INDIANA, Pa. – Sophomore running back
Chris Temple (Malvern, Pa. /Great Valley) ran for 255 yards and three touchdowns and the IUP defense forced a fourth down incompletion with 2:21 remaining as the Crimson Hawks defeated rival California (Pa.) 20-15 in the seventh annual Coal Bowl on Saturday evening at George P. Miller Stadium.
Temple was named the game's Most Valuable Player with 271 all-purpose yards and the Crimson Hawks only touchdowns. He also ran for 13 yards on a third-and-two with 1:32 left to play in the game, sealing the victory for IUP.
It was IUP's fifth straight victory as the Crimson Hawks improve to 5-1 overall and remain in a tie with Clarion for first place in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Western Division with a 4-0 divisional record. Cal falls to 4-3 overall and 2-2 in the division.
The Crimson Hawks finished with a season-high 388 rushing yards, with redshirt freshman quarterback
Lenny Williams (McKees Rocks, Pa./Sto-Rox) adding 134 yards on 14 carries.
The IUP defense limited Cal quarterback James Harris, a former All-PSAC West selection, to 15-of-30 passing for 185 yards and an interception.
That interception was made by true freshman cornerback
Mikale Makle (Upper Marlboro, Md./Frederick Douglas) at the IUP one yard line on a third-and-three pass play from the seven yard line with 7:45 remaining.
With the Crimson Hawks still leading by five with just over two minutes to play, Cal had one last try to take the lead, but a Harris' fourth down pass to tight end Desimon Green from the IUP seven yard line went high and fell incomplete.
IUP was able to successfully run the clock out, aided by Temple's key third-down run, to grind out the victory.
It was a new career-high rushing day for Temple and the sixth-highest rushing yards in IUP history. He now has 773 yards and 12 touchdowns in just five games this season.
It was also Williams' second straight 100-yard rushing day and he's totaled 333 yards in the last two games. He now has 573 yards on the year and is averaging 8.8 yards per carry.
Three of the game's scores came in the opening quarter, with Cal taking a 9-7 lead with a 12-yard Jimmy Wheeler run and a 20 yard field goal by William Brazill. Temple had IUP's first score on a 32-yard run. Temple had his second score of the night at the start of the second quarter with a one-yard run that helped put the Crimson Hawks on top 13-9.
Temple scored from 15 yards out in the third quarter, giving IUP a 20-9 lead. John Franklin III brought the Vulcans back within five at 20-15 with 9:46 to go in the game.
The Crimson Hawks attempted just seven passes in the game, with Williams going 4-of-7 for 30 yards. Temple caught one of those passes for 16 yards, while senior
Sean McVay (Miami, Fla./Miramar) and redshirt freshman
Jordan Brown (Chambersburg, Pa. /Chambersburg Area) each had catches. Sophomore
Walt Pegues (Philadelphia, Pa. /Central) extended his streak to 17-straight games with a catch with a single reception.
Defensively, junior linebacker
Kevin Clarke (West Mifflin, Pa. /West Mifflin) had a team-high nine tackles. Sophomore cornerback
Jay Watkins (Chester, Pa. /Hyde School) finished with eight tackles and broke up two passes and senior strong safety
Eric Williams (Yardley, Pa./Pennsbury) had three tackles and broke up three more passes. Sophomore free safety
Takhi Turner (Harrisburg, Pa./Susquehanna Twp.) had eight tackles and senior linebacker
Dorian Lane (Pittsburgh, Pa. /Woodland Hills) finished with seven tackles and two pass breakups.
Even with the lack of passing yards, the Crimson Hawks still went for over 400 total yards with 418, their third straight game of at least 400. They held onto the ball for 17:14 in the second alone and owned a time of possession of 31:27 to 28:33.
The Crimson Hawks will take to the road for the next two weeks, starting with Saturday's night game at rival Slippery Rock (6-1, 3-1) at 6 p.m.
For up-to-date game information, visit www.IUPAthletics.com and follow IUP football on Twitter @IUPCrimsonHawk and @IUPfootball.
