SMU Mustangs vs Temple Owls 10/20/2023 – On Friday night, American Athletic Conference (AAC) football will take center stage on national television for all to enjoy. SMU Mustangs (4-2, 3-3 ATS, 2-0 AAC) take on Temple Owls (2-5, 1-6 ATS, 0-3) for a conference battle that is sure to provide high-stakes action! Let’s dive deeper into this Friday night football spectacle. The NCAAF Betting Picks are updated on our NCAA Football betting website as these teams square off in this important game.
SMU Mustangs vs Temple Owls 10/20/2023 Game Info
| When: | Friday, October 20, 2023 |
| Time: | 7:00 PM ET |
| Where: | Lincoln Financial Field |
Rhett Lashlee vs Stan Drayton
SMU’s Mustangs have made an outstanding start to their 2017-18 campaign, showing their prowess on the field in each of their six games so far this year. Notably, in these six matches the maximum margin of victory or defeat has been 17 points; among all AAC teams only Tulane, Florida Atlantic and UTSA remain undefeated in conference play!
SMU Mustangs Show Strength on the Field
For the Mustangs, this game represents an ideal opportunity to earn their third road conference win of the season. Their last victory against East Carolina showed their capabilities with quarterback Preston Stone amassing 273 yards while contributing three touchdown passes against none interceptions to lead his team to an emphatic 31-10 triumph.
Stone, a 6’1″ sophomore quarterback has been essential to SMU’s success this year. Currently he ranks second in the AAC for passing touchdowns, with 14 to his name so far and just five interceptions for an average passing yards per game of 244.5 and completion rate of 57.1% – giving him an impressive QBR (Quarterback Rating) rating of 61.4 that places him 57th nationwide.
Jaylan Knighton has been a constant presence for SMU running back Chad Stone, averaging 59.7 yards per game while scoring two touchdowns this year. Stone’s offense does not rely on one receiver; rather, four pass catchers amassed between 204-223 receiving yards – Jordan Kerley leads this group with 223 receiving yards and two touchdowns; nine different players have caught touchdown passes this season as evidence of SMU’s balanced approach to scoring touchdowns.
NCAAF Latest Odds: SMU -14.5 ; O/U 57.5
SMU has shown its offensive capabilities by ranking third in the American Athletic Conference with 33.3 points per game, and leading the conference with only 17.0 allowed per game allowed against. Their defense has recorded 16 sacks over six games but only four turnovers have come their way thus far.
Temple Owls Encounter Difficulties
While starting their season out strong with an impressive 2-1 record, the Temple Owls eventually encountered difficulty. Three consecutive losses to AAC opponents combined with failed spread coverage proved tough on Temple during a tough stretch for their season. Their only coverage occurred against Norfolk State FCS school where they won and covered a 31.5 point spread win/coverage victory.
Warner’s Top Performance
E.J. Warner is an impressive 6’0 sophomore quarterback for Temple who currently ranks third in the American Athletic Conference with 1,741 passing yards and averages 248.1 yards per game this season, averaging 248.1 per game on average. Additionally, Warner boasts an outstanding 12-5 TD-INT ratio and 56.1 QBR that ranks him 80th nationally. Although Warner missed last week due to a concussion, previous performances demonstrate his potential; against UTSA for example he threw for 472 yards and five touchdowns without interceptions – exactly what Temple needs in order to cover this 19.5-point spread!
If Warner becomes unavailable due to injury, Temple may turn to Quincy Patterson instead, who in his last game struggled by throwing three interceptions and going 12-30 for 105 yards passing. If that is indeed the case, Temple may focus on its running game more with Patterson providing assistance through the backfield with his recent performance of 113 yards as a rusher in one game.
Amad Anderson Jr. has been one of the Owls’ standout wide receivers this season, averaging 56.3 yards per game while scoring one touchdown.
Temple currently ranks 11th out of 14 AAC teams for scoring, averaging 21.9 points per game. Their defense, however, ranks 12th by allowing 35.6 points per game; safety Tywan Francis leads in tackles with 55 and they have recorded 11 sacks over seven games with Diwun Black leading with 3.5. Unfortunately they only managed two takeaways thus far: an interception and one fumble recovery.
SMU Mustangs Betting Trends
Southern Methodist are 3-6 ATS in their last 9 games.
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Southern Methodist’s last 8 games.
Southern Methodist are 8-4 SU in their last 12 games.
The total has gone UNDER in 9 of Southern Methodist’s last 11 games on the road.
Southern Methodist are 5-1 SU in their last 6 games against an opponent in the American Athletic Conference.
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Southern Methodist’s last 5 games against an opponent in the East Division.
Southern Methodist are 12-4 SU in their last 16 games played in October.
Southern Methodist are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games played in week 8.
Temple Owls Betting Trends
Temple are 1-6 ATS in their last 7 games.
Temple are 1-5 SU in their last 6 games.
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Temple’s last 5 games against Southern Methodist.
Temple are 2-4 ATS in their last 6 games at home.
Temple are 1-15 SU in their last 16 games against an opponent in the American Athletic Conference.
Temple are 0-8 SU in their last 8 games against an opponent in the West Division.
Temple are 2-7 ATS in their last 9 games played in October.
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Temple’s last 5 games played on a Friday when at home.
SMU Mustangs vs Temple Owls 10/20/2023 Betting Pick
It is anticipated that as the game between SMU and Temple progresses, E.J. Warner will return from concussion to assume quarterback duties for Temple. Warner has shown promise recently with increasing connection to receivers boding well for their chances. His performance against Southern Methodist demonstrated this effectively; throwing for over 400 yards and five touchdowns showed just how big an impactful player he can be in any given game.
While SMU’s defense appears impressive on paper, further analysis reveals that specific matchups have inflated its defensive statistics. They’ve faced relatively weaker opponents and these matchups benefited them significantly; Warner, who ranks near the top in passing yards among conference quarterbacks, could present SMU with formidable challenges against its defense.
Temple has Warner back at the helm and the excitement of playing on home soil in a nationally televised game is sure to put up a fight against SMU, who may find the 19.5-point spread daunting given the circumstances of this matchup. Football enthusiasts can anticipate an exciting display of talent and strategy come Sunday at Temple Stadium when Temple and SMU face off for an AAC showdown matchup. The sports betting apps favor the Mustangs to secure an easy win.
Score Prediction: Mustangs 41, Owls 7.
