"We had our opportunities to win the game," Villanova coach Andy Talley said. "That was a fantastic game that could have gone either way. People in Philadelphia should really embrace college football, because if you have two teams that can put on a game like this, it's tremendous for the people who came and both programs."
The final margin was established when Temple defensive back Justin Gildea ran 26 yards with a fumble for a touchdown with no time remaining. After McManus' last three-pointer gave the Owls a 25-24 edge, Villanova took the kickoff and tried to keep the game alive with a series of laterals before losing control of the ball.
Last year, 'Nova took the trophy home after securing a 27-24 victory with a last-second field goal. The rematch drew a crowd of 32,193.
"I thought Brandon would hit it," Temple coach Al Golden said about the game-winner. "You've got to believe in the guys, and then you have to let the guys win the game."
Villanova, which had a 14-10 edge at halftime, was up by 21-13 with 14 minutes, 47 seconds to go. Temple went ahead, 22-21, before the Wildcats' Nick Yako kicked a 41-yard field goal with 1:51 showing on the clock. Yako's kick, which put his team ahead, 24-22, came after Temple quarterback Chester Stewart fumbled a snap at his own 24-yard line.
Villanova, which won the Football Championship Subdivision national title last year in a 14-1 season, is the preseason favorite to do it again and also was designated as the team to beat in the Colonial Athletic Association.
Temple was coming off a 9-4 finish that gave the program its first winning season since 1990 and is the favorite in the Mid-American Conference. The Owls tied for first place in the East Division last fall and then lost to UCLA in the EagleBank Bowl in Washington, where Temple played in a postseason event for the first time since 1979.
