of the consecutive 10-win seasons, start taking notes and devising game plans that look somewhat like we all saw not that long ago.

It’s not that hard. It’s football, not rocket science.

Monday: Fizzy’s Corner

Tuesday: Where Have We Heard This Song Before?

 

09.28.18
by

BC-TU Preview: 5 Truths About The Game

dogsofwar

The old saying is that respect is earned, not given, and there is no better opportunity for the Temple football Owls to earn it by winning in Boston (technically, Chestnut Hill) Massachusetts in a high noon Saturday showdown.

Win, and the Owls finish the Power 5 part of their schedule a 2-0 record against pretty good teams. Lose, and the national commentators will point to the Maryland win as a fluke. Win, and the Owls are largely forgiven nationally (if not locally) for that brutal opening-game loss.

funfact

 

Addazio Effect Doesn’t Exist

Much will be made about the “Steve Addazio Effect” in this one but, in truth (there’s that word again), it does not exist. The single oldest player on this Temple squad, Frankie “Juice” Nutile, was recruited by Matt Rhule during his first year. “I really liked the pro-set offense that coach Rhule runs,” Nutile said on the day he was recruited. “I’m not going to lie, I’m not a read-option guy. I really like the direction coach Rhule has the program in and I think we’re going to be really good.” I’m sure the current players have heard of Daz, but none of them have a beef with him.  If this game occurred the year after Daz left for Boston College, you would have been able to see the fire come out of the Temple players’ helmets. These guys do not know Daz. That said, the 1,000 or so Temple fans who make the trip will be ecstatic to beat a guy who they were excited to see leave. There was much consternation at 10th and Diamond when Al Golden and Matt Rhule left. There was not a single Temple fan who was unhappy to see Addazio leave. If Geoff Collins beats him, he will be a hero in Philadelphia for a long, long time.

alumnistadium

The Temple fan section is O (for Owls) tomorrow

BC does not respect Temple

At least 99.9 percent of the fans don’t. Many of the comments on the main BC message board site about the game go something like this:

lock

Now that doesn’t mean the TEAM disrespects the Owls, but if that much of the fanbase does, it must filter down into the psyche of the team. A lot of the people are pointing to Villanova and Buffalo losses as a counter to the Owls beating Maryland, but none are factoring into the equation that a new quarterback starter probably had a lot to do with the positive results of the last two games.

quarterbackroom

 

 

QB Dilemma: The Easiest Decision in the History of Sports

Probably a non-issue–or what should be a non-issue–is the fact that, according to head coach Geoff Collins, “Frankie Nutile is getting close to 100 percent.” Err, why the rush? The easiest decision in the history of sports is to start a guy who is 2-0 with wins over Maryland and Tulsa over a guy who is 0-2 with losses to a MAC team and Villanova.

No-brainer means if you start anyone other than Anthony Russo you have no brains. If the Owls start Frankie Juice, they might win but they open themselves up to all kinds of unnecessary criticism if they don’t.

Maryland is Better than BC

No doubt, Maryland is a SIGNIFICANTLY better team than Boston College. My Vegas guy says if those two teams played tomorrow, the Terrapins would probably be a touchdown favorite.  Sagarin has Maryland ranked ahead of both Oregon and Boston College. That does not mean because Temple beat Maryland that it will beat Boston College but the Owls have no reason (zero) to be intimidated by the Eagles. On a physical level, the Owls pushed Maryland around and dominated. There is no reason to believe they cannot do the same on Saturday–especially if they utilize the same offensive game plan. Thing is, do you trust this staff to do that?

photoshopped

 

It comes down to Dogbe, Archibong and FBL

If the Owls defensive line stuffs Heisman candidate A.J. Dillon, they can dictate the game. Everyone at Temple knows Daz loves to establish the run and make explosive plays in the downfield play-action passing game. Michael Dogbe, Dan Archibong and Freddy Booth-Lloyd are proven run-stoppers and, if they are up to the challenge, Daz passes on third down and opens himself up to the kind of Mayhem that can be caused by edge rushers like Quincy Roche and starting tailback Ryquell Armstead. They have not been great against the run this year, though, but they need to at least be at the level of play they established in five of the last six games a year ago. If they are, third down could result in fumbles and interception opportunities for the Owls.

