FACTS & STATS: Site: Lincoln Financial Field (68, 532) -- Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Television: ESPNU. Home Record: UConn 1-0, Temple 0-0. Away Record: UConn 0-0, Temple 0-1. Neutral Record: UConn 0-0, Temple 0-0. Conference Record: UConn 0-0, Temple 0-0. Series Record: Temple leads, 7-3.

GAME NOTES: Coming off their first season-opening victory since 2002, the Temple Owls will try to push their record to 2-0 when they host the Connecticut Huskies this Saturday afternoon at Lincoln Financial Field.

The Huskies opened their 2008 campaign with a 35-3 victory over Hofstra. Since joining the Division I-A ranks back in 2002 the Huskies are an outstanding 12-1 against MAC opponents. With a victory today the Huskies will have opened with a 2-0 ledger for the fifth consecutive season.

As for the Owls, they opened their campaign with a victory for the first time since 2002 when they hammered Army, 35-7, this past weekend. Temple is definitely on the upswing, coming off a four-win season. Prior to last year, the Owls collected only four combined victories from 2003 to 2006.

With respect to the all-time series between the two schools on the gridiron, the Owls hold a solid 7-3 advantage over UConn. However, last year the Huskies grabbed a thrilling, 22-17 win over Temple.

The Huskies put forth a strong effort this past weekend against Hofstra, racking up an impressive 451 total yards. UConn collected 27 first downs in the win, converted on 5-of-10 third down attempts and was also successful on 5-of-7 red zone chances. Donald Brown was the star of the show for the Huskies as the tailback rushed for 146 yards and four scores in the win. Overall, UConn finished with a whopping 218 rushing yards on 5.1 ypc. The Huskies superb ground attack should not be surprising, considering the team averaged 161 ypg with the run last year. Unfortunately quarterback Tyler Lorenzen did not have similar success. In fact, the signal-caller was horrendous, completing just 14-of-25 passes for only 184 yards, with three interceptions in the contest.

The Huskies were just as impressive on the other side of the football, limiting Hofstra to just 170 total yards, including only 40 yards via the run. The team's ability to stop the run was shocking, considering the Huskies struggled in that area all last season. The Huskies pressured Hofstra throughout the contest and forced three turnovers in the win, while also grabbing an outstanding seven sacks. UConn kept the Pride off balance all game, and only allowed Hofstra 13 first downs. Lindsey Witten was a monster for the Huskies, as the defensive end collected five tackles, and three TFLs, two of which went for sacks. Linebacker Lawrence Wilson led the way with eight stops and also picked up 1.5 TFLs.

The Owls might have defeated Army by a 28-point margin this past weekend, but the offense was not very effective in the win. Temple only racked up 250 total yards, including just 84 rushing yards on 30 carries. The lack of production with the rushing attack is not surprising, considering Temple has not averaged over 100 yards per game on the ground since 2004. Marquise Liverpool paced the team with 54 yards, and also found the end zone once, but averaged just 3.4 ypc. Adam DiMichele had a solid season debut, completing 15-of-22 passes for 159 yards and two touchdowns. Bruce Francis was the main option for DiMichele, as the wideout grabbed five passes for 45 yards and one TD. Overall Temple only collected 16 first downs, but the team was effective when it counted most, scoring on all three of its red zone attempts.

Defensively the Owls used a "bend but don't break" approach with the Black Knights. Although Temple held Army to just seven points, the Owls were pounded on the ground, allowing 210 yards on 58 carries. Since 2003, the Owls have allowed more than 150.0 rushing yards per game, so the team's struggles in the opener should not raise any eyebrows. Fortunately Temple was much better against the pass, holding Army to just 74 yards. Overall Temple held Army to just 17 first downs, and also forced the Knights into three turnovers. Junior Galette paced the defense with 11 tackles in the contest, while Amara Kamara and Alex Joseph both tallied nine stops apiece.

There is a lot of excitement around this Temple program for the first time in a long time, and grabbing a win in the opener will only fuel their prospects. However, the team was not at its best against Army, and if the Owls stand a chance against UConn the team must improve against the run immediately.

Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Connecticut 37, Temple 17

Saturday, September 6th, 12:00 p.m. (et)