School records were set & the visiting team was careless with the football during the 21st ranked Bulls 43-7 dominating win over the Temple Owls. The Bulls remained unbeaten at 4-0 by forcing Temple into six turnovers & not allowing an offensive touchdown. Quarterback Quinton Flowers rushed for two touchdown, setting a school-record, while kicker Emilio Nadelman went five for five on field goal attempts, tying a school-record for field goals in one game.
The Bulls took the lead in the 1st quarter after the first of two interceptions by cornerback Deatrick Nichols set them up on the Owls on the 26 yd line. Strangley enough the Bulls totaled 5 plays -1 yard after the interception but kicker Nadelman was able to hit a 44 yard field goal for the game's first score. The Bulls managed to take that lead into the second quarter, although they had 40 penalties yards, while only totaling only 36 yards.
Two plays into the 2nd quarter the Bulls got the first touchdown of the night when running back Darius Tice took the handoff, busted through the middle for a 47 yard TD run, giving the them a 10-0 lead. The run was Tice's fifth touchdown of the season
.After the Owls were forced to punt from their own six, Owls' punter Alex Starzyk kicked traveled only 19 yards, setting the Bulls up on Temple's 25 yard line. Two plays later Flowers ran 22 yards for a touchdown, giving USF a 17-0 lead. The touchdown by Flowers was his 33 career rushing touchdown, making him the USF career record for rushing touchdowns, breaking Marlon Mack's previous record.
The Owls weren't able to muster any offense in the first half, gaining just 41 total yards & converting only two third down conversions., while allowing the Bulls to gain 229 total yards. And after another field goal by kicker Nadelman, this one 28 yards, increasing the Bulls' lead to 20-0. But Temple was able to break USF's shutout on the defensive side of the ball when defensive lineman Jacob Martin stripped quarterback Flowers & returned the fumble 44 yards for a touchdown.
After USF started the second half with a three & out, Temple continued to give the ball right back to the Bulls on their own first three possessions of the second half, first on an interception by cornerback Devin Abraham, then a fumble on Temple's quarterback/center exchanged. Abraham's interception led to another Tice touchdown run, his second, this one a three yard run. And the next two turnovers, a fumble recovery & interception both by linebacker Nico Sawtelle led to field goals by kicker Nadelman, giving the Bulls an insurmountable 33-7 lead, considering at the time, Temple had six turnovers, which was double the amount of first downs they had for the game.
The Bulls added ten points in the fourth quarter on a one yard run by Flowers his second of the night & Nadelman's fifth field goal. With the win the Bulls remain the only unbeaten team in the American Athletic Conference & gets their first conference win of the season. Next USF travels to East Carolina to take on the Pirates on Saturday September 30th.