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Temple vs. Notre Dame- A Game Temple Fans Nor Philadelphia Will Never Forget

By John Knebels, 11/01/15, 11:45PM EST

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PHILADELPHIA -There’s a classic scene from the original Rocky movie in which Rocky Balboa is giving Apollo Creed more than he bargained for, and Apollo’s manager has seen enough.

“He doesn’t know it’s a damn show,” he says to his protégé, who is already bruised and battered. “He thinks it’s a damn fight. Now finish this bum and let’s go home.”

They can offer as much politically correct rhetoric as they wish, but there is no way that the University of Notre Dame took Temple University seriously heading into Saturday night’s nationally televised contest.

Despite the Owls formidable ranking (21st in the nation) and undefeated status (7-0), the ninth-ranked Fighting Irish (now 7-1) were favored to leave South Philly winners, and, according to most of the national media, they would do so rather handily.    

And, leave South Philly winners they did. However, Notre Dame’s 24-20 triumph in front of a Lincoln Financial Field record crowd of 69,176 was as much a huge relief for the visitors – the word “survival” comes to mind – as it was simply heartbreaking for the locals.

It was the kind of game for Notre Dame that, deep down, probably felt almost like a loss because the Owls proved without question that they were every bit as good as the Irish and were “this close” to being even better.

“They made one more play than we did,” said Temple coach Matt Rhule, visibly drained physically, emotionally, and mentally as he stood before a throng of media. “I couldn’t be prouder of them. We fought. We scratched and clawed. We proved we’re a really good football team, one of the better teams in the country.”

Rhule was asked if losing by four points to a traditional powerhouse was a moral victory. Not surprisingly, Rhule said that his program couldn’t allow terms like “moral victory” in its lexicon.  

So while the rest of the city, one not accustomed to following a Temple football game eight weeks into a season, was probably thrilled that a blowout loss did not pollute the week-long hype, the Owl players, according to Rhule, fully expected to defeat the vaunted Fighting Irish.

Among those who emerged a Temple believer was Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly.

“They’re a very good football team,” said Kelly. “It starts with their defense. They did some very good things on the offensive side of the ball so I don’t want to take anything away from their quarterback or running back or receivers. They played very, very well. I just think (Temple’s success) starts with their athleticism and speed on defense.”

The Owls fell behind, 7-0, in the first quarter but responded with 10 straight points, going ahead for the first time on a 12-yard TD pass from quarterback P.J. Walker to Brandon Shippen. The Owls trailed, 14-10, at halftime and 17-10 in the third before tying the game on a fourth-down, one-yard run by Jahad Thomas (82 yards on 21 carries).

After Thomas dropped a short third-down pass in the flat that would have given Temple a first down, the Owls settled for a 36-yard field goal by Austin Jones to take a 20-17 lead with only 4:45 left in the fourth quarter.

But this is Philadelphia, the home of four major sports franchises that have won a grand total of one championship since 1983. So a show of hands from those who figured that Notre Dame would somehow find a way to ruin the tailgate hangovers?

You weren’t alone.

Sure enough, the Irish marched 75 yards on six plays to score a go-ahead touchdown with 2:09 remaining in regulation, the wound made worse because the guy who caught the TD pass was local product Will Fuller, a Roman Catholic graduate who is among the best receivers in the entire nation.

“We kept battling and battling,” Rhule said. “Even up until the last play, I thought we had a chance.”   

The Owls’ desperation drive not only didn’t work, but it included three items of utter frustration – a ridiculous personal foul penalty on Temple, a blatantly missed pass interference on a Notre Dame cornerback, and an interception that sealed their fate.

Before leaving the field, the Owls stood in front of their fans and were serenaded as the Temple faithful sang their alma mater. As they approached the corner runway en route to the locker room, a Temple fan from above offered impassioned words of encouragement.

“You were great today,” he said, over and over. “You have nothing to hang your heads about. You made all of us proud.”

Indeed, the Owls knew this wasn’t just a show. They knew it was a fight.

In the end, so did Notre Dame.

 

(John Knebels can be reached at jknebels@gmail.com.)

Jahad Thomas - scores from the one to tie the game 17-17

Matt Rhule Press Conference