POSTGAME NOTES: Houston 20, Temple 13
9/30/2017 12:00:00 AM | Football
Recap | Final Stats | Photo Gallery 
BY THE NUMBERS
-8
Houston held the Owls to -8 rushing yards in the first half.
1-0
Head Coach Major Applewhite's record against Temple
2
Career-high made field goals for Caden Novikoff
3-1
Record in 2017
3-2
Record for Head Coach Major Applewhite
3
Career starts for quarterback Kyle Postma
4
Consecutive games with a field goal for Caden Novikoff
4
Tackles for loss by Houston's defense
5-0
Houston's all-time record in American Athletic Conference road openers
5
Houston has held opponents scoreless in five quarters this season.
5
Career touchdown passes for quarterback Kyle Postma after tossing two Saturday
6-0
Houston's record all-time against Temple
12
Punts by sophomore punter Dane Roy that have been downed inside the 20-yard line this season
15
Straight quarters without allowing more than seven points by the opponent to begin the season
31-23-1
Houston's record all-time in conference openers
51
Consecutive games in which Temple had scored points in the first half before being held scoreless on Saturday.
216
Consecutive games that Houston's offense has scored
429-357-15
All-time record for Houston
24,024
Attendance for Saturday's game
GAME NOTES
• Houston improved to 3-1 and 1-0 in American Athletic Conference play in 2017.
• Houston improved to 429-357-15 all-time.
• Temple won the toss and elected to receive. Houston chose to defend the south end zone. Junior safety Garrett Davis, senior linebacker Matthews Adams, senior running back Dillon Birden and senior wide receiver Steven Dunbar were captains.
• Attendance was 24,024.
HEAD COACH Major Applewhite
• Applewhite improved to 3-2 during his Houston career.
• Applewhite improved to 3-1 in the regular season during his career.
• Applewhite improved to 3-1 in games played on Saturdays.
• Applewhite improved to 1-1 in day games.
• Applewhite improved to 2-0 in road games during his career.
• Applewhite improved to 1-0 against Temple during his career.
TEMPLE SERIES HISTORY
• Houston is 6-0 all time in the series and 3-0 while playing at Temple.
• Saturday's game marked the first meeting between the two teams since the 2015 American
Athletic Conference Championship game, where Houston claimed the title with a 24-13 win at TDECU Stadium on Dec. 5, 2015.
CONFERENCE OPENERS
• Houston is 37-17-1 in conference openers including a 4-1 mark since joining the American Athletic Conference.
• Houston has never lost a conference road opener since joining the American Conference (5-0) and holds a 31-23-1 record all-time in that category.
BY MONTHS
• Houston improved to 107-96-3 in games played during the month of September.
BY DAYS
• Houston improved to 374-323-14 all-time in games played on Saturdays.
SCORING
• After D'Eriq King's 13-yard touchdown run with 4:18 in the first quarter, the Cougars have now scored in 216 consecutive games dating back to a 48-0 loss at No. 15 Texas on Sept. 23, 2000. Major Applewhite split repetitions at quarterback for the Longhorns in that game against the Cougars.
OFFENSE
• Houston's first touchdown of the second half went for nine plays and covered 85 yards in 3:26. The drive was Houston's longest by yardage this season and is tied for the longest in time of possession matching an eight-play, 80-yard drive in 3:26 in the season opener at Arizona.
• Keith Corbin and D'Eriq King had receptions of 39 yards and 23 yards, respectively, while quarterback Kyle Postma collected a 35-yard rush to give Houston 24 plays of 20 or more yards this season.
DEFENSE
• The Houston defense held Temple under seven points in each of the first three quarters, giving them a streak of 15 consecutive quarters without allowing more than seven points to begin the season.
• With three turnovers forced, Houston now has 135 since 2013, the most among FBS schools.
• With a pair of interceptions in the first half, Houston now has multiple turnovers in 46 of its last 64 games.
• The Cougars held Temple without a point in the first half, stopping a streak of 51 consecutive games in which the Owls scored in the first 30 minutes. The last time Temple was held scoreless in the first half was Sept. 5, 2013, against No. 7 Louisville.
