Barstool BushChronicling the Barstool Universe

Temple Owls at Navy Midshipmen

Nov 7, 20262:30 PM CTCBSSNAnnapolis, MD
By JR·2 min read
Temple(2-7)
Navy(3-6)
35—42
FINAL

TLDR: Navy led 28-0 and still needed a touchdown with 1:14 left to beat a Temple team that had lost 3 straight. Jackson Gutierrez scored that one too, his 5th of the day, and the Midshipmen held on 42-35 in Annapolis.

FINAL · SAT NOV 7, 8:30 PMCBSSN
Temple
(2-7)
LLLLW
35
Navy
(3-6)
WLLLW
42
Final1Q2Q3Q4QT
TEM
0772135
NAVY
14147742
Buzz #36Kickoff 58°13 mph

Navy beat Temple 42-35 in Annapolis behind Jackson Gutierrez, who ran 30 times for 180 yards and a career-high 5 touchdowns and threw a 49-yard score to Jordan Collins. The Midshipmen led 28-0. Temple scored 35 of the next 42 points and tied it with 5:35 left, before Gutierrez's 5th rushing touchdown, with 1:14 remaining, decided it. Navy's run game won the game, and its leaky defense nearly gave it away, which was the shape the preview expected.

Temple Owls
  • Scored 35 of the game's last 42 points
  • Smolik-to-Freeman 25-yard TD tied it at 35
  • 21-point 4th quarter, 26 more than the ECU output
  • Fell behind 28-0 before scoring
  • Gutierrez ran for 180 yards and 5 TDs
  • Gave up a 49-yard TD pass to a tight end
Navy Midshipmen
  • Gutierrez: 30 carries, 180 yards, 5 rushing TDs
  • Collins turned 2 catches into 112 yards
  • Game-winning drive finished with 1:14 left
  • Blew a 28-0 lead at home
  • Allowed 21 points in the 4th quarter
  • Offense leaned entirely on 1 player

The preview said Navy's offense would run through its quarterback, with running backs L. Walker and J. Chalmers both out. It ran through him all afternoon. Gutierrez carried 30 times for 180 yards and a career-high 5 rushing touchdowns. He also threw for 178 yards, including a 49-yard touchdown to tight end Jordan Collins, who finished with 112 yards on 2 catches. Navy scored 6 touchdowns, and Gutierrez ran in 5 of them and threw the other.

The first half went exactly the way Temple feared. Navy scored 14 in each of the first 2 quarters and led 28-0 before the Owls got on the board. Before the game, the question was whether Temple could slow a quarterback who carries 28 times after East Carolina ran for 222 on it. The answer was no. Navy's option had dry footing, 58 degrees and clear skies at kickoff, and it moved the ball whenever it wanted for 30 minutes.

The scoring tells the rest. The preview called Temple's season a series of low-scoring fistfights and Navy's a string of track meets, and said whoever got their kind of game would probably win. It became a track meet, and Navy won it, barely. Temple's offense had scored 9 points at East Carolina and was missing 2 receivers and tight end Peter Clarke. It put up 35 in Annapolis, 21 of them in the 4th quarter.

The other half of the preview's Navy read held up too. This defense gave up 38 and 49 in back-to-back October games and let Notre Dame score 28 straight. Then it let Temple score 35 of the game's last 42 points. Jaxon Smolik's 25-yard touchdown pass to Jayce Freeman tied it 35-35 with 5:35 left. That was a 28-point lead gone in about a half and a quarter. The search didn't settle whether linebacker Eric Stuart made it back for Temple, and with Gutierrez going for 180 it didn't matter much either way.

Navy got the ball back level and handed it to the one player Temple never answered. Gutierrez's last touchdown came with 1:14 remaining, and Temple had no comeback left. The Midshipmen ended a 3-game skid and moved to 3-6. Temple has now lost 4 straight, and a comeback from 28 down still leaves the Owls at 2-7.

Temple Owls
(2-7)
11/07L@Navy35-42
10/31L@East Carolina9-17
10/17LvsCharlotte31-38
10/10LvsUConn20-34
10/03W@South Florida17-13
Navy Midshipmen
(3-6)
11/07WvsTemple42-35
10/31Lvs3Notre Dame13-35
10/24LvsNorth Texas39-49
10/18L@UTSA34-38
10/10WvsTulsa34-26

For Navy, the win comes with a warning. It now has a quarterback who can carry an entire offense with the backfield in pieces, and that's a real thing to build on. It also has a defense that couldn't protect 4 touchdowns at home against one of the AAC's lowest-scoring teams. Temple showed a passing game that can still make plays without its injured pass catchers, but nobody in its front 7 could tackle the quarterback.

Free Picks
Temple 35, Navy 42: Final Score & Odds Recap — Gutierrez Runs for 5 Scores as Navy Survives Temple Comeback