Tyler turns the tables, stops English

October 9, 2007

Tyler turns the tables, stops English

Kenny Walter
OwlScoop.com Staff Writer

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Oct. 21, 2006 was a day Temple left tackle Devin Tyler and the rest of the offensive line spent the whole offseason trying to forget.

Playing at Northern Illinois, the Owls watched as Huskies defensive end Larry English terrorized Tyler and Temple to the tune of a career-high 4.5 sacks. Northern Illinois' defense held Temple to minus-6 rushing yards en route to a 43-21 victory.

Saturday, Tyler was able to flip the script and get the better of English. This time, English was held to just four tackles and no sacks. The job Tyler and backup left tackle Jabari Ferguson did on English was one of the reasons Temple was able to edge out a 16-15 win on Homecoming weekend at Lincoln Financial Field.

"I have to tell you that Devin Tyler really got beat up bad in this game a year ago," Temple head coach Al Golden admitted after Saturday's win. "And to have the courage to face your demons the way he did today … maybe, and I say maybe, because he's go to do it every day, maybe this will be the kind of the impetus to propel him in his career, because he really battled 51 (English) real well today. I thought this was the first time Devin really responded and looked it in the eye and stared it down and didn't look for any trap doors or any excuses."

Tyler said this was a game he was thinking about as soon as the schedule was released.

"I remember playing him last year and he did a good job," Tyler said. "We just had to focus more and trust our techniques our coaches are teaching us."

Ferguson kept things simple when it came to explaining his technique in dealing with English.

"We kept hitting him and hitting him and hitting him," Ferguson said. "We just tried to slow him down."

English came into the game with seven sacks, good for second in the MAC. He had 12 last season.

Saturday's game was an encouraging one for both Tyler and Ferguson, as both have had their fair share of struggles this season. Golden has been waiting for one of them to step up and claim the starting job, and Tyler may be on the verge of doing so. Although they still split time, Tyler received the majority of Saturday's snaps.

In addition to Tyler and Ferguson at left tackle, the entire offensive line clamped, especially in the second half. The Owls amassed 114 rushing yards in the second half after netting just 36 in the first half. Daryl Robinson led the balanced attack with 71 rushing yards, all of which came in the second half.


OwlScoop.com staff writer Kenny Walter can be reached at kenneth.walter@temple.edu.