Temple's record is 2-4, but its losses look different from Charlotte's. The Owls lost 48-49 at Toledo and 17-21 at home to Army. Their best result was a 17-13 road win at South Florida. UConn then beat them 20-34 at home, which ended whatever good feeling the USF win built. These are close losses, not 50-point ones, and that's the difference between the two teams in a sentence.
Charlotte has lost 5 straight and hasn't scored more than 21 points in any of them. It's put up single digits 3 times. The defense has given up 41, 34, 59 and 50 in 4 of those games. The closest result was a 21-26 loss at App State, which is the only real evidence Charlotte can keep a game close. Temple's defense hasn't been great either: it gave up 49 at Toledo and 34 to UConn. But it held Army to 21 and USF to 13, so there's something to work with.
The Smolik foot injury matters most for Temple, along with receiver R. Stocksdale's hamstring, which has kept him on the questionable list since early September. If both play, Temple should be able to move the ball against a defense that's given up 50 or more twice in its last 5. If Temple is down a quarterback and a receiver, a Charlotte defense that badly needs takeaways could hang around.
The early forecast for Lincoln Financial Field is 59 degrees, light drizzle and a 10 mph wind. That's not a washout, but wet hands aren't good news for the turnover leader in FBS. Charlotte will be playing for a first win in conference play at 0-2. Temple is 1-1 in the league and trying to stay in the bowl conversation.