Temple at South Florida

TAMPA (Interstat) — South Florida will put its perfect record on the line Saturday when it hosts Temple in an NCAA Football Bowl Division game at Raymond James Stadium. The Bulls are 4-0, while the Owls are 1-3.

South Florida’s most recent win came against Bowling Green, a 14-6 decision. D.J. Crowther ran 23 times for 143 yards and a touchdown and added one catch for 11 yards. Quarterback Michael Van Buren Jr. completed 7 of 11 passes for 52 yards and ran 13 times for 12 yards. Jason Collins Jr. added two carries for 8 yards.

Van Buren is a player to watch for South Florida. Earlier this season, he completed 23 of 32 passes for 300 yards and a touchdown against Delaware State. South Florida also has wins over Florida International, Army and Delaware State. The Bulls’ defense has allowed 17 points or fewer in three of their four victories.

Temple’s most recent outing was a 21-17 loss to Army. Quarterback Ajani Sheppard completed 11 of 20 passes for 242 yards and two touchdowns and ran 10 times for 48 yards. Samuel Brown V ran 10 times for 96 yards and caught one pass for 78 yards and a touchdown. Keveun Mason ran 11 times for 57 yards and caught two passes for 19 yards.

Sheppard is a player to watch for Temple. Against Toledo, he completed 12 of 22 passes for 164 yards and three touchdowns, ran 15 times for 66 yards and scored another touchdown. He also passed for 48 yards and ran for 10 yards and a touchdown against Penn State, and passed for 85 yards against Rhode Island. The Owls opened the season with a win over Rhode Island before losses to Penn State, Toledo and Army.

Temple enters on a three-game losing streak, while South Florida carries a four-game winning streak into the matchup. The Owls’ offense includes Sheppard and running backs Brown and Mason. The Bulls’ offense includes Van Buren and Crowther.

After Saturday, Temple is scheduled to host Connecticut and Charlotte before road games at East Carolina and Navy. South Florida is set to visit Texas-San Antonio before hosting Kent State. Both teams continue their schedules later in the season.

Interstat’s game simulator is projecting a final score of South Florida 62, Temple 27. Temple has been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of +6.5. The over/under for this game is 48.5.