Sunday: Game Analysis

 

Temple Football Forever Picks This Week

Game Favorite Prediction/Reasoning
Northern Illinois at Eastern Michigan EMU by 3.5 Eastern Michigan won at Purdue and lost in overtime at San Diego State, which might be the best G5 team out there.

Eastern Michigan, 24-10
Virginia at NC State NC State by 7 Virginia beat a pretty good Ohio team badly two weeks ago. NC State is good, but not seven points better.

NC State, 20-17
Texas State at TCU TCU by 11 Texas State lost to Rutgers. TCU, 44-7
Purdue at Nebraska Purdue by 3 Much was made of Purdue’s 0-3 start but all were close games to good teams and the Boilermakers beat BC last week. Nebraska lost at home to Troy.

Purdue, 24-7
Louisiana Tech at North Texas North Texas by 7.5 North Texas went to Arkansas and won, 44-17. This is a legitimate squad.

North Texas, 31-10.
Florida Atlantic at Middle Tennessee FAU by 4 Lane Kiffin is highly motivated to position himself for another P5 head job. He’s got some talent.

FAU, 31-22

Last week: 5-1 overall, 4-2 Against The Spread

Season Record: 8-4

Against The Spread:7-5



09.26.18
by

The Irony of Temple-BC

Interesting that Daz takes credit for a practice facility that was largely built 10 years before he got here (16-minute timestamp).

Irony is one of the most misused words in the English language, but Saturday’s noon showdown in Chestnut Hill, Mass. between Temple and Boston College is dripping in this definition of it:

“a state of affairs or an event that seems deliberately contrary to what one expects and is often amusing as a result.”

In this case, the irony is not that the Owls will be facing a guy in Steve Addazio, who not only left Temple (after pledging eternal loyalty) for two years. That’s a coincidence, not ironic.

It will be simply this:

patenaude

You want facts? Patenaude’s offense for Temple (out of 127 teams): Passing=89th; Rushing=105; Team=112; Obviously, what he is doing is not working

 

Boston College is running the same offense Temple should be running now, while Temple is fumbling and stumbling through the same offense Matt Rhule struggled with in his first two years before abandoning it for one that personified the core principles of Temple TUFF established by Wayne Hardin and Bruce Arians and followed through by Al Golden.

By “deliberately contrary to what one would expect” we’re talking about the offense Daz ran here his second year, which broken down into basics was: run, run, throw (sack), punt. During his first year at Temple, Scot Loeffler was in charge of the offense and it was based on the concepts that the Owls always won by: Establish the run behind two tight ends and a fullback, force the safeties and linebackers up to the line of scrimmage where they would be susceptible to play-action passes. Loeffler went onto Virginia Tech after his first year here and Daz went back to the habits he formed at Florida. Now that Loeffler is in charge, Daz has made him “head coach of the offense” and that’s why the BC offense is succeeding where Temple’s is failing.

In Boston, it is run the ball behind an elite tailback (A.J. Dillon) and use play action to make explosive downfield plays in the passing game. Know any other team that has an elite tailback with explosive downfield receivers? If it doesn’t piss you off that Ventell Bryant and Isaiah Wright aren’t getting any separation, it should. It is not the fault of the kids, either; same players got routinely wide open under Matt Rhule’s play-action-oriented scheme. Those guys can do so much damage in a pro set but Patenaude wants nothing to do with it. In any other job, that would be considered malfeasance.

