How and what to watch for No. 18 SMU vs. Temple

The 18th-ranked SMU Mustangs will be looking to keep pace in the AAC when they take on the Temple Owls Saturday at 12 p.m. ET in Philadelphia. In last season’s matchup, SMU blew out Temple 45-21 at home.

The Mustangs (6-1) are coming off of a 51-37 win over the Navy Midshipmen on Halloween night. SMU needed the victory as they were dominated by the Cincinnati Bearcats in Week 8. Against the Midshipmen, senior quarterback Shane Buechele had a flawless performance. He completed a season-high 82.1 percent of his passes for 300 yards and three touchdowns.

Sophomore wide receiver Rashee Rice caught two of Buechele’s three TD’s, part of his five receptions for 46 yards. Additionally, freshman running back Ulysses Bentley IV led both teams in rushing with 149 yards on 25 carries and two touchdowns. The true freshman also led the Mustangs in receiving as he had four receptions for 68 yards. Bentley could be in store for another 100-yard performance as the Owls’ defense has given up 213.5 rushing yards per game this season.

As for Temple (1-3), they are coming off of a humiliating 38-3 road loss to the Tulane Green Wave. Senior quarterback Anthony Russo did not play as he was sidelined with an AC joint injury. Temple head coach Rod Carey turned to redshirt sophomore quarterbacks Trad Beatty and Re-al Mitchell. But both quarterbacks struggled last weekend in their first-ever game, with Beatty completing 11 passes on 18 attempts for 122 yards and an interception. Mitchell had 23 passing yards to go along with 37 rushing yards, which led the Owls.

Carey told reporters on Monday that Russo will not play on Saturday, meaning he will go back to the two-quarterback tandem. However, Beatty will get the start. For the Owls to have any chance of keeping the game close with SMU, they will need to get sophomore running back Re’ Mahn Davis going on the ground. This season, the Mustangs’ defense is giving up 193.7 rushing yards and allowed Navy to run for 191 yards last week.

Game Time/TV Channel/Streaming

You can watch SMU vs. Temple on Saturday, November 7 at 12:00 p.m. ET on ESPN+, or you can stream it via ESPN app with a cable or streaming service login.

Point Spread, Totals, Odds, Trends

Point spread: SMU (-17.5) vs. Temple
Point Total: O/U 62
Money line: SMU (-835), Temple (+500)

• SMU is 4-2 against the spread in its last six games.
• The point total went over in 13 of SMU’s last 20 games.
• Temple is 1-4 against the spread in its last five games.
• The point total went under in four of Temple’s last six games when they are the underdog.

Betting splits

SMU: (57% of handle, 69% percent of bets)
Temple: (43% of handle, 31% percent of bets)

The Best Bet

The Owls struggled last week without their starting quarterback Anthony Russo against an average-at best Tulane Green Wave squad. This week, sophomore QB Trad Beatty will be making his second collegiate start for Temple. But they face an SMU team that has no problem putting up points on offense, averaging 44.3 points on the road. This is an easy choice: Take the Mustangs and lay the points.

Pick: SMU -17.5

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