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UTSA football had the privilege of having all four Owl teams in the Football Bowl Subdivision on their schedule this season. They have played three of those Owl teams and gone 2-1, with the only loss coming at Rice last month as the Bayou City Owls got their first win against the Roadrunners since 2014.

On Friday Night, the Roadrunners face their final Owls of the season when they welcome Temple to the Alamodome for a nationally televised game on ESPN 2. It will be the third straight game for UTSA on ESPN 2 and the Roadrunners are hoping to make it three wins in a row before a national crowd.

There will be a lot at stake for both teams. UTSA is looking to get its sixth win of the season and punch a ticket to bowl eligibility. The Roadrunners are also looking to go 6-0 at home for the second time in program history.

Temple comes to San Antonio with a new interim head coach after Sean Drayton was let go on Monday. In his place is Everett Withers. Withers will be recognizable to Roadrunner fans as he was head coach at Texas State from 2016-2018. In his three seasons in San Marcos, Withers lost both games against the Roadrunners at home in 2017 and the Alamodome in 2018.

The Owls that Withers brings to the Alamodome this Friday are looking to get their fourth win of the season and spoil the party for UTSA. If Temple can get a fourth win this season, it would be the first time they reach four wins since 2019, when they finished 8-5 and closed out a stretch of five straight seasons with a winning record.

Friday will be the second time UTSA and Temple meet on the football field. Last season, UTSA visited Philadelphia for the first time and came away with a 48-34 win over the Owls. This time, the Roadrunners are hoping for another victorious result, but maybe not as much of a shootout as they had last season.

UTSA is one of two teams in College Football this season to be undefeated at home and winless on the road. The other is the Washington Huskies. The Roadrunners' split personality of a season has left them with a 5-5 record going into the final two games of the regular season. UTSA has won two in a row for the first time this season to get back to .500 and are hoping to make it three in a row with a win this Friday.

The Roadrunners have been outscored 320-312 through the first 10 games this season (32-31.2 per game). Temple has been outscored 350-291 this season (35-29.1 per game).

Last week, UTSA set a new school record with 685 yards of offense in the win against North Texas. That brought the Roadrunners to 4,499 yards of offense this season (449.9 per game). UTSA has thrown for 3,002 yards (300.2 per game) and run for 1,497 yards (149.7 per game). Temple's defense has allowed 4,059 yards to opposing offenses this season (405.9 per game). Opponents of the Owls have thrown for 1,903 yards (190.3 per game) and run for 2,156 yards (215.6 per game).

UTSA's defense has allowed 3,190 yards to opponents this season (319 per game). The Roadrunners opponents have thrown for 2,874 yards (287.4 per game) and run for 1,036 yards (103.6 per game). The Roadrunner defense will look to stop a Temple offense that has 3,071 yards this season (307.1 per game). The Owls have thrown for 2,105 yards (210.5 per game) and run for 966 yards (96.6 per game).

The Roadrunners have a couple of streaks they will look to continue on Friday. UTSA has gotten a sack of an opposing quarterback in 20 straight games. The Roadrunners also have a streak of 20 straight games with a takeaway on defense. That streak has helped UTSA to a minus-two turnover differential, but they will have a chance to improve that differential and keep the streak going against Temple. The Owls have a minus-nine turnover differential with 10 takeaways compared to 19 turnovers this season.

NOTABLE PLAYERS

Last season, the quarterbacks battled when UTSA and Temple met, but neither of those quarterbacks is still with the teams. Frank Harris has graduated from UTSA and EJ Warner transferred from Temple to Rice.

UTSA has found its heir to Frank Harris in the form of Owen McCown. McCown has moved up the school record books this season with 234 completions on 382 attempts for 2,743 yards and 22 touchdowns. McCown is three completions away from passing 2013 Eric Soza for third most in a season in school history. His attempts, yards and touchdowns are all the third most in program history for a single season in their respective categories. McCown has also run for 178 yards and a touchdown on 70 carries.

Temple has had three different players attempt a pass this season. Evan Simon is the top Owl with 141 completions on 232 attempts for 1,545 yards and 13 touchdowns. Forrest Brock has completed 60 of 103 attempts for 541 yards and a touchdown.

UTSA has had 18 different players catch a pass this season. Chris Carpenter and Devin McCuin are tied for the team lead with 37 receptions each. McCuin leads the team with four receiving touchdowns as well as 279 yards on his catches. Carpenter has one touchdown and 463 yards on his catches. Willie McCoy leads the Roadrunners with 484 yards and has scored three touchdowns on 24 catches. Houston Thomas leads the Roadrunner tight ends with 403 yards and three touchdowns on 27 catches.

Temple's top receiver this season has been Dante Wright, with 56 catches for 664 yards and four touchdowns. Landon Morris has 251 yards and a touchdown on 16 catches. Ashton Allen has caught 16 passes for 250 yards and two touchdowns.

On the ground, UTSA is led by Robert Henry. Henry has 114 carries for 528 yards and five touchdowns. Brandon High has 318 yards and four touchdowns on 54 carries. Kevorian Barnes has 219 yards and two touchdowns on 77 carries.

Temple's running game is led by Terrez Worthy. Worthy has 395 yards and four touchdowns on 67 carries.

UTSA has reached the final home game of the 2024 season and because of their struggles on the road, it is a must-win game for the Roadrunners if they want to get bowl eligibility.

Temple might be 3-7 on the season, but this will be their first game under interim head coach Everett Withers and they are coming off a win last week. The Owls would like to hand UTSA its first loss at home this season and force the Roadrunners to get that sixth win next week at West Point.

The Owls might hope to accomplish that but hope and accomplishment are two different things. Temple is 3-13 all-time in domed stadiums and they've never experienced anything like the Alamodome. Even though it’s a Friday night game for the second week in a row, the Alamodome crowd should still be able to make the noise necessary to provide a hostile environment for the Owls.

Perhaps it’s because it’s senior night. It's also possibly because it’s a chance to get to 6-0 at home, but whatever it is that motivates the Roadrunners, they will find a way to beat Temple on Friday night.

Oh, and the streak of games with a sack and a takeaway will continue for the Roadrunners.

UTSA 37 Temple 20

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