It's not easy being Temple.

Even with the Big East deciding to allow the school to remain in the conference through the 2004 season, the Owls' future is, at best, cloudy.

	Temple's Bobby Wallace has made a change at quarterback.

Without a conference affiliation, Temple may eventually be forced to give up football.

It's been a long time since there was a reason to cheer about the Owls, but this season was supposed to be different. All but two starters and 25 seniors returned from last year's team that went 4-7, the most victories by Temple since 1990.

Plenty of analysts predicted Temple would be the Big East's surprise team and talk of a six-win season and bowl berth did not seem entirely farfetched. But it's still too early to tell whether Temple can pull it off.

The Owls opened with a 45-26 win against Navy, but they were pushed around in a 33-7 loss to Toledo two weeks ago.

Now, with the hope of a 4-0 non-conference start leading into the Big East schedule gone, the Owls' game against Bowling Green on Saturday becomes critical if they are to see postseason action for the first time since 1979.

"It's our first time on the road this season," Temple coach Bobby Wallace said. "Hopefully, we'll be excited about playing."

Wallace was unhappy with his team after the Toledo game, which appeared winnable until a slew of Temple mistakes made it into a rout.

It led to a change at quarterback, with Devin Scott losing his starting job to true freshman Mike McGann. McGann, a 6-feet-6, 195-pound native of Haverton, Pa., will start against Bowling Green.

"The team will really have to pick up to help his situation out," Wallace said of McGann.

Wallace seems certain that Temple football will live on. The Owls are supposed to move into the Philadelphia Eagles' new stadium in 2003 and ticket sales are up, although attendance figures continue to lag significantly behind the rest of the conference.

Wallace says he tells recruits of promises from the school's board of trustees that Temple will continue playing Division I-A football after its Big East days are over.

"We feel strongly we'll be in Division I-A in 2005," Wallace said. "As far as (the) conference, that's one thing I don't know.

"It's not a perfect situation, that's for sure. But, at least, we have a level of commitment so we don't have a doubt about what level of football we'll be playing."

Around the Big East

Boston College
Walk-on kicker Kevin Dudnick's brother and cousin worked at the World Trade Center. Dudnick's brother is fine, but his cousin remains missing. ... Boston College, coming off a loss to Stanford, has been defeated in back-to-back games only once in the past two seasons. ... Receiver Ryan Read is a transfer from the Naval Academy, the Eagles' opponent on Saturday. Read is second on the team with six receptions.

Miami
The Hurricanes' game against Washington will be played on Nov. 24, the only common open date left on the teams' schedules. Coach Larry Coker wanted to play the game last Saturday for a couple of reasons. First, Coker wanted an open date before Miami's Dec. 1 game against Virginia Tech that could decide the conference championship. Secondly, Coker hoped to keep riding the momentum his top-ranked team was enjoying. "From a football standpoint, it's really disappointing," Coker said. "Where we are, I really would like to play every week." ... With a scheduled bye this week, the Hurricanes will have 19 days off between their victory against Rutgers on Sept. 8 and their Sept. 27 meeting with Pittsburgh. ... Starting receiver Daryl Jones, who missed the Rutgers game with a knee injury, will be ready to play against Pittsburgh. ... Saturday's postponement was the third in four years for Miami. Games against UCLA in 1998 and Temple in 1999 were called off by approaching hurricanes.

Pittsburgh
The Panthers' game against Alabama-Birmingham has been rescheduled for Dec. 1. It's the third time that Pittsburgh has postponed a game: Pittsburgh-Penn State games were postponed in 1950 (snowstorm) and 1963 (John F. Kennedy's assassination). ... Pittsburgh will have 19 days between its loss to South Florida and the meeting on Sept. 27 with Miami. "We're going to make the best of it because it was the right thing to do," Pittsburgh coach Walt Harris said. "Miami has the same problem we do."... Harris is tight lipped about the status of receiver Antonio Bryant. Bryant injured his ankle in the season opener and did not play against South Florida. Questioned about Bryant's status, Harris would only say, "Not healthy yet." Harris didn't reveal much more when asked if Bryant, the returning Biletnikoff Award winner, would be available against Miami. "Time will only tell," Harris said.

