Army vs. Temple Prediction, Odds and Key Players to Watch for College Football Week 4

The Army Black Knights and Temple Owls are set to face off in an afternoon matchup on Friday, Sept. 25, and the Black Knights are favored by three on the road.

Army is 1-1 this season after losing to South Florida in Week 2, but it’s coming off a bye to take on a 1-2 Temple team that has dropped back-to-back games to Penn State and Toledo.

Temple’s lone win came against Rhode Island, and it ranks 84th in the country in net adjusted EPA/Play. Army is 65th in that statistic, and it doesn't have a huge body of work to go off of in 2026 since it played a cupcake matchup against Bryant in Week 1, winning 59-3.

The Black Knights are going to run the ball a ton – 45th in the country in EPA/Rush this season – but Temple has an elite passing offense (18th in EPA/Pass) that fell just short in a one-point loss to Toledo this past week.

Oddsmakers have the Owls as underdogs at home, but are they in a position to pull off an upset?

Here’s a look at the odds, a player to watch and my prediction for this Week 4 battle.

Army vs. Temple Odds, Spread and Total

Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook

Spread

Army -3 (-112)
Temple +3 (-108)

Moneyline

Army: -162
Temple: +136

Total

48.5 (Over -110/Under -110)

Army vs. Temple How to Watch

Date: Friday, Saturday 25
Time: 4:00 p.m. EST
Venue: Lincoln Financial Field
How to Watch (TV): ESPN
Liberty record: 1-1
Coastal Carolina record: 1-2

Army vs. Temple Key Player to Watch

Cale Hellums, Quarterback, Army

Cale Hellums is the starting quarterback for the Black Knights, and he’s 13-for-19 throwing the ball this season for 150 yards and two scores.

Hellums’ damage has really come on the ground, where he’s carried the ball 25 times for 142 yards and two scores. The Black Knights have five players with over 60 rushing yards this season and three with over 140.

The Temple defense is just 118th in the country in EPA/Rush and 120th in rushing play success rate. So, this could be a huge game for Hellums and the Army attack, which may only attempt around 10-12 passes on Friday.

Army vs. Temple Prediction and Pick

Both of these teams struggled a bit when taking a step up in class – Army lost to South Florida and Temple scored just nine points against Penn State – which makes this an interesting battle on Friday.

However, I can’t look past the issues that Temple’s defense has had against the run.

The Owls are outside the top 100 in several key categories, including EPA/Rush, rushing down success rate and early downs EPA/Play.

Army would love to keep the ball on the ground, as it is averaging over seven yards per tote in 2026.

If the Black Knights control that aspect of the game, I don’t see a path for a Temple upset. The Owls have a strong passing offense (18th in EPA/Pass this season), but they’re still outside the top 70 in offensive EPA/Play.

This may be a high-scoring affair since the Army defense is outside the top-100 defensive success rate, but it’s also 59th in net adjusted EPA/Play.

I lean with the Black Knights as road favorites on Friday.

Pick: Army Moneyline (-162 at DraftKings)

Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

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