1987 Temple Owls football team

1987 Temple Owls football
Conference	Independent
Record	3–8
Head coach	Bruce Arians (5th season)
Defensive coordinator	Nick Rapone (3rd season)
Home stadium	Veterans Stadium

1987 Major eastern college football independents records

	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 4 Syracuse $	5	–	0	–	0			11	–	0	–	1
Penn State	4	–	2	–	0			8	–	4	–	0
Pittsburgh	3	–	3	–	0			8	–	4	–	0
West Virginia	2	–	3	–	0			6	–	6	–	0
Rutgers	2	–	4	–	0			6	–	5	–	0
Boston College	2	–	4	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
Temple	1	–	3	–	0			3	–	8	–	0
$ – Lambert Trophy Winner Rankings from AP Poll

1987 NCAA Division I-A independents football records

	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 1 Miami (FL)		–		–				12	–	0	–	0
No. 4 Syracuse		–		–				11	–	0	–	1
No. 2 Florida State		–		–				11	–	1	–	0
No. 15 South Carolina		–		–				8	–	4	–	0
Pittsburgh		–		–				8	–	4	–	0
Penn State		–		–				8	–	4	–	0
No. 17 Notre Dame		–		–				8	–	4	–	0
Southern Miss		–		–				6	–	5	–	0
Rutgers		–		–				6	–	5	–	0
Southwestern Louisiana		–		–				6	–	5	–	0
Memphis State		–		–				5	–	5	–	1
Northern Illinois		–		–				5	–	5	–	1
West Virginia		–		–				6	–	6	–	0
Tulane		–		–				6	–	6	–	0
Army		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Boston College		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
East Carolina		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Akron		–		–				4	–	7	–	0
Cincinnati		–		–				4	–	7	–	0
Louisville		–		–				3	–	7	–	1
Temple		–		–				3	–	8	–	0
Tulsa		–		–				3	–	8	–	0
Virginia Tech		–		–				2	–	9	–	0
Navy		–		–				2	–	9	–	0
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1987 Temple Owls football team was an American football team that represented Temple University as an independent during the 1987 NCAA Division I-A football season. In its fifth season under head coach Bruce Arians, the team compiled a 3–8 record and was outscored by a total of 251 to 154. The team played its home games at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia.

The team's statistical leaders included James Thompson with 985 passing yards, Todd McNair with 1,058 rushing yards, Keith Gloster with 411 receiving yards, and placekicker Bill Wright with 60 points scored.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 5	at Toledo	Glass Bowl Toledo, OH	W 13–12
September 12	at Boston College	Alumni Stadium Chestnut Hill, MA	L 7–28	27,500
September 19	at No. 16 Pittsburgh	Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA	W 24–21	45,387
September 24	Akron	Veterans Stadium Philadelphia, PA	W 23–3
October 3	at No. 14 Penn State	Beaver Stadium University Park, PA	L 13–27	84,000
October 10	Tulsa	Veterans Stadium Philadelphia, PA	L 17–24	20,008
October 17	at No. 14 Florida	Florida Field Gainesville, FL	L 3–34	74,286
October 31	at Army	Michie Stadium West Point, NY	L 7–17
November 7	at East Carolina	Ficklen Memorial Stadium Greenville, NC	L 26–31	19,327
November 14	Houston	Veterans Stadium Philadelphia, PA	L 7–37	12,780
November 21	Rutgers	Veterans Stadium Philadelphia, PA	L 14–17
Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game