Sep 13, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Temple Owls defensive back Denzel Chavis (13) defends a pass against Oklahoma Sooners wide receiver Zion Kearney (7) in the second half at Lincoln Financial Field. Sep 13, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Temple Owls defensive back Denzel Chavis (13) defends a pass against Oklahoma Sooners wide receiver Zion Kearney (7) in the second half at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Ross-Imagn Images
By Sam Neumann on

Oklahoma beat Temple 42-3 on Saturday, and some Sooner beat writers were feeling pretty good about themselves.

The final score seemingly validated what three Oklahoma reporters said on a hot mic earlier in the week when they dismissed Temple as “a high school game” and predicted 25,000 fans would show up at Lincoln Financial Field. They weren’t far off on attendance, as just 24,927 showed up, with what appeared to be roughly half wearing crimson.

After the blowout, those reporters took their victory lap on social media.

Temple coach K.C. Keeler used the aforementioned comments as motivation, telling 97.5 The Fanatic that his players heard about it. “There is a different energy in our building right now,” Keeler said. “The energy they are getting is one of, ‘Where is Temple again? What level of football do they play?'”

The level of football the Owls played looked like their starting quarterback completing 13-of-25 passes for 75 yards, while punting a dozen times. And Temple did little to put itself on the map, either, as the lower bowl of the Philadelphia Eagles’ stadium failed to be filled, yet again.

Temple has struggled to fill Lincoln Financial Field for years, and the program’s attendance problems are real and worth discussing. The university scrapped plans for an on-campus stadium and is committed to playing at the Linc through 2029, despite the obvious mismatch between venue size and fan base.

But that’s where the Oklahoma reporters’ victory lap gets a little silly. They’re celebrating being right about Temple’s attendance issues as if that somehow proves their football analysis. Yes, Temple doesn’t sell out a 69,000-seat NFL stadium. Yes, visiting fan bases often outnumber Owls supporters. Anyone who follows college football already knew this.

What’s less impressive is treating Saturday’s result as vindication for predicting poor attendance. The Oklahoma reporters called their shot on crowd composition, and good for them, they nailed it. But acting like Temple got exposed as a high school program because they couldn’t hang with a legitimate title contender misses the point entirely.

Temple lost badly Saturday, but not because its fans didn’t show up. They lost because Oklahoma has better players, better coaching, and a much larger budget. The atmosphere had nothing to do with it.

About Sam Neumann

Since the beginning of 2023, Sam has been a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. A 2021 graduate of Temple University, Sam is a Charlotte native, who currently calls Greenville, South Carolina his home. He also has a love/hate relationship with the New York Mets and Jets.

View all posts by Sam Neumann