Tackling an issue: Owls have to contain the run at Navy

Temple linebacker Jordan Magee knows the Owls must play much better against the run Saturday if they want to take down an American Athletic Conference rival in Navy that does almost nothing but run the ball with its traditional triple-option offense.

Although Navy has had its struggles in a 2-5 start, the Midshipmen have the nation’s fourth-best rushing offense at 247.4 yards per game. Magee and the Owls’ defense are coming off a 27-16 loss to Tulsa in which they allowed 299 rushing yards to a Golden Hurricane team that came into last Friday’s game with the second-worst rushing attack in the American Athletic Conference ahead of Temple.

The 6-foot 3-inch, 225 pound linebacker leads the team in total tackles with 45 with 7.5 tackles for a loss, along with 3.0 sacks on the season. Magee and the Owls will be looking to get their first conference win since their homecoming victory against the Memphis Tigers back on Oct. 2 of last year, which means Temple is on a 10-game conference losing streak.

In an interview with OwlScoop.com following Monday’s practice, Magee talked about what exactly the Owls will need to do to come out with their first conference win in more than a year.

You can listen to Magee’s interview here and read some excerpts from it below.

Magee on how the defense is getting ready for a run heavy Navy team:

“Just getting ready, being physical, really being disciplined in our gaps because it is a triple-option team. So they have a dive with a QB run and a QB pitch to one of the wings, so it’s just really about being disciplined and being gap down.”

Magee on the importance of forcing turnovers and scoring points on defense:

“If we get out to an early lead, it really helps the offense because when we put points on the board, that’s just taking away from their job a little bit, and taking a little pressure off their backs.”