Temple vs. Navy: Score, Highlights and Reaction from 2016 AAC Championship

Temple built a 21-point lead inside the first 17 minutes of the 2016 American Athletic Conference Championship Game and never looked back en route to a 34-10 upset of No. 20 Navy on Saturday at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis, Maryland.

Quarterback Phillip Walker helped lead the charge for the Owls with 199 passing yards and two touchdowns. The team's multifaceted rushing attack also contributed 189 yards on the ground, with Ryquell Armstead accounting for 76 yards of that total to help claim the AAC title.

Meanwhile, it's a crushing blow for Navy, which remained in contention for a New Year's Six bowl appearance before the loss. It should clear the way for undefeated Mid-American Conference champion Western Michigan to claim the automatic Group of Five bid.

Here's a look at the quarter-by-quarter scoring recap of the championship clash:

Team	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Total
Temple	14	10	0	10	34
No. 19 Navy	0	3	7	0	10

Bill Wagner of the Capital Gazette noted Navy head coach Ken Niumatalolo knew Temple represented a unique challenge. Not only did the Owls come into the game ranked third in total defense, but they got a chance to see the triple-option attack against Army earlier in the season.

"This is a very tough, physical, hard-nosed defensive football team. Their exterior guys are really athletic and run to the ball," he said Friday. "This is going to be an extremely tough, hard-nosed football game. I don't think anyone would expect anything different in our conference championship."

Temple showcased that physicality immediately on the game's opening drive. It used 12 plays to travel 75 yards in just over five minutes to kick off the scoring with a touchdown.

The key play came on fourth down from just outside the red zone as Walker found Keith Kirkwood for a first down. One play later, Jahad Thomas scampered in from 15 yards out for the score.

Kyle Gauss of Owl Scoop pointed out the TD moved the senior rusher into select company:

The Owls stretched the lead to 14 late in the first quarter by keeping the Midshipmen defense guessing with a well-balanced attack. They used three passes and three runs to cover 59 yards in just six plays for their second touchdown in as many tries.

This time Walker capped the drive by finding Ventell Bryant from 22 yards out for the score.

ESPN Stats & Info spotlighted Navy's struggles when playing from behind:

The Midshipmen looked primed to start fighting back, as they moved the ball inside the Temple 30 on the ensuing drive. A self-inflicted error handed the ball back to the Owls, however, as Darryl Bonner fumbled on a stretch play and Avery Williams jumped on the loose ball.

Temple took full advantage of the mistake. It pushed the pace against an already tiring Midshipmen defense to quickly make it 21-0. The touchdown came on a 56-yard strike from Walker to Kirkwood, who took advantage of busted coverage to get open over the top.

Making matters worse for Navy, it suffered several key injuries in the early going. The team ruled out quarterback Will Worth along with the running back tandem of Bonner and Toneo Gulley by the midway point of the second quarter:

A Bennett Moehring field goal got Navy on the scoreboard with just over five minutes left in the first half, but Temple's Aaron Boumerhi matched him shortly before halftime to maintain a 21-point edge for the Owls at the break.

The Midshipmen finally found the end zone for the first time late in a slow-paced third quarter.

Zach Abey, who replaced Worth under center, provided a much-needed spark with a 47-yard run to start the drive. From there, the team used five runs to power its way the remaining 17 yards, with Abey twisting in from one yard out for the score.

A Navy mistake, in this case a kickoff out of bounds, allowed Temple to gets its three-score advantage back with a 12-play, seven-minute field goal drive, though.

Kevin McGuire of NBC Sports noted those types of things make any comeback tougher:

The Temple defense stood tall from that point forward to close out the victory. Of course, the Owls benefited from the fact the Midshipmen are not built to play from that far behind with their run-oriented offense, which is why building that early lead was so important.

Armstead capped things off with a 30-yard touchdown run to put icing on the cake for the American Athletic Conference champions.

Temple Football celebrated the triumph:

The result is welcome news for bowl officials around the country. Brett McMurphy of ESPN.com reported the group was starting to work on plans to hand out assignments without knowing Navy's fate since it still has to face Army in a rivalry game next week.

It was a contingency plan with several potential pitfalls. A source told ESPN they would have to "reshuffle the cards again" if certain games didn't go as expected. But the Midshipmen's loss should make things more straightforward Sunday.

Looking ahead, Navy should now be locked into the Armed Forces Bowl since it's no longer in the mix for the Cotton Bowl spot. But first, the Midshipmen must get ready for next Saturday's annual Army-Navy Game, which they have won 14 straight times.

The bowl options are a little more wide open for Temple. Before the win, CBS Sports projected the Owls to play in the Miami Beach Bowl, while ESPN.com's Mark Schlabach and McMurphy both picked them for the Military Bowl. Winning the conference title could improve their stock, though.    

Postgame Reaction

ESPN passed along remarks from Walker and Temple head coach Matt Rhule after the program's first major conference title:

The outlet also highlighted the AAC Championship Trophy presentation:

Scott Strasemeier of NavySports.com provided an update from Niumatalolo on a few of the team's injured players:

As for the game itself, the coach's explanation was quite simple, per Strasemeier.

"They just played better than us," Niumatalolo said. "They beat the crap out of us."