The Temple Owls and the Toledo Rockets will square off in the Boca Raton Bowl. Toledo has a 9-2 record coming into this game, while Temple has a record of 10-3. Players will take the field Tuesday, Dec 22 at 7:00 p.m. ET and the game will air on ESPN.
In its last game, Toledo was defeated by Western Michigan 35-30. Phillip Ely had an outstanding performance throwing the ball in the loss, connecting on 16 of 33 pass attempts for 280 yards and two TDs. Kareem Hunt also had a big day, contributing 139 rushing yards and a TD on 20 attempts. Temple also came up short, getting beat by Houston 24-13. Robby Anderson had a big game for the Owls, registering 12 catches for 150 yards and one TD. P.J. Walker had a big game as well, totaling 287 yards and a TD through the air.
Temple is a slender one-point favorite in this game and the Over/Under (O/U) is sitting at 55 points.
Heading into this bowl game, the Rockets are 9-2 for both Straight Up (SU) and Against The Spread (ATS). Over their last five games, the Rockets have records of 3-2 for both SU and ATS. Over its last five games, the Toledo rushing attack has averaged 224.6 yards per game. Transitioning to the Toledo defense, there are some things to keep in mind when it is on the field. The Owls might have a difficult time running the ball against the 14th-best run defense in the nation. The Rockets give up 118.2 rushing yards per game. One of the keys to the game will be whether the Owls can protect the ball against Toledo’s aggressive defense. It’s ranked 25th in the nation in fumbles recovered with 0.9 per game. The Rockets make it hard on their opponents in the second quarter. Toledo averages 11.4 points during that period, one of the best in the country. On special teams, Toledo has some playmakers. They average 113.2 return yards per game, 16th in Division I.
Over on the other sideline, the Owls head into this bowl game with records of 9-4 ATS and 10-3 SU. The Owls went 3-2 for both SU and ATS over the last five games. The Rockets are matching up with Temple’s defense at an inopportune time. Over the last five games, Temple’s opponents have only averaged 166.6 yards through the air. Toledo’s quarterback needs to be careful against the Owls. Their defense ranks 23rd in the country in interceptions with 1.2 per game. The Owls generally save their best for last, averaging 9.5 points in the fourth quarter. Toledo’s special teams has given up some big plays this season, possibly enticing the Owls to work a little extra on the return game. The Rockets allow 132.7 return yards per game, ranking 122nd in the nation.
Predictions: SU Winner – Toledo, ATS Winner – Toledo, O/U – Over
Notes
Toledo is 12-2 SU in its last 14 games.
The total has gone UNDER in 8 of Toledo’s last 11 games.
Toledo is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games when playing Temple.
Temple is 7-0 SU when leading at the half this season. Toledo is 8-1 SU when taking a lead into halftime.
Temple is 3-1 SU this season in games where it wins the turnover battle, and 4-1 SU in games where it loses the turnover battle.
The Toledo defense has forced an average of 2.0 turnovers over its last five games, but Temple is 4-1 SU this season when turning the ball over at least 2.0 times in a game.
The Toledo run defense is ranked 14th in the country this year, and will look to contain the 91st-ranked rushing attack of Temple.
