2026 MAC Football Week 3 Game Preview: Temple Owls @ Toledo Rockets

Setting the scene

2015 was a memorable year for the Temple Owls and Toledo Rockets alike.

Temple spent seven weeks in the AP Poll, while Toledo lingered in the rankings for six. The Owls finished 10-4 and qualified for the first-ever American Conference Championship Game. The Rockets missed the MAC Championship due to tiebreakers but produced the league's best overall record at 10-2.

Those special seasons converged in the 2015 Boca Raton Bowl. Toledo got the best of Temple that night in a 32-17 victory behind Kareem Hunt's two rushing touchdowns, unseating the Owls from a season-ending ranking.

Eleven years later, the programs meet again. This time it's in a different kind of bowl — the Glass Bowl in Toledo, OH.

Game notes

• Time and date: Saturday, September 19, 2026 at 3:00 p.m. ET
• Network: CBS Sports Network
• Location: Glass Bowl in Toledo, OH
• Spread: Toledo (-6)
• Over/under: 50.5
• All-time series: Toledo leads, 8-3
• Last meeting: Toledo 32, Temple 17 (December 22, 2015) — Boca Raton Bowl
• Current streak: Toledo, 2 (2011-15)

Temple Owls outlook

Temple (1-1, 0-0 American) exceeded all expectations in year one under head coach K.C. Keeler. The Owls had not fared better than 3-9 in the 2020s decade, but the two-time FCS national champion coach didn't even need an acclimation year before producing a 5-win season.

Keeler's Owls sit at .500 after playing opponents on opposite sides of the talent spectrum. Temple handled FCS Rhode Island in 38-14 fashion, but its offense disappeared at home against Penn State last week in a 27-9 decision. Figuring out the offense will be the Owls' primary emphasis moving forward.

Temple is still deciding its quarterback situation. The Owls have rotated between Jaxon Smolik and Ajani Sheppard in Week 1, but in Week 2, the team stuck with Smolik for the majority of the contest before turning to Sheppard in the fourth quarter. Neither quarterback has passed for more than 85 yards in a game this year, and Temple seeks more vertically in its offense. Smolik is the likely starter for Week 3, but Sheppard — who is known for his mobility — could be implemented in certain packages.

While the Owls figure out their ongoing quarterback battle, running back Keveun Mason has been the driving force of this offense. He generated 158 rushing yards and two touchdowns in Week 1, before adding 76 rushing yards on a 5.4 average against Penn State. Temple is running over 67 percent of the time right now, and the offense likely favors the run given Mason's effectiveness and the lack of downfield passing.

However, Temple does have dangerous receiving targets. The Owls retained 2025 receptions leader Colin Chase and 2025 receiving yards leader JoJo Bermudez, as well as Second Team All-American Conference tight end Peter Clarke. Each member of that trio produced over 400 receiving yards and at least four touchdowns last fall, and they'll do their best to settle in their new quarterbacks.

The Owls' defense has played up to standard. Temple only surrendered 27 points to Penn State and held the Nittany Lions to zero points on their first two red zone trips last Saturday. Temple has been true against the run, not allowing a single carry to eclipse 17 yards all season. The positioning of veteran linebackers Eric Stuart and Curly Ordonez has been a huge help, and Ordonez has been omnipresent with a team-high 20 tackles.

After a strong Week 1 in the coverage game, Temple struggled mightily with the tight end matchup last week. The secondary led by strong safety Avery Powell looks for a better result against a Toledo team which hasn't used the position in its passing game thus far.

If this becomes a defensive-oriented field position struggle, Temple has an advantage with veteran punter Dante Atton, who has pinned five of his seven punts inside the 20-yard line this month.

Toledo Rockets outlook

Toledo (1-1, 0-0 MAC) picked up its first win of the Mike Jacobs era last Saturday in commanding fashion. The Rockets bounced back from their Week 1 heartbreaker at Michigan State to handle FCS opponent Central Connecticut, 63-10. Toledo won the yardage battle, 569-139, and didn't allow a touchdown until the fourth quarter in an all-out domination.

The competition ramps up this week for Jacobs, who is still looking for his first-ever win against an FBS opponent. The former Mercer head coach brought a slew of FCS stars with him to the MAC, and some of those players have already been impactful at Toledo.

One is defensive end Andrew Zock, who won the Buck Buchanan Award for the FCS's top defensive player. The 6'2", 250-pound junior edge rusher accumulated his first share of a sack last week and has nine tackles on the season. Other Mercer transfers on the defense include inside linebacker Julian Fox and free safety Kaleb Hutchinson, who combine for 26 tackles in a defense that replaced all 11 starters.

Offensively, CJ Miller followed Jacobs from Mercer and should see a bulk of the carries at running back. Also, the unit might have a star in the making in Adjatay Dabbs. The former Mercer wide receiver worked Michigan State's secondary in Week 1 with 101 receiving yards and two touchdowns, showing his abilities to burn coverage and out-muscle defenders on jump balls, even with a 6'0", 170-pound frame. Last week, a different former FCS receiver emerged alongside Dabbs, and it's someone not from Mercer. Rico Bond from Lindenwood tore up Central Connecticut's defense with 135 yards and a touchdown on four receptions and looks to be a home-run threat for the offense.

Toledo attacks with incumbent talent too. Quarterback John Alan Richter has been a staple on the roster since 2022 but finally elevated into a starting role this fall. Through two games, the results have been positive. Richter has five touchdowns against one interception, showing the ability to hit targets downfield with an average of 10.0 yards per attempt (and 16.6 per completion).

Explosive plays have been a theme for Toledo. That's what allowed the Rockets to take a brief fourth quarter lead against Michigan State. They are currently one of five FBS teams to produce three 60+ yard plays, achieving such gains through both the air and ground. Toledo has only reached the red zone six times, but it's one of nine FBS programs to score a touchdown on 100 percent of trips thus far.

The team's fastest rising star is on the other side of the ball. Outside linebacker Isaac Zay only totaled seven combined tackles as a Rocket in 2024 and 2025, but he has shown All-MAC potential early on in 2026. In just two weeks, Zay has accrued 19 stops, an interception, and two pass breakups. The Zay-led defense was consistently a bend-don't-break unit against Michigan State. It allowed 397 yards but only held the Spartans to two touchdowns, while forcing six field goal attempts.

Prediction

Toledo's offense had its fun in the 63-point scoring barrage last week, but Temple will provide plenty of more resistance — after holding Penn State to just 27 a week ago. The Rockets still possess the explosive advantage in this matchup, thanks to wide receivers Adjatay Dabbs and Rico Bond, but Temple will attack with gritty, fundamentally sound football.

The Owls won five games last year by playing smart. They only committed four turnovers and finished a +11 in turnover differential, good for eighth in the FBS. They'll pound the rock with Keveun Mason and rely on the defense to force errant Toledo throws.

This one should be close, and homefield advantage could loom large. Toledo is a very different team after losing all but one starter from 2025. However, the Rockets won all six of their matchups at the Glass Bowl last year by a combined score of 275-46 (average of 46-8). That trend continues, and the Boca Raton Bowl result holds 11 years later.

Prediction: Toledo 24, Temple 22

This preview was done in collaboration with SB Nation's Underdog Dynasty.