We saw a glimpse of that offense for Temple in Maryland, when the Owls were disciplined enough to stay focused in an H-back blocking look for their own elite tailback, Ryquell Armstead, whose success in the run game set up some nice play-action looks in the passing game for unbeaten quarterback Anthony Russo. Success in the run game allowed Russo to fake an out beautifully to Bryant (who sold it with a great leap) and that drew two Maryland defensive backs to Bryant, allowing tight end Kenny Yeboah to run free.

Yeboah and Chris Myarick not only blocked well but caught key passes to keep the sticks moving. Temple really had not used its tight ends effectively in the Dave Patenaude Error until that afternoon.

experienced

If it doesn’t piss you off that Ventell Bryant and Isaiah Wright aren’t getting any separation, it should. It is not the fault of the kids, either; same receivers got routinely wide open under Matt Rhule’s play-action-oriented scheme

 

Last week, against Tulsa, the Owls lapsed into the same unfocused look they showed in losses to Buffalo and Villanova. It was not a good look.

This is the same kind of crisis Rhule had after his second year at the helm. His talent dictated run/play action but his offensive coordinator at the time, Marcus Satterfield, was stubborn about running the spread look. Rhule had the cojones to demote Satterfield to wide receiver coach and hire a guy from the Atlanta Falcons, Glenn Thomas, who implemented a more pro-style look that coincided with the Temple TUFF brand.

So far, it looks like Temple head coach Geoff Collins is satisfied with handing the keys of his offense over to a drunk driver rather than someone with vision and sharp reflexes. Maybe that will change. Maybe it will be Saturday. We saw this movie before, though. All last year and three of the four games this year.

It’s like Waiting for Godot.

The essence of great coaching is to get the most out of the talent you have, not the talent you want. Establish the run behind a great tailback in Ryquell Armstead following a great blocking fullback in Rob Ritrovato and immensely talented receivers like Bryant,  Wright and Branden Mack can get the kind of separation they need to cause serious damage.

Boston College runs the exact same offense Temple should be running with its personnel. That’s irony. The Temple challenge on this Saturday will rest in being smart enough to fight BC’s fire with some of the same fire of its own.

Friday: BC Preview

09.25.18
by

Fizzy Closes Book on Tulsa Game

arloandjanis

Thanks to Thomasine for forwarding this great cartoon

Editor’s Note: I usually arrive five hours before the game and, at the Buffalo game, saw Fizzy drive in five minutes before the game. Hopefully, he’ll get there a few hours before the Oct. 6 ECU game and we can finally meet up. This first paragraph below is the reason I leave plenty of time to get to the games.

By Dave (Fizzy) Weinraub

I was driving to the stadium Thursday night, when I tapped this guy’s bumper in front of me.  He got out to look at the damage and I really felt bad because he was a dwarf.  When he looked at his bumper and saw a small dent, he said, “I’m not happy.”  I replied, “Well, which one are you?”

OK sports fans, here we are again.  If you were predicting Temple’s record at this juncture before the season began, you’d have probably said 3 – 1.  So we’re 2 -2, but I’m not happy either.

I’m aware that I keep interjecting my football philosophy on Temple’s coaching staff, and that may or may not be constructive.  So today, I’m just going to list some occurrences, and you make up your mind.

Offense

 

  1. Opening drive – Fourth and a half-yard for a first down at your 49-yard line.  What would you do?  (Temple punted, although it has a 350-pound tackle who scored a short-yardage touchdown the previous week. )
  2. Three second and tens on offense, what play would you call?  (Temple went up-the gut.)
  3. With a third and eleven pinned against their goal line, Temple ran up-the-gut.  What would you do?
  4. On a third and one in good field position near the end of the game, Temple threw a pass from a direct snap.  What would you have done?  (Hint: play action)
  5. Wright finally threw a pass from the Wildcat, but it was a flare.  Would you maybe throw downfield?
  6. Would you ever run the second reverse of the year?

