PHILLY COLLEGE SPORTS FOOTBALL WEEK IN REVIEW
Villanova Wins CAA Opener, Temple Falls Short at Penn State, Penn Drops Season Opener
Games of September 17th, 2016
TEMPLE – Overall 1 – 2, 0 – 0 American Athletic Conference
Result – Lost 34 – 27 at Penn State
Summary – The Owls were looking for their first win at State College. Temple stayed in contention getting to within three points in the fourth quarter, but a late turnover snuffed out their chances of a comeback. Trailing 27 – 17 in the final quarter the Owls recovered a Nittany Lions fumble off a punt at the one-yard line. Jahad Thomas scored his second touchdown of the game at the 8:10 mark to cut the deficit to 27 – 24. Penn State responded with a 55-yard touchdown run by Saquon Barkley to regain the double-digit advantage. The Lions had 403 yards from scrimmage, and had pass plays of 52, 52, and 45 yards. One of the 52 yarders was a scoring play from quarterback Trace McSorley to wide receiver Chris Godwin that gave PSU a 7 – 0 lead. For Temple quarterback Phillip Walker completed 25 of 34 passes for 286 yards with one interception. He added a rushing touchdown. Running back Jahad Thomas saw his first game action of the year.
Next Game – September 24 vs. Charlotte at the Linc – Noon Kickoff
#22 VILLANOVA – Overall 2 – 1, 1 – 0 CAA
Result – Won 41 – 20 vs. Towson at Villanova Stadium
Summary – The Wildcats showed offensive balance in the win against the visiting Tigers of Towson in their CAA opener. Quarterback Zach Bednarczyk threw three touchdown passes completing 20 of 26 attempts for 230 yards, none were picked off. He found wide receiver Taurus Phillips seven times for 110 yards and 2 scores. Villanova led 26 – 14 at halftime. In the second half the Wildcats turned the game over to their staples, defense and the running game. The defense held Towson off the scoreboard until late in the game. The Tigers had chances, but Villanova intercepted a pass in the end zone, got the ball back on downs, then defensive back Rob Rolle intercepted a pass and returned it 100-yards for a score. It set the school record for the longest interception return for a touchdown. Rolle was named the CAA Defensive Player of the Week. Running back Javon White rushed for 80-yards and crossed the goal lone twice.
Next Game – September 24 at Lafayette – 6 PM Kickoff
PENN – Overall 0 –1, Ivy League 0 – 0
Result – Lost 49 – 28 vs. Lehigh at Franklin Field
Summary – The Quakers started out playing well on offense, and played the Lehigh Mountain Hawks to a 28 – 28 halftime tie. Penn could not score for the rest of the game. Lehigh opened the second half with a 9-play, 65-yard drive that took 2:23 to establish the lead when quarterback Nick Shifinsky hit Micco Brisker for a 6-yard score. Trailing 41 – 28midway in the fourth the Quakers punted downing the ball at the Mountain Hawks three-yard line. Lehigh covered all 97 yards over 12 plays for the final margin of victory. Shifinsky completed 28 of 41 passes for 317 yards and 3 touchdowns. He was intercepted once. Troy Pelletier had 10 catches for 123 yards and one score. Lehigh gained 548 yards on offense. For Penn quarterback Alek Torgersen gained 86 yards rushing crossing the goal line two times. He went 16 for 29 in the air gaining 222 yards throwing two touchdown passes. Both scoring tosses went to Justin Watson who snared 8 passes for 133 yards and added 15 yards rushing. Watson eclipsed the 100-yard mark for the fifth straight game, and six of the last seven. Torgersen has a touchdown pass in 19 of his 21 career games, and has either passed or ran for a touchdown in seventeen straight games. Linebacker Colton Moskal had a career-high tying 11 tackles.
Next Game – September 24 at Fordham – 1 PM Kickoff
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