Temple falls to Villanova 19-17

The Temple Owls have spent much of their football existence as a program that’s been a punching bag of jokes. But over the past 10 seasons, they were a program on the rise, winning an American Athletic Championship in 2016.

At least for one week, they are back to being a punching bag after a loss to crosstown FCS opponent Villanova on Saturday. The Wildcats dominated the game from the start, posting 405 yards of offense compared to 251 for Temple, in the 19-17 win at Lincoln Financial Field.

Villanova quarterback Zach Bednarczyk was 29-of-40 for 254 and three touchdowns, while running back Aaron Forbes picked up 111 yards on the ground in the upset win over Temple to take the all-time series…