On the morning of Halloween, four teams not in power conferences woke up undefeated.
It just so happened that one of them, the University of Toledo, had the day off as it made the transition to weeknight games, and another, Temple, had ESPN's College GameDay in Philadelphia for the national game of the day against Notre Dame.
Many Rockets were watching when the Owls pushed the Irish to the limit before a late rally fell short. In Temple — with its tough defense and productive running game — UT saw a lot of itself.
Toledo will find out in earnest how similar it is with the No. 24 Owls in the Boca Raton Bowl on Dec. 22.
Temple won some national respect against Notre Dame with its physical showing.
“That was almost eye-opening,” Toledo defensive end Trent Voss said.
“Their defense, they attacked. That’s fun to watch those guys really relentlessly attacking the football. It reminded me a lot of us. I think it’ll be a great matchup.”
Las Vegas agrees.
UT’s matchup with Temple is tied for tightest point spread of the bowl season.
The Owls opened as a one-point favorite for the game at Florida Atlantic University. Some outlets have no spread — a “pick ’em” for two teams that have more similarities than differences.
Each scored a landmark early season victory: Temple beat Penn State for the first time since World War II, and Toledo went into the renowned Southeastern Conference West and won, trumping Arkansas.
Both schools have spent exactly seven weeks in the Associated Press Top 25 poll, including two weeks next to each other.
Toledo has the best defense in terms of points allowed in the Mid-American Conference; Temple has the top defensive unit in the American Athletic Conference.
Jahad Thomas ranks second in the AAC in rushing with 1,257 yards, while UT’s running backs lead the MAC in yards.
For the Boca Raton Bowl, there is a definite fit.
“Phenomenal team, coached really well, good discipline — the things we preach here as well for this team,” UT quarterback Phillip Ely said. “I think it’s a great matchup and something we’re looking forward to.”
New UT coach Jason Candle has a tricky first game. In Temple, the Rockets have the one team in the Football Bowl Subdivision that is the most similar to them.
“Strong defensive football teams — both teams pay attention to running the ball,” Candle said. “To win and play well in November and December, you’ve got to be able to run the ball and stop the run, and I think both teams do a good job of that.”
The similarities go even deeper. Temple played in the MAC from 2007-11, which included the Owls’ blowout win at the Glass Bowl in 2009, and the Rockets’ blowout win in Philadelphia in 2011.
Both competed for the College Football Playoff’s reserved New Year’s Day bowl spot for the highest-ranked team in the Group of Five (nonpower conferences) before bowing out with two conference losses.
Temple coach Matt Rhule said he was thrilled to draw the Rockets because the matchup is so even.
“I’m looking at a team that people thought for most of the year would get the automatic bid to go play on New Year’s Day,” Rhule said. “I have a lot of respect for Toledo, and I think our bowl matchup will be significantly harder than a lot of people in our conference who are going to play big names.”
They even share similar Twitter hashtags. The Rockets’ company-approved Twitter tag is #ToledoTough. The Owls often use #TempleTough.
Seemingly, the only thing the two schools haven’t shared yet this season is a field. That will be resolved two weeks from today.
“I’ve seen their hashtag, #TempleTough. It reminded me of the real hashtag, #ToledoTough,” Voss said. “I was like, ‘Oh, that’s interesting.’ Let’s go see who's tougher.”
Contact Nicholas Piotrowicz at: npiotrowicz@theblade.com, 724-6110, or on Twitter @NickPiotrowicz
First Published December 8, 2015, 5:24 a.m.
