In Temple’s second game of the season against Villanova on Aug. 25, the team exploded for three goals and it seemed to set the stage for what looked like a successful offensive season.
Forward Xavier Rimpel especially impressed, accounting for one of the goals and assisting on the other two.
But instead of building on the early success, the Owls’ offense has become their Achilles’ heel.
Temple failed to score another live-action goal until Sept. 29 against Florida Atlantic when midfielder Edgar Bazan finally broke the dry spell. The only other goal the Owls had during the stretch was a penalty kick goal against Akron, which did not come until the 85th minute.
“[Scoring] is the toughest thing in the game to do both from an individual standpoint and a team standpoint,” said head coach Bryan Green. “If we hadn’t been getting looks or had some good attacks, I would have been concerned about that, but the way we’ve been playing has been pretty good.”
Temple hasn’t been efficient throughout the 2024 season. The Owls have scored just six goals so far despite averaging nearly eight shots a game. Despite the lingering dark cloud of not scoring consistently, the Owls haven’t given the lack of offense a second thought.
“We weren’t worried about the streak,” Green said. “We needed to score goals to win games, so that was the importance. We want to win games.”
Green pointed to the Owls’ game against St. Joseph’s on Sept. 24 as an example of when his team should have been able to pull out a win because of the opportunities they created. Temple was knocking on the door the entire game but had five shots saved.
The same thing occurred during Temple’s 1-0 loss to No. 9 Charlotte on Sept. 21, where the Owls couldn’t find a groove and were gashed by a second-half goal. They had the opportunity to tie the game, but a potential penalty kick went uncalled. In a season-opening draw against Army, the Owls also came close to scoring a win but were denied seven times by Army goalkeeper Blair Camargo.
“I think we’ve been just really unlucky with how some games have gone,” said goalkeeper Flannan Riley. “We’ve missed a few chances in games, keepers have made some good saves, and just that last touch hasn’t been there, but the build-up and getting into the right positions has been really good.”
Temple’s offensive struggles can be traced to a lack of a clear goalscorer. The Owls had the benefit of rostering forward Felix Ewald last season, who led the offense by scoring six goals and assisting five more. Ewald transferred to West Virginia in the offseason, leaving a void Temple has yet to fill.
Rimpel seemingly took the mantle with his early-season performance against Villanova. However, he has failed to replicate that output in the following games and no other Owl has taken his place. Freshmen Elliot Rigbert, Charlie Votel and Nathan Brown have all showcased potential to take that role, but have not fully grasped it.
“We can get goals from the defenders, the midfielders, the attacking guys,” said midfielder Kemali Green. “It’s about the team, and we can get goals from other places.”
The offensive struggles also put more pressure on the defense. Riley ranks in the top 10 in the American Athletic Conference in saves, but conceding one goal could cost their chances of a win. Temple has only managed a single draw from the six games where they have failed to score.
The goalie pair has provided aid to the struggling offense, but eventually end up folding to the barrage of shots. The defense has also given the team a boost, only conceding six goals in the last four games while the offense sputtered.
Bazan’s strike against FAU has the potential to be a much-needed turning point for an offense that has been stuck in the mud. With the bulk of conference games coming up, the Owls need to start achieving results. As goals begin to find the back of the net, results will come to hopefully push Temple back into the AAC tournament.
“In soccer, you make your own luck,” Kemali said. “I think the guys, they’re trying, and us as a group, we’re trying to find the back of the net again.”
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