Defense

  1. Tulsa had a number of third and longs, how would you line up?  (Most of the time Temple went into a three-man line prevent which gave the QB lots of time.)
  2. Tulsa drove down the field before the end of the first half.  Would you have blitzed at all?
  3. Temple kicked off in the second half with a high short kick that enabled Tulsa to get field position at their forty line.  What would you have done?
  4. Tulsa had a first and goal at our four-yard line.  Would you line up in a 4 – 3?
  5. Temple either lines up in a 4 -3 or a three-man rush/prevent.  Would you ever employ any other type of defensive alignment?
  6. Armstead made a super tackle on defense.  Would you let him play more, less, or not at all on defense?

 

General Comments  (I served under General U.S. Grant)

There were some great offensive calls like, once again, the fake punt on fourth and two for a big gain, a (gulp) bootleg throw, and some nice play action and sweeps.  I’ve been very impressed with the accuracy of QB Russo’s throws.  Remember, there were two clear drops in the end-zone for touchdowns, as well as two clear drops on the sidelines for long gains.  Without our two defensive touchdowns, the score would have been 17 – 17.  I have noticed, however, there’s been a definite uptick in imaginative play calls.

On defense, I believe our number 90, Quincy Roche, had a fantastic day pressuring the QB, and helped save the day.  His speed and strength overwhelmed Tulsa’s right offensive tackle.  However, everyone we’ve played so far has successfully run up the middle against us.  Is there an answer anywhere?

Next Saturday, we have Addazio.  Someday, I will tell all about the infamous, Addazio, Dr. Pete Chodoff, and Fizzy Weinraub altercation.

Tomorrow: The Irony of BC-TU

 

09.24.18
by

If Omarosa had Nadia’s job …

bruceletter

Nadia has been around so long, she probably typed this letter

Fortunately, there’s no person more loyal in the history of Temple athletics than football administrative assistant Nadia Harvin.

She’s a Temple treasure, just like Wayne Hardin, John Chaney and Skip Wilson were with a tenure spanning eight Temple head football coaches (which is about as many Popes as there were in the entire 20th century).

Still, you’d have to wonder what would have happened if Nadia would have moved on with Matt Rhule to the Power 5 and Dr. Pat Kraft hired Omarosa to replace her.  A cell phone would have been cleverly placed in the conference room, probably attached to the lower end of the table. The tape of this morning’s coaches’ meeting would have been released and it might have gone something like this:

nitro

Geoff Collins: First of all, I’d like to thank you guys for showing up at 5 a.m. I’m not sure many of the people on the outside know that we are the hardest-working staff in the nation. Still, we’ve got to clean some things up if we are going to beat Boston College and I’d like to have some of your guys’ thoughts.

Ed Foley: Coach, I see one problem with the Tulsa game. It was great that we scored a pair of touchdowns on defense but that’s not sustainable going forward. We need the offense to step it up, maybe get Isaiah Wright more involved.

Collins: Dave (Patenaude), any thoughts?

Patenaude: None. I haven’t had my coffee. My mind is pretty much blank at this hour.

Collins: Adam (DiMichele)?

DiMichele: I thought we had a great scheme for the Maryland game with running the tight ends in motion and having Rock (Armstead) follow the block through the hole. That set up a lot of second and twos and allowed Anthony to play action and gave our receivers separation. For some reason, we got away from that against Tulsa and fell into the bad habits of an empty or single backfield that we had against (Villa)nova and Buffalo. None of our guys could get any separation against Tulsa because we didn’t establish the run nor use play-action.

Collins: Dave, I see that Nadia went out to Dunkin Donuts to get your coffee. What do you think about what Adam just said?

patenaude

Patenaude: Even though it was successful against Maryland, I’m just not comfortable with that style of play. Who plays that way anyway?

DiMichele: We did that under Al (Golden) and Matt (Rhule) and, although I wasn’t around, I hear the (Wayne) Hardin and (Bruce) Arians’ guys did, too. Not only did we have the tight ends go in motion to block, but they also ran ahead of the fullback and they were knocking linebackers and safeties all over the place and our tailbacks had huge holes. It made my job as the quarterback a lot easier. When we established the run, all I had to do was fake it to the tailback and that would freeze the linebackers and the safeties right there for a split second and my guys were running so free through the secondary, I really didn’t know which one to pick out.

