Temple Owls 2026 College Football Preview
Posted June 30, 2026
2025 Recap
Record – 5-7
ATS – 7-5
“It would kill some men to get that close to their dream and not touch it. They’d consider it a tragedy.”
— Ray Kinsella, Field of Dreams (1989)
The Owls got off to a hot start at 2-0. After understandable losses to Oklahoma and Georgia Tech, they kept rolling and climbed to 5-3, just one win away from bowl eligibility. The dream was right there. What could possibly go wrong?
Well, Temple proceeded to lose the rest of their games — all but one in blowout fashion — and once again spent the holidays at home.
Can Temple push for a bowl bid in 2026?
Temple Owls 2026 Outlook
OFFENSE
2025 By The Numbers (American):
- Scoring: 27.8 PPG (#8 American)
- Total Offense: 344.8 YPG (#11 American)
- Rushing: 147.4 YPG (#11 American)
- Passing: 197.4 YPG (#11 American)
- Sacks Allowed: 20 (#6 American)
It was monotonous and lame for the most part last year, and that was despite getting a fine performance from QB Evan Simon, who posted an impossible 25-2 TD-to-INT ratio and at one point had thrown 21 TD passes before his first INT. Yup, that happened. Unfortunately, it was a lot of CHUCK and DUCK and DINK and DUNK, without pushing the ball down the field and challenging the secondary.
The QB position is a bit of a mystery box right now, as there’s an ongoing battle between two unproven specimens in Jaxon Smolik (Penn St) and Ajani Sheppard (Wash St). Our bet is on Smolik getting first crack at the job, but we’ll see how things go in fall camp. In any event, it’s hard to say what kind of quality the Owls have in the room.
Temple loses RB1 Jay Ducker (809 yards, 7 TD) and have tried to backfill through the portal by adding guys like former Rutgers veteran RB Sam Brown. RB2 Hunter Smith is still kicking around, as is Keveun Mason, who averaged 6 yards a pop in limited action with the Owls last season. This looks like a decent committee, but there doesn’t appear to be a ton of upside. Time will tell.
The situation at WR/TE looks really good. The Owls retain three of their top four weapons, including WR1 Jojo Bermudez (500 yards, 4 TD) and stud TE Peter Clarke (483 yards, 16.1 avg, 6 TD), who’s one of the most lethal players at his position in the entire Group of Six. Temple also added a bunch of intriguing transfers, so the THROW GAME could really hum — provided that they, you know, find a decent quarterback.
And we’ve got another positive development to report. The offensive line is in excellent shape with the return of four starters, and they were pretty good in 2025, particularly in pass protection.
DEFENSE
2025 By The Numbers (American):
- Scoring: 29.7 PPG (#10 American)
- Total Defense: 396.8 YPG (#10 American)
- Rushing Defense: 197.3 YPG (#11 American)
- Passing Defense: 199.5 YPG (#3 American)
- Sacks: 16 (#12 American)
It wasn’t a complete disaster, but the Owls couldn’t set the tone in terms of stopping the run, defending the pass, or achieving PENETRATION. There’s hope heading into 2026 as Temple brings back three of their top four tacklers, and we can probably expect some improvement in DC Brian Smith’s second season in Philly.
The majority of the two-deep up front needs to be replaced, and it remains to be seen if they have any dangerous pass rushers on board. JUCO Davier Bishop could develop into something decent, as he booked seven sacks with East Mississippi CC last year and was named 2nd-Team All-MACCC. There’s a bit of size throughout the group and a few other transfers worth watching, but our best guess is that this remains a problem area for the Owls.
The Owls are set at LB with the return of leading tackler CURLY Ordonez (7 TFL) and Eric Stuart (#4 in tackles), and they’ve got a reliable presence in the secondary in senior safety Avery Powell (#2 in tackles). There are a few transfers that could make an impact, including some Power 4 imports, but we’ll have to see how things go.
SPECIAL TEAMS
Temple shouldn’t have to worry about special teams as they retain PK Carl Hardin (11/14 FG), punter Dante Atton (41.7 net), and PR JoJo Bermudez (15.0).
Schedule Analysis
Overall – The Owls open with Rhode Island, which should end up in the win column, but they’ll do well to book another victory in non-conference play. The American schedule is fair. They don’t have to deal with Tulane or UTSA, and they get to face a few bottom-feeders.
Potential ATS Trouble Spot – Nov 7 (at Navy)
Temple has to face the devastating Navy attack without extra time to prepare, and this will also be the second of back-to-back road games.
Season Win Total
Market consensus – June 30
Over 5.5 -110
Under 5.5 -120
MEGALOCKS says:
No leanage.
That looks about right. We give them about a 50/50 shot to make a bowl game as we approach press time.
Note – Our official list of season win total investments will be posted in the blog section of the website.
MEGAmazing Tidbits
Temple was the first university in the United States to adopt the owl as its official symbol. The choice was intentional — the school was founded as a night school for working-class students, and the owl represented a “night hunter” that could thrive when others were sleeping. That’s an AVIAN academia artillery trivia strike, delivered with maximum HEAT from the nocturnal overlords of North Philly, yo.
The Owls were on a disgusting 1–26 run (!) away from home since the start of the 2020 PLANDEMIC season. In year one of the K.C. Keeler operation, they did pretty well on the HIGHWAY, finishing 3-3.
You don’t even realize it, but you voted 890 times in the last Philadelphia election.
MEGALOCKS Forecast:
Head coach K.C. Keeler did a good job in year one, as the Owls won five games with a roster littered with holes. Sure, they collapsed down the stretch, but the teams they lost to in November were all legit.
There’s hope this season as the offense has potential if the QB situation sorts out — but we suppose that’s a big IF. Special teams and coaching won’t be a problem, but WHOA, NELLIE, that defense doesn’t look too stellar on paper. The schedule is fair, but they’ll have to pull an upset or two to make a bowl game. It won’t be easy, but we wouldn’t be shocked to see them in the postseason for the first time in a while.
Fight, fight, fight for the Cherry and the White!