Mistakes pile up in Tulsa's 31-17 loss at Temple

Tulsa’s defense was solid on Thursday night, and the offense moved the ball effectively at times, but the Hurricane couldn’t overcome numerous mistakes in its 31-17 loss to Temple in Philadelphia.

Luke Skipper passed for 195 yards, but he also had three interceptions and two fumbles that were recovered by the Owls. Tulsa linebacker Cooper Edmiston had two interceptions, the second leading to a 5-yard touchdown run by Corey Taylor to pull the Hurricane within 28-17 early in the fourth quarter.

However, on Tulsa’s next possession, Skipper fumbled the ball away, and Temple tacked on a field goal for the final margin.

Ryquell Armstead ran for 108 yards and a touchdown for the Owls, and the Temple defense scored on two of its five turnovers. One was a pick six, and the other was a scoop and score.

Temple freshman Ty Mason returned an interception 36 yards for a 7-0 lead, and Karamo Dioubate returned a fumble for a 50-yard score in the third.

Corey Taylor picked up 96 yards and two scores on 23 carries for Tulsa, and Justin Hobbs caught nine passes for 78 yards.

Tulsa posted 403 yards of offense while holding Temple to just 300 total yards.TU gained 32 first downs to just 16 for Temple. The Hurricane converted 4-of-5 fourth downs and 13-of-23 third downs, but it still wasn’t enough to make up for the myriad of mistakes, including giving up six sacks.

After the Owls opened the scoring with the interception for the touchdown, Tulsa countered with a 3-yard touchdown run by Cory Taylor. The drive went 16-plays and 75-yards.

Temple would score twice in the second quarter for a 21-7 lead. Quarterback Anthony Russo punched it in on a one-yard run, and Armstead hit the end zone from 22 yards out. Tulsa kicked a field goal at the end of the half and trailed 21-10.

On the opening drive of the second half, Skipper fumbled twice, losing the second, as defensive tackle Karamo Dioubate returned it 50-yards for a touchdown to make the score 28-10 Temple.

Early in the fourth quarter, Russo's pass was bobbled and picked off by Edmiston, which led to a 14-play 53-yard drive and a scoring run by Taylor to make it 28-17 with 9:58 left to play. Tulsa got the ball back, but Skipper was sacked by linebacker Sam Franklin, causing a fumble that was recovered by Temple.

The Tulsa defense forced a punt, but it was a fake, and Temple ran the ball down to the 16-yard line, eventually kicking a field goal to go up 31-17. The Owls intercepted Skipper once again on the next drive, and the game was effectively over.

• Tulsa’s opponent has now scored a defensive touchdown in 3 of 4 games this year --- a total of 4 defensive TDs for Tulsa’s opponent.

• Tulsa gave up two defensive TDs at Temple – an INT return and a fumble recovery. It was the second straight game that an interception was returned for a touchdown against Tulsa (Arkansas State, 53 INT return).

• It’s the second game this year that the opposition has had a fumble recovery for a TD (UCA, 0 fumble recovery).

• Tulsa trailed at halftime for the third straight week, trailing Temple 21-10.

• Tulsa’s 235 first-half yards were the most in the first half this year for TU, and the first game since the opener (UCA, 205 yards) that Tulsa went over 200 yards in the first 30 minutes.

• Tulsa has had multiple turnovers in each game this season with a season-high 5 at Temple. The 5 turnovers are the most since 6 turnovers vs. Ohio State in 2016.