Patenaude: That’s not the way we did it at Coastal Carolina. We spread the field, had a single back or even an empty backfield, and threw the ball all over the lot. Nice, tight windows.


“The essence of
Temple TUFF is
to play great
defense and special
teams, but also have
a focused
knock-them-off-the-ball
mentality on offense and
we’ve lost that the past
couple of years. We’re
all over the place on
offense. We need to get
back to our roots”

Foley: Matt recruited most of these kids to run double tight ends and fullback. Hey, it worked against Maryland. Against Tulsa, we were making it harder on Anthony (Russo) than we needed to because the receivers were getting no separation. He put it on the money but every catch was a more difficult catch than it should have been. The essence of Temple TUFF is to play great defense and special teams, but also have a focused knock-them-off-the-ball mentality on offense and we’ve lost that the past couple of years. We’re all over the place on offense. We need to get back to our roots.

DiMichele: As a QB, I can tell you it’s a lot easier with play-action. Hell, against Navy, with the clock running out at the end of the half, I faked a knee and Bruce Francis was 50 yards behind the nearest defender. That was the easiest six points I ever had. Navy was so worried about us running the ball they had eight in the box.

Patenaude: But, Geoff, I’m not comfortable with the offense ADM is describing.

Collins: I’ve heard enough. We’re going back to the same game plan we had against Maryland. Run the H-backs in front of Rock, establish the run, and then hit some explosive plays in the play-action game. I want to see Nitro in there more than three plays a game to block for Rock, too.

Patenaude: I object. Who uses the fullback anymore?

Collins: As of Saturday, we do. If you don’t like it, I’m going from Capri pants to a Speedo.

Patenaude: That’s not a good visual. Please don’t do that, Geoff.  I’ll do what you say.

Collins: I think we resolved a lot of issues this morning. Thanks, gentlemen.

Tuesday: Fizzy Closes The Book on Tulsa

Wednesday: The Irony of Temple-BC

Friday: BC Preview

Sunday: Game Analysis

09.22.18
by

AAC: Separating Wheat From Chaff

darkside

Unless Dave Patenaude returns to the blocking H-back look shown against Maryland, the darkside defense is going to have to score twice every game for Temple to have a chance at a league title.

There is an old saying in farming about separating the wheat from the chaff. It means to sort the valuable from the worthless and refers to the ancient practice of winnowing the grain.

Over the years, the saying has been applied to sports teams and today will be the first one we will be able to start to sort the AAC wheat from the chaff.

slimpickings

My guess is that the two teams that played Thursday night,  Temple and Tulsa, are in the upper half of the league simply because how Tulsa hung with Texas and Temple hammered a team that beat Texas. The Longhorns are a legitimate squad and we think Maryland will cover the 3 today against a halfway decent Minnesota team.

Pretty sure I can’t say the same for any other AAC teams with the possible exception of UCF, USF,  Cincy, Memphis and Navy.

dogsofwar
History shows if the Owls go with the middle uniform here, they are more likely to win than not

All of the other AAC teams might be inferior to Temple and Tulsa.

So what can we learn from today’s games?

Cincy is an eight-point favorite over Ohio, with Tulane a 36-point underdog to Ohio State and USF a 22.5 favorite over ECU. Memphis is a  29-point favorite over  South Alabama. Of those games, I would only lay the eight on Cincy. The others are too close to call. To me, taking the 29 points and South Alabama is a pretty good bet.

Last night, UCF looked great in a big win over an underrated Lane Kiffin FAU squad. This could be the kind of a year where everyone gets behind UCF and hopes for second place. Still, McKenzie Milton is one hit away from opening it up for the rest of the league.

After today, Temple, Memphis, Navy, Cincy and USF are jockeying for those spots. We should learn just a little bit more after the completion of the slate today and even more next week.

