PonyFans.com is proud to have 16-year-old Nate as a guest columnist. In this installment, Nate offers his view of Saturday's AAC opener against Temple. Feel free to post comments and constructive criticism, ask him questions, and/or give suggestions for upcoming columns! (He can be followed on Twitter at @Pony_NATE_tion.)

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SMU fell to 2-2 after a 33-3 loss at home to TCU. The defense played well, the offense just simply couldn’t get anything going at all. Ben Hicks struggled mightily again, throwing two interceptions. He spread the ball well, completing passes to six different receivers. But the two picks were costly, as TCU blew the game wide open in the fourth quarter.

Sophomore Braeden West played well, but SMU missed fellow running back Xavier Jones, as SMU was only able to run for 76 yards. Receivers Courtland Sutton and James Proché kept on impressing, as they combined for 10 catches and 179 yards. The defense did everything it could, getting an interception from linebacker Anthony Rhone, but couldn’t hold because of how long it was on the field.

Temple quarterback Phillip Walker is a multi-dimensional threat who threw for four touchdowns and ran for another last season against SMU (photo by Temple athletics).

Now the Mustangs will look ahead to a game in Philadelphia against Temple. It’s hard to know what to think about Temple, given the fact that the Owls have lost to two pretty good football teams in Penn State and Army, and each was a relatively close game. The Owls’ two wins came against FCS squads: Charlotte and Stony Brook. Temple has had trouble scoring points against legitimate FBS teams, scoring 13 (against Army) and 27 (Penn State). Temple quarterback Phillip Walker comes into the game as an inconsistent passer, only completing 57 percent of his passes, and having a 1:1 touchdown-to-interception ratio.

“When you watch him, you see that he definitely can run,” SMU defensive coordinator Van Malone said of Walker. “Most of what he does is in the pocket, but he also does a good job of moving and throwing the ball on the run.”

Temple has a handful of passable receivers who aren’t great but get the job done. Far and away the best outside weapon Temple has is Keith Kirkwood, who comes in with 14 catches, 191 yards, and two touchdowns. Temple also utilizes deep threat Romond Deloatch (22 yards per catch), as well as Brodrick Yancy and Adonis Jennings. Temple has a couple of solid running backs as well, such as Ryquell Armstead and Jahad Thomas, who have combined for 274 yards and eight touchdowns, averaging 4.2 yards per carry.

The Owls lost a lot of talent, including standout linebacker Tyler Matakevich, who led all FBS defenders in tackles last year and now is a rookie with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Despite these losses, Temple still has surrendered only 20 points per game, ranking the Owls 33rd in the nation in scoring defense. Temple still represents a formidable defense, a squad that should give the flailing SMU offense trouble. Hicks has looked next to lost so far, albeit against two pretty solid defenses in Baylor and TCU, but he also struggled against Liberty. I’m not discouraged Hicks in the future, but there is a lot to be concerned about in terms of the present. His execution in the red zone has been lackluster, but all these are fixable problems that can be solved as he becomes more experienced. One key is his continued growth as a quarterback and his ability to show why head coach Chad Morris thinks so highly of him, because given what SMU fans sitting around me at the games are saying, PonyFans don’t have a lot of faith in him yet. Another key factor is the return of Xavier Jones, whose explosiveness is superior to that of any other SMU runner. His return will be an X-factor.

One weakness of the SMU defense is the rushing defense, and Temple has a couple of very capable running backs in Armstead and Thomas. If SMU can consistently stop the run and get off the field on third down, the Ponies will give themselves a shot. Another important factor is turnovers, as usual. Takeaways have been the most pleasant surprise of the year, led by cornerback Jordan Wyatt, who has three interceptions, tied for first in the country. The return of Darrion Millines from his targeting penalty that knocked him out of the TCU game will be key. His leadership was missed.

“It changed things because you had a freshman (Mikial Onu) have to go out,” Malone said of the impact of Millines’ ejection. “(Millines’) presence, even in communicating calls … he can get us lined up the right way. That’s what we lose when we lose him.”

If the defense can make plays and keep the struggling offense in the game, SMU has a chance. But the offense needs to be able to score more and keep the defense off the field. Unfortunately, the combination of Temple’s stout defense and SMU’s floundering offense doesn’t bode well for SMU. Temple will drop SMU to 2-3 Saturday.

Nate’s Take: Temple 28 SMU 10