Kyle Postma
• Senior quarterback Kyle Postma made his third career start in the American Athletic Conference opener against Temple. Postma also made starts on Nov. 21, 2015, at UConn and on Sept. 10, 2016, against Lamar.
• Postma threw a pair of touchdown passes to D'Eriq King and Linell Bonner in the contest to give him two throwing scores this season and five in his career.
• With 81 rushing yards in the contest, Postma recorded his second straight game of 50 or more yards rushing and was also Houston's leading rusher for the second-consecutive game.
• Through the air, Postma finished with 226 yards on a career-high 25 completions.
• Postma improved to 2-1 in his career as a starting quarterback.
Khalil Williams
• Senior safety Khalil Williams recorded a sack for a loss of nine yards to force Temple to punt late in the second quarter. The sack is Williams' second of the season and fourth overall of his career.
• Williams finished with seven tackles, including two for loss.
Emeke Egbule
• Junior linebacker Emeke Egbule registered a sack for a loss of 24 yards on Houston's first defensive drive, giving him two for the season and three in his career. Egbule finished the contest with four tackles.
Linell Bonner
• With a 9-yard touchdown reception from quarterback Kyle Postma to open the scoring in the second half, senior wide receiver Linell Bonner now has three receiving touchdowns this season and 11 for his career.
• With 6 receptions, Bonner moved into a tie for 13 on the Houston all-time catches list with 155, passing Elmo Wright (153; 1968-70) and matching Kimble Anders (1985-89).
• With 43 yards receiving, Bonner moved up to 16th on the Houston all-time receiving yards list with 1,735, passing Brian Robinson (1,705; 1998-02), Charles Sims (1,707; 2009-12) and Kimble Anders (1,718; 1985-89).
D'Eriq King
• Sophomore quarterback D'Eriq King put Houston on the board with 4:18 remaining in the first quarter. King took a reverse 14 yards for his first career rushing touchdown.
• King finished with 4 rushes for 25 yards.
• King was also a threat through the air, collecting seven receptions for 51 yards. The seven receptions for King matches a career-high (Sept. 29, 2016, against UConn) and gives him at least five catches in each of the last two games.
Steven Dunbar
• With 78 receiving yards, senior wide receiver Steven Dunbar now has 1,650 for his career and moved into 23rd on the all-time receiving yards list, passing Jeron Harvey (1,602; 2005-07), Justin Johnson (1,624; 2007-11) and Ron Peters (1,628; 1991-94).
• Dunbar finished the afternoon with six receptions, giving him 128 in his career and moving him past Charles West (127; 1993-96) for 23rd in program history.
Caden Novikoff
• Junior kicker Caden Novikoff connected on a 25-yard field goal with 13:59 remaining in the second quarter to give Houston a 10-0 lead. Novikoff has now made field goals in each of Houston's four games this season.
• Novikoff drilled a 35-yard field goal with 7:57 remaining in the first half to extend the lead to 13-0. The two field goals made for Novikoff are a career-best.
Garrett Davis
• With Temple driving early in the second quarter, junior safety Garrett Davis intercepted a Logan Marchi pass deep inside Houston territory. Davis intercepted his second pass of the contest on a Hail Mary attempt to end the game, giving him three for the season and his career.
Isaiah Johnson
• Junior cornerback Isaiah Johnson recorded Houston's second defensive turnover of the game when he intercepted a Logan Marchi pass with 1:15 remaining in the second quarter. The interception was the first of Johnson's career.
• Johnson registered a pair of pass break ups in the contest to give him a career-best.
Matthew Adams
• Senior linebacker Matthew Adams forced a fumble late in the third quarter to give him his first of the season and fifth of his career. The five career forced fumbles moved him into a tie for 13th on Houston's all-time list.
Jeremy Winchester
• Junior cornerback Jeremy Winchester forced his first career fumble late in the third quarter.
Payton Turner
• Freshman defensive lineman Payton Turner recorded a career-high four tackles including a goal-line stand on third down to end the third quarter.
Dane Roy
• Sophomore punter Dane Roy downed three punts inside the 20-yard line to give him 12 this season.