Monday: What We’ve Learned

Wednesday: BC-TU Is Dripping in Irony

Friday: BC Preview

Sunday: Game Analysis

09.21.18
by

Lapsing Into Old Habits

Mike Schmidt may have said it best about sports in Philadelphia.

“Philadelphia is the only city in the country where you can experience the thrill of victory one night and the agony of reading about it in the paper the next day.”

Schmitty might have been onto something because, while Temple’s 31-17 win over Tulsa was a cosmetic success, the reality is that the Owls will have to be better in order to beat Boston College.

tulsa

The good news is that they have been better and they have the game tape to prove it. Thrilling victory, but you’ve got to wonder if the Owls are lapsing into old habits, particularly on the offensive end. The Owls showed a lot of good habits a week ago at Maryland by putting the H-back in motion and having their elite tailback, Ryquell Armstead, follow the extra blocker through the hole. If you thought that would be a staple of the offense going forward, OC Dave Patenaude disabused fans of that notion by rarely showing that look against Tulsa.

If the Owls are going to beat another Power 5 team and challenge some of the better teams in the AAC, they might want to go back to what worked so beautifully a week ago. Armstead not only ripped off some big runs off those motion blocks, but the running game set up open lanes in the passing game.

Who knows why they lapsed back into the scatterbrained look they showed against Buffalo and Villanova but they need to shake those bad habits now. Quarterback Anthony Russo delivered a lot of balls on the money but it only seemed half of them were caught because the receivers were not getting the same kind of separation they did a week ago. That running game and that motion created the separation the Owls need to reincorporate that back into their game plan against the Fighting Steve Addazios in a week and a day.

To me, any win is a good win but some are better than others and last week was definitely better than this week and next week needs to be better than the last two. Hopefully, the Owls will take a hard look at the Maryland film and conclude that last week’s scheme is the way to go.

Otherwise, they risk needless agony when they could have endless thrills.

Saturday: This Week in College Football

Monday: What We’ve Learned

09.20.18
by

The Whole World Will Be Watching

Last year’s Temple vs. Tulsa highlights …

Walk into a bar on any given Saturday as a Temple fan, even in Philadelphia,  and the drill has become a familiar one over the last half-century, maybe before that.

Between fighting the Penn State fans and the fraud Notre Dame subway alumni and the front-running Alabama fans, you’d be lucky to get someone to put on the Temple football game somewhere on the side with no one to watch but you. Forget about asking for the sound to be turned up, either.

thurweather

At least the weather should be good

 

Not tonight (7:30, ESPN).

The whole college football world will be watching with the sound blasting in every bar from the Northeast corner of Maine to the farthest western island in the Hawaii chain. My guess is that the crowd would have been in excess of 30K if the Owls took care of business against Villanova and Buffalo in addition to winning against Maryland. Instead, the hit from those two disappointing games will be around 8K so expect an announced crowd in the 22K range. Anything more would be a bonus.

While those die-hards like us will be there, this, though, in a made-for-TV affair like most Temple home games. The difference this time is the Owls will have a captive audience and can enhance their brand with a big win.

OK, sure, there will be an NFL game on but, hey, it’s the Jets and Cleveland which leaves most of the TVs on Temple and Tulsa.

So this is a big opportunity for Temple to establish that the Maryland game was no fluke and to prove what the rest of the team believes: That the Owls who dominated a 2-0 Big 10 team who beat Texas are the team fans should have seen from Day One.

A convincing win over Tulsa would be step two in restoring a damaged brand because so many people who otherwise not ever watch a Temple game will be there—either on the couch or in local establishments—watching.

More importantly, all of the Owls’ preseason goals are still on the table. The No. 1 goal has been to win the league championship and, to do that, the Owls will probably have to win all the AAC games they are favored in plus grab at least one win against UCF or USF(those two could cancel each other out).

It will not be easy because this is a Tulsa team that hung with Texas (28-21) in Austin before losing to Arkansas State by essentially the same score (29-20) at home the next week but winning a championship is never easy.

