1983 Temple Owls football team

The 1983 Temple Owls football team was an American football team that represented Temple University as an independent during the 1983 NCAA Division I-A football season. In its first season under head coach Bruce Arians, the team compiled a 4–7 record and was outscored by a total of 241 to 170.^[1][2] The team played its home games at Veterans Stadium and Franklin Field in Philadelphia.

1983 Temple Owls football
Conference	Independent
Record	4–7
Head coach	Bruce Arians (1st season)
Home stadium	Veterans Stadium, Franklin Field
Seasons ← 1982 1984 →

1983 Major eastern college football independents records

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 16 West Virginia	4	–	1	–	0			9	–	3	–	0
Penn State	3	–	1	–	1			8	–	4	–	1
No. 18 Pittsburgh	2	–	1	–	1			8	–	3	–	1
No. 19 Boston College $	3	–	2	–	0			9	–	3	–	0
Syracuse	3	–	3	–	0			6	–	5	–	0
Temple	2	–	4	–	0			4	–	7	–	0
Rutgers	0	–	5	–	0			3	–	8	–	0
$ – Lambert Trophy Winner Rankings from AP Poll

1983 NCAA Division I-A independents football records

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 1 Miami (FL)		–		–				11	–	1	–	0
Virginia Tech		–		–				9	–	2	–	0
No. 19 Boston College		–		–				9	–	3	–	0
No. 16 West Virginia		–		–				9	–	3	–	0
No. 20 East Carolina		–		–				8	–	3	–	0
No. 18 Pittsburgh		–		–				8	–	3	–	1
Florida State		–		–				8	–	4	–	0
Penn State		–		–				8	–	4	–	1
Southern Miss		–		–				7	–	4	–	0
Memphis State		–		–				6	–	4	–	1
Notre Dame		–		–				7	–	5	–	0
Syracuse		–		–				6	–	5	–	0
South Carolina		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Cincinnati			–					4	–	6	–	1
Southwestern Louisiana		–		–				4	–	6	–	0
Temple		–		–				4	–	7	–	0
Tulane		–		–				4	–	7	–	0
Louisville		–		–				3	–	8	–	0
Navy		–		–				3	–	8	–	0
Rutgers		–		–				3	–	8	–	0
Army		–		–				2	–	9	–	0
Rankings from AP Poll

The team's statistical leaders included Tim Riordan with 1,732 passing yards, Paul Palmer with 628 rushing yards and 48 points scored, and Russell Carter with 482 receiving yards.^[3]

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 2	Syracuse	Franklin Field Philadelphia, PA	W 17–6	11,549
September 10	at Pittsburgh	Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA	L 0–35	45,713
September 24	Penn State	Veterans Stadium Philadelphia, PA	L 18–23	35,760
October 1	Boston College	Franklin Field Philadelphia, PA	L 15–18	7,033
October 8	at Cincinnati	Riverfront Stadium Cincinnati, OH	L 16–31
October 15	East Carolina	Franklin Field Philadelphia, PA	L 11–24	5,461	^[4]
October 22	at Delaware	Delaware Stadium Newark, DE	W 23–16
October 28	at No. 6 Georgia	Sanford Stadium Athens, GA	L 14–31	81,822	^[5]
November 5	at No. 17 West Virginia	Mountaineer Field Morgantown, WV	L 9–27	50,514	^[6]
November 12	Louisville	Veterans Stadium Philadelphia, PA	W 24–7	3,021
November 19	at Rutgers	Rutgers Stadium Piscataway, NJ	W 24–23
Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

References

1. "1983 Temple Owls Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved May 29, 2020.
2. "2019 Temple Owls Football Media Guide" (PDF). Temple University. p. 132. Retrieved May 29, 2020.
3. "1983 Temple Owls Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved May 29, 2020.
4. "Temple losing streak reaches five after 24–11 loss to East Carolina". The Philadelphia Inquirer. October 16, 1983. Retrieved March 5, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
5. "Temple hounds Bulldogs but takes 31–14 loss". The Philadelphia Inquirer. October 30, 1983. Retrieved November 4, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "West Virginia topples Temple, breaks two-game losing streak". Star Tribune. November 6, 1983. Retrieved January 29, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.