I'm always wary of people I don't know patting me on the back.
It's those people who I always meet with an askanse eye, checking to see if there's a knife in the other hand.
I learned this lesson as it relates to Temple football early in the season, as early as late August.
in front of a billboard
of himself
After a few visits to the MAC bulletin board, a healthy number of posters wished Temple good luck against Army and, by the way, come back with a win.
Nobody mentioned that Army was a bad team in any of those 37 posts.
Yet, after Temple beat Army, 35-7, a roughly equal number of posts all carried this troubling theme:
"Good win against Army but, let's face it, that's the worst Army team we've seen in years."
Why?
Because it lost to Temple, 35-7?
Obviously, that was the unsaid message.
Nobody is saying that any more because it really carries no weight, not after what Army did to Tulane (44-13) in New Orleans this past weekend.
Let's face it: The rest of the MAC, with notable exceptions such as Karl Smith of PhillyBurbs.com, hates Temple.
Or at least a good sizeable portion of the MAC fanbase dislikes the Owls.
They mitigate anything good the Owls have done by saying "yeah, but." After Army, it was "yeah but" and after Miami it was "yeah but."
I respect a guy like Joe Paterno of Penn State a lot more. Not only does he slam the Big East refs for costing the Owls two games against UConn, he says his team's 45-3 win would have been "a lot closer" had "the DiMichele kid not been knocked out so early. I feel sorry for Temple."
You know Joe means what he says.
There are two guys running MAC websites who have NEVER picked the Owls in a game against another MAC team, yet the Owls have won two MAC games on the road and more at home in the last three years.
UConn. It completed a pass
on the first play of overtime
that took the ball down to the 1
and it was called back on a hold,
which was a bad, bad, bad call."
_Penn State coach Joe Paterno
on his statewide radio show
The motive is simple.
Nobody wants a ex-BCS team kicked out of a BCS conference coming in and dominating a league known for some pretty good football.
Nobody wants a team carrying a bad "brand name" like Temple carrying the conference's championship trophy around Ford Field come December. It doesn't matter that the Temple they are thinking about is the "same old Temple" and not the group of Grade A recruits hauled in by Al Golden the past three seasons.
That's why I'm wary about this week's game at Central Michigan.
well-played, game decided
by the kids on the field
and not the adults
wearing prison outfits
It was manifested last year in a home game against Northern Illinois when one side judge called 10 of the 11 penalties, almost all bogus, against the Owls in a 16-15 win.
It was manifested against visiting Western Michigan a couple of weeks ago when the MAC supervisor of officials apologized to Temple for calling a sideline interference call on the Owls' coaches after Temple got a crucial third-down stop and was able to force WMU to punt in the fourth quarter.
The guy who called the sideline interference call? Same guy as in the NIU game. He should be fired or at least investigated.
Good officiating means never having to say you're sorry. It's gotten so ridiculous at times this year that every time Temple makes a big play or scores a touchdown, I expect to see a flag.
This kid LeFevour is really good. Central Michigan purchased a billboard (pictured) of him and put it in the middle of the Detroit stadium complex. He's a load to worry about on his own, playing for a good team. I don't want to worry about him AND the officials, yet two days before the game that's just what I'm worrying about.
Let's hope for a clean, well-played, game decided by the kids on the field and not the adults wearing prison outfits.
What they're saying about the Owls:
... "They out-physicaled us up front. It's really the first time we've come out of a game feeling like we didn't control the line of scrimmage. Even Nebraska, we kind of thought was a wash." _ Western Michigan coach Bill Cubitt talking about Temple...
... "I was told by a lot of people before the game that Temple is really good but, man, this team has all kinds of weapons." _ Ohio News Network sports director Andy Raskin during the telecast of Temple vs. Miami on ESPN360.com...
..."What my Owls have done this year--and I will call them 'my Owls' because I've been on this team since the beginning--is sensational considering they lost their starting quarterback. ... Maybe people are starting to realize that this is one of the top defenses in the country." _ Vegas handicapper Robert Ferringo...
..."They have high-caliber athletes all over the place. That's the hardest-hitting team we've played all year. I've never been this beat up after a game." _ Western Michigan offensive guard Phil Swanson...
..."It was just two great teams. Both Temple and us have made great strides and I don't think there are two better teams in our league than us and them." _ Buffalo tight end Jesse Rack, after a Hail Mary pass beat Temple, 30-28, at the buzzer...
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