When Tulsa and Temple meet Friday night in Philadelphia in American Athletic Conference play, both teams will be looking to break losing streaks in a season that has become slightly derailed.
Tulsa (2-4, 0-2 AAC) has lost three in a row and Temple (2-4, 0-2) has dropped two straight. The Golden Hurricane and Owls are tied for ninth in the conference ahead of only 1-6 South Florida.
Through its first four games, including a 35-27 loss to then-No. 16 Ole Miss, Tulsa’s offense managed to post points freely, but that productivity dwindled during setbacks against Cincinnati and Navy.
After his squad ran for just 25 yards on 18 carries in a 53-21 loss to the Midshipmen on Oct. 8, Golden Hurricane coach Philip Montgomery said a better effort on the ground will help quarterback Davis Brin open up the passing game.
“We got to get our run game more established,” Montgomery said. “I probably gave up on the run a little bit too quick, but we got to be better in that area.”
The Owls have struggled to move the ball, too, scoring a combined 16 points in consecutive road defeats against Memphis and UCF.
First-year coach Stan Drayton said he is particularly interested in the mental aspect of how his group responds to a humbling 70-13 walloping by the Knights in Orlando on Oct. 13.
“Every opportunity is a great opportunity to learn,” Drayton said. “We have an opportunity to learn who we are as a football team as a result of this loss. I need to see how they’re going to respond to this.”
E.J. Warner continues to get the bulk of the snaps, completing 86 of 153 passes for 1,040 yards. The son of former NFL star quarterback Kurt Warner has tossed six touchdowns against six interceptions.
Brin has thrown for 1,839 yards with 14 TDs and five interceptions for the Golden Hurricane.
The teams have split six career matchups. Tulsa won last season 44-10 by building a 27-0 halftime lead behind Brin’s two TD passes, while Temple claimed all three meetings from 2014-18.
