On a chilly, windy Friday night at Wildcat Stadium, Temple faced essentially the same situation - 0-2 in District 12-5A and needing a win to keep itself prominent in the league's playoff picture.
The Wildcats again got big rushing games from seniors Seastrunk and Davis, and this time their increasingly ornery defense rose up and came along for the ride, too.
Seastrunk had a 71-yard touchdown and a season-high 134 yards, Davis rushed for 88 yards and three TDs and Temple's aggressive defenders limited Ellison to 77 second-half yards as the Wildcats seized a crucial 31-14 win.
"This is an awesome feeling, but we've got to get back to work tomorrow," Seastrunk said, noting that Temple's win and Friday losses by previous district unbeatens Copperas Cove and College Station A&M Consolidated have tightened the 12-5A standings. "It's anybody's game now."
Temple coach Bryce Monsen said his team's mostly solid play in last week's 24-10 loss at Cove carried into Friday.
"Our kids played well for 48 minutes tonight, and I think that goes back to last week with our work ethic and intensity," said Monsen, whose team outscored Ellison 21-7 after halftime in moving to 2-4 overall and 1-2 in 12-5A. "We're finding ourselves and we're figuring out how to do the little things."
Running back Seastrunk and fullback Davis - the latter's 2008 offensive debut at Ellison helped Temple turn its season around for a playoff berth - spearheaded a Wing-T attack that racked up 284 rushing yards on 57 carries.
Ellison (3-3, 1-2) had 139 total yards halfway through the game but finished with only 216 thanks to a swarming Temple defense. A week after containing Cove to 228 yards, the Wildcats recovered three of the Eagles' five second-half fumbles, with Michael Thompson pouncing on two.
Steven Boggess had the other fumble recovery and Donovan Shumpert made an interception as part of a miserable evening for Ellison quarterback Kyle Skinner (1-for-11 passing for 7 yards, one lost fumble).
"I've got to give a lot of recognition to our staff and our defensive coordinators Brad Gunn and Brad Talbert for doing a great job and our kids for doing a great job," Monsen said. "They're getting confidence. They've studied a lot of film, so it's a credit to them. I'm very pleased with our defense getting turnovers."
It wasn't an auspicious start for Temple, whose game-opening drive stalled at Ellison's 34-yard line before the Eagles drew first blood.
Eric West sprinted off right tackle for a 71-yard gain on Ellison's fourth offensive snap, with A.J. Coulter finally pulling him down at the 2. From the 1 David Cobb surged through the line for a touchdown and a 7-0 lead with 4 minutes, 19 seconds left in the first quarter.
Temple responded quickly behind the legs of Seastrunk, its all-time leading rusher and touchdown scorer and master of the one-play scoring drive.
From the Wildcat 29, he took a handoff to the left side but found no running room, then reversed field, picked up a couple of seal blocks and raced untouched along the right side for a 71-yard touchdown. The first of Garrett Walsingham's four extra points created a 7-7 tie with eight minutes gone.
The teams traded strong defensive stands and short punts before Marquette Wilson's 13-yard run set up Walsingham's 27-yard field goal 1:12 before halftime for a 10-7 Temple advantage, and Shumpert's interception at his 15 stopped Ellison's last-gasp possession to end the first half.
Temple quarterback Jeviah Amos and Cobb alternated lost fumbles to begin the second half, then Seastrunk dashes of 22 and 13 yards set up Davis' 1-yard TD blast through the right side to extend the lead to 17-7 eight minutes into the third quarter.
But Ellison came right back, with Cobb following blockers for several strong runs before Skinner picked up his own fumble at the 3 and fell in for the TD that pulled the Eagles to within 17-14 with two minutes left in the third.
From that point on, however, the game was all Wildcats.
Boggess snared a fumble by West at Ellison's 18 2˝ minutes into the fourth, and Seastrunk - who'll visit No. 4 Louisiana State for tonight's clash with No. 1 Florida - ran 12 yards to the 1 before Davis plowed through the line for another short TD, producing a 24-14 lead.
Temple lineman Jesus Rodriguez then stripped the ball away from Skinner, and Thompson's recovery at the 26 eventually led to Davis' 15-yard TD charge up the gut to complete the scoring with four minutes remaining.
"Our offensive line came off the ball well and we emphasized that at halftime," Monsen said. "Derrick's a real weapon and we're very proud of him and of Lache."
Temple will host Harker Heights (1-5, 1-2) at 7:30 next Friday night for homecoming.
gwille@temple-telegram.com