Rutgers
Rutgers has a new coaching staff in place, but the Scarlet Knights' sour luck isn't changing. Despite not playing a game last week, the team lost two of its best players. Dennis Thomas, who rushed for 177 yards in Rutgers' opener, underwent arthroscopic knee surgery after injuring himself in Wednesday's practice. Thomas is out for Saturday's game against Virginia Tech, but coach Greg Schiano hopes he can return for Connecticut on Sept. 29. Also making the team's injury report was starting guard Mike Esposito, who was hospitalized for two days last week because of abdominal pain. Esposito might play against the Hokies, but probably won't start. Jason Ohene will replace Thomas in the backfield while Travis Mills is expected to start for Esposito. ... The Scarlet Knights have rescheduled their game against California for Nov. 23. ... Cornerback Brandon Haw will be out 6 to 8 weeks after sustaining a sprained knee ligament against Miami. Haw's place in the lineup goes to DeWayne Thompson. ... Rutgers has lost nine straight Big East games and 16 of 17.

Syracuse
The Orangemen's game with East Carolina has been rescheduled for Sept. 29. ... Coach Paul Pasqualoni said sophomore R.J. Anderson will start Saturday against Auburn instead of junior Troy Nunes, who opened the Orangemen's first two games before pulling a hamstring against Tennessee. Anderson was named the starter against East Carolina, but the postponement gave Nunes time to heal. Pasqualoni decided to go with Anderson anyway. ... Syracuse and Auburn have played only once before. The game took place in the 1988 Sugar Bowl, following the 1987 season. Auburn kicked a field goal with one second left that resulted in a 16-16 tie. ... This is the first time a Big East team has played Auburn since the conference was formed in 1991. ...S enior tailback James Mungro needs 54 yards to become the 15th player in school history to rush for 2,000 yards.

Temple
The Temple-Connecticut postponement will be made up Nov. 24 in Philadelphia. The location has yet to be announced. Temple splits its home games between Franklin Field and Veterans Stadium. ... The Owls will play three of their next four games on the road, beginning with Saturday's meeting at Bowling Green. ... Receiver Greg Muckerson's streak of receptions in 23 straight games is the longest in the Big East. ... Temple is first in the conference with four interceptions and is ninth nationally.

Virginia Tech
The Hokies had a scheduled bye last Saturday. ... So far so good for quarterback Grant Noel, who is trying to step into the very big shoes left by Michael Vick. In Virginia Tech's two victories, Noel has completed 29-of-45 passes (64.4 percent) for 411 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions, "Grant's been excellent," said coach Frank Beamer. "He looked forward to replacing Michael Vick. Some people would shy away from it and say, I can't ever do this or ever to that. Grant understands what he's capable of doing." ... Starting split end Emmett Johnson is hampered by a quadriceps strain, but Beamer believes he'll be able to play Saturday. ...T he Hokies have beaten Rutgers eight straight games and have scored 41 or more points in seven of those games. ...Tech defensive end Jim Davis will play Saturday after missing the Western Michigan game with a back problem.

West Virginia
The Mountaineers have rescheduled their game against Maryland for Sept. 29. Coach Rich Rodriguez said his team used the unexpected time off to become more familiar with the no-huddle, spread offense he installed. "We're still in a learning phase, more than we want to be this part of the season," Rodriguez said. "No question, we needed the practice time." ... Rodriguez said starting quarterback Brad Lewis "is still our man." Lewis has been shaky in West Virginia's first two games completing 30-of-58 passes for 317 yards but no touchdowns. Lewis has been intercepted twice. Lewis' job could be in greater jeopardy if back-up Rasheed Marshall hadn't been broken his wrist in the opener. Marshall will likely miss the Mountaineers' remaining games. ... Starting safety Shawn Hackett (hamstring) is set to play against Kent State on Saturday, but linebacker Grant Wiley (hamstring) remains questionable. Hackett and Wiley each missed West Virginia's game against Ohio on Sept.8.

Jorge Milian covers the Big East for the Palm Beach Post.