Talking about UCF

Temple lost to USF 34-14 on Saturday night in a showing that didn’t put many positives on film.

Tuesday, safety Alex Odom, wide receiver Randle Jones, and linebacker Yvandy Rigby were made available to the media.

In regards to Saturday’s game, Rigby said he believed “the game plan we had was perfect.” Obviously, that wasn’t the case. The Bulls gained 34 first downs to Temple’s eight, racking up 421 yards on the ground along the way.

USF’s rushing attack accounted for 80 percent of the team’s total offense.

Odom had a few explanations for why his team struggled on Saturday. One of those was the issue of missed tackles.

“People were trying to make a play,” the second-year freshman said, “but were going to the wrong spots and seeing the wrong things.”

That led to two USF running backs rushing for over 125 yards, with another rushing for 80.

A bright spot for the Owls against USF was the return of Jones. The senior receiver hauled in four catches for 100 yards and a touchdown in his return from a leg injury that kept him out for three games.

“It felt good trying to get that rhythm back,” said Jones, who caught a 70-yard touchdown pass from D’Wan Mathis in the second quarter to get Temple on the scoreboard.

Jones described the USF loss as a “learning curve for the whole team.”

Looking ahead to UCF, the Owls will be in for more of the same. The Knights will be without QB Dillon Gabriel for another week and utilizing a two-quarterback system.

Odom described the Knights as “USF, but better,” mentioning running back Johnny Richardson, who is currently averaging 6.3 yards per carry. For an Owls team allowing 221 rushing yards per game, Richardson could spell trouble.

In Rigby’s eyes, the Owls, “just have to play fast and stay disciplined.”

“They have a lot of decent players, like us,” said Rigby, who’s third on the team in total tackles with 40 and tied for the team lead in sacks with three. “We just have to see them on the field.”