Tyler Van Dyke throws for 3 TDs as No. 20 Miami routs Temple

PHILADELPHIA — Tyler Van Dyke’s dad was a Philadelphia Eagles fanatic, so that meant the family rooted on the team and hit the road for games at the Linc — even if game days for the season-ticket holders meant a 3 1/2-hour trip from their Connecticut home.

Van Dyke didn’t recall the exact section he sat inside the big stadium in south Philly but he remembered the seats were up high. High enough that he was almost at eye level to the 2017 Super Bowl banner.

Now the starting quarterback for No. 20 Miami, Van Dyke wears No. 9 — just like former Eagles quarterback Nick Foles — and made a new favorite memory inside the stadium. He threw for three touchdowns and helped the Hurricanes beat Temple 41-7 on Saturday and move to 4-0 for the first time since 2017.

“I was looking up at the stadium where he had our season tickets, where we used to sit,” Van Dyke said. “It’s just very cool, and it’s a blessing to play in the stadium where you grew up watching pro football games.”

Henry Parrish Jr. rushed for 139 yards and two scores. The Hurricanes have scored at least 38 points in all four games.

Van Dyke completed 17 of 24 passes for 220 yards and guided the Hurricanes to a 24-0 lead in the first half. Parrish took it from there and led a rushing offense that outgained the Owls 242 yards to 1 through three quarters and 323-11 overall.

The Hurricanes came in as 23 1/2-point favorites, according to FanDuel Sportsbook, and rolled to their 14th straight win over Temple (2-2), a streak largely built on the programs’ years together in the Big East.

Even with an 18-year gap from their last matchup, little has changed in the series. The few thousand fans inside a rainy Lincoln Financial Field were mostly dressed in orange — one tailgate lot was packed with Hurricanes fans — and the Owls were overmatched.

Under second-year coach Mario Cristobal, the Hurricanes fattened their record against teams such as Temple and FCS member Bethune-Cookman, but did squeeze in a win against previously ranked Texas A&M. The Hurricanes open Atlantic Coast Conference play in two weeks at Hard Rock Stadium, where they won three games before they traveled to Philly.

“The sky’s the limit in this offense and this scheme,” Cristobal said.

Temple learned the hard way.

Van Dyke, who considered leaving in the offseason either through the transfer portal or the NFL draft, stuck around and has played seemingly devoid of the pain in his right shoulder that has plagued him most of last season.

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He hit Xavier Restrepo for a 7-yard touchdown on the opening drive and found Colby Young on a leaping 28-yard TD catch in the second quarter for a 14-0 lead. Van Dyke had a 37-yard rush on the second scoring drive.

Van Dyke’s throw of the game was perhaps on an over-the-shoulder 39-yard sideline catch by Jacolby George that set up a field goal.

Parrish had a 13-yard rushing TD to close Miami’s last drive of the first half, and he ended its first drive of the second with a 3-yard TD and a 31-7 lead.

The Hurricanes essentially ran out the clock from there, though Van Dyke and Restrepo also connected on a 17-yard TD pass in the third quarter.

One more highlight for Van Dyke and the roughly 20 friends and family he had at the game.

“It just feels good winning here,” he said.

Up next

The Hurricanes have a week off before they host Georgia Tech on Oct. 7.

The Owls hit the road Thursday and play Tulsa.

By DAN GELSTON, Associated Press