If the Owls play the way they did the first two games, they could easily lose this one. If the Owls play the way they played last week, there is no reason to believe they can’t win by at least a similar score against Tulsa.

To me, on the list of reasons why the Owls lost their first two games right at the top was the refusal to run the ball against a horrid run defense (Buffalo) and an FCS team that gave up 45 points against Towson. The Owls committed to the run behind a blocking lead back against Maryland and that opened up the passing game for Anthony Russo. That’s the way they won 20 games in two years and the way they can still accomplish the goals set for this year.

The Owls will play a lot of games after tonight but, chances are, this will be the most eyeballs on them in any of them even including a possible bowl. This is their big chance to make a good impression.

Tomorrow: Game Analysis

09.18.18
by

Russo: Collins’ First Litmus Test As CEO

russocollins

By 7:30 p.m., on Thursday, we will find out if Geoff Collins is either the Miller Huggins of Temple football or the Gabe Kapler.


Patenaude has a documented
history of making mistakes
in sticking with quarterbacks
too long. He went with his boy,
Logan Marchi, for seven games
and that cost the Owls embarrassing
losses to teams like UConn

The big question Collins has to answer is if he will take charge and name Anthony Russo the starting quarterback.

The evidence would suggest he should. Frank Nutile, the starter at the beginning of the season, threw interceptions all over the place in losses to FCS Villanova and MAC Buffalo. He did not look confident nor show the kind of arm he did in five of his last six games last year. Maybe Nutile was injured all along. Maybe he just had a sore arm.

Whatever, Anthony Russo, his replacement, looked confident and sharp and managed a convincing win over a Big 10 school that beat probable Big 12 winner Texas.

No-brainer, right?

HugginsMiller

 

“Psst: Geoff. It’s me. Miller. Miller Huggins. Trust me: Start Russo”

 

Only if you let someone with no brains make the wrong decision. After the game, offensive coordinator Dave Patenaude said “Frankie should be OK for Tulsa” and that statement leads me to believe that this OC is leaning toward putting Nutile back into the saddle. Patenaude has a documented history of making mistakes in sticking with quarterbacks too long. He went with his boy, Logan Marchi, for seven games and that cost the Owls embarrassing losses to teams like UConn. Only the “luck” of an injury to Marchi reversed Temple’s season.

My guess is if Dave Patenaude was managing the New York Yankees back in 1925, Lou Gehrig would have never seen the field.

Huggins, then the Yanks’ baseball manager, passed his first litmus test as a manager.  If the Hugger were still alive, he would able to pass on some valuable Cliff Notes to Collins for his upcoming litmus test.  On June 2, 1925, Huggins told Gehrig that “(Wally) Pipp wasn’t doing too well” and Huggins thought a few days of rest would do him good.  Lou Gehrig took over the rest was history. Gehrig went on to play 2,632-straight games—the longest consecutive streak in baseball or any other sport until Cal Ripken Jr. came along.

Knowing Gabe Kapler, who probably will not make the Hall of Fame, this is what he would have said: “I have full confidence in Wally and, even though Lou did well, Wally is not going to lose his job because of an injury.” It’s probably the same deal with Patenaude and this is where Collins has to put his foot down.


… it’s not even a tie.
Russo was significantly
more impressive in his
game—against a foe that
would destroy both Buffalo
and Villanova—than Nutile
was in his two

In baseball, one of the axioms is “the tie goes to the runner” and, in college football, the tie in performance goes to the younger quarterback over the redshirt senior. Crazy enough,  but, in the case of Russo and Nutile, it’s not even a tie. Russo was significantly more impressive in his game—against a foe that would destroy both Buffalo and Villanova—than Nutile was in his two.

In college football, if it’s even close, the decision goes with the younger player.

In this case, as in Gehrig’s, the better one. Now is the time for Collins’ first litmus test as CEO of the Temple football operation.

In less than 48 hours, we will find out whether Geoff Collins is closer to Miller Huggins than he is to Gabe Kapler. We can only pray he is the real boss and doesn’t cede this authority to an incompetent subordinate.

If he does, he is a weak leader who won’t last long at Temple. Or anywhere else for that matter.

Thursday: Tulsa Preview

 

09.17.18
by

Maryland: Strange Case of Jekyll and Hyde

hyde

Editor’s Note: Fizz checks in on his thoughts about the Maryland game.

By Dave (Fizzy) Weinraub

In the original story, a lawyer named Gabriel Utterson investigates the prominent physician Dr. Jekyll, who transforms into the murderous Mr. Hyde.  In this version of the story, I will take the place of lawyer Utterson.  The dual personalities of Jekyll and Hyde will be played by Dave Patenaude, the Temple offensive coordinator.

power

Utterson (to Inspector Hodges):

“It was most remarkable. During the first three offensive possessions, Mr. Hyde was running the offense.  It was the same old Broad Street Offense… handoffs up-the-gut on first down, followed by straight passes with no fakes from an open backfield.  When the passes failed, it was up-the-gut on third and long.

Hodges (to Utterson):

“Then what happened?”

Utterson:

“From what I heard, there was a timeout and Mr. Hyde went to the men’s room. When he came back to the coaches’ box, he was most composed and dapper.  He’d morphed into Dr. Jekyll, and the offense was completely different.  All of a sudden there was deception in the backfield.  Receivers and running backs were going in motion and coming back to QB before the snap, sometimes getting the ball and sometimes faking. There were even tight-end screens and the defense didn’t know what was happening.  Then, QB Russo started to roll out which gave him plenty of time to  look downfield and throw very accurate passes (except for the time when he looked directly at his receiver doing a sideline pattern and was intercepted for a pick six.)   Amazingly, I saw what may be the best offensive call in Temple’s history.* On a fourth and two, Temple ran a fake punt and a reserve QB threw a touchdown pass that changed the game.”

Hodges:

“Wow!  Was that all?”

Utterson:

“Not by any means.  Russo threw a touchdown pass on a designed play where the wideout broke to the sideline and jumped up and down drawing his man and the safety. Meanwhile, the tight end ran a stop and go and was wide open down the sideline.  This is the first time since this new coaching staff took over last year, that we’ve seen imaginative and deceptive play design.”

Hodges:

“So it was a cake walk after that?”

Utterson:

“Unfortunately, no!  It was really strange.  There was a TV timeout with six minutes left in the third quarter, and Dr. Jekyll’s assistant left the booth.  When he came back, he was so startled he had to change his shorts because Mr. Hyde was once more looking at the field.  Everything then reverted back to the Broad Street Offense.  It seems that Mr. Hyde was once more playing not to lose.  Two of the most curious play calls occurred on third and on long, deep in Maryland’s territory.   On both occasions, he ran his famous up-the-gut play for no gain, and I thought he was trying to set-up a field goal.  But no, he then threw deep from a straight drop-back on fourth down.”

Hodges:

“So what clinched the game?”

Utterson:

“Well, again it was weird.  Maybe Mr. Hyde rubbed off some on the defense which had played so aggressively and outstandingly to that point and not allowed any points.  The defense seemed to relax a little, used some three-man rushes, and Maryland began to be effective with both the run and the pass. The game was saved from being a nail-biter by linebacker Bradley who had an 83-yard interception return for a touchdown.”

Hodges:

“So what’s your conclusion in regards to the coaching staff?”

Utterson:

“Inspector, if you arrest Mr. Hyde and lock him in the basement of Conwell Hall, perhaps this coaching staff will finally learn to be aggressive at all times.”

* This author made mention that the fake punt on fourth and two was possibly the best offensive call in Temple’s history.   Undoubtedly, the worst call was when I was handed the ball against Delaware in 1959, and lost three yards.

Tomorrow: What We’ve Learned