UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- The big question before kickoff was whether a limping Joe Paterno would coach from the sideline or the press box.

Paterno's sore right leg has been bothering him as of late and he gingerly walked to the locker room after getting off the bus at Beaver Stadium around 10:30 a.m. yesterday.

Paterno, who hasn't been running out of the tunnel and onto the field with his team the first four games, did end up on the sideline -- at least for the first half.

Unfortunately, Paterno's 16th-ranked Nittany Lions, who were four-touchdown favorites, didn't show up until early in the second quarter.

That's when Penn State, held scoreless in the opening quarter for the first time this season, finally applied the full-court press, scoring 31 unanswered points in the second quarter en route to a 45-3 non-conference victory against Temple.

With the 81-year-old Paterno watching from the press box in the second half, Penn State (4-0) cruised to its 26th consecutive victory against the Owls (1-3).

"My leg's OK," Paterno said. "I was just standing on it too long and it aches. But you know, I'm probably babying myself."

Paterno injured his leg after attempting an onside kick in practice the Thursday before the season opener against Coastal Carolina. He watched most practices from a golf cart this past week in order to give the leg a rest.

Yet, he wasn't in any mood to discuss his injury.

"Let's not get into me," Paterno said. "Let's talk about the football game."

Paterno previously missed the final two games of the 2006 season after breaking his left leg in a collision with a Wisconsin player. And he watched the Temple game that year on television from his home.

Despite a fourth consecutive blowout victory, Paterno wasn't happy with his team's effort.

Although the Lions outgained the Owls, 546-138, in total offense and 303-16 in rushing, they fumbled five times (losing one). Quarterback Daryll Clark threw his first interception of the year and the kickoff coverage unit surrendered 221 yards on six returns.

"I thought it was a very, very sloppy performance," Paterno said.

The Lions, who have scored 45 or more points in each of their wins, collected 31 in the second quarter.

Clark atoned for his first-quarter interception by rifling a 20-yard scoring pass to 6-foot-6 wide receiver Brett Brackett, a one-time quarterback, early in the second quarter. It was Brackett's first career touchdown catch.

"We were really flat in the first quarter," said Clark, who completed 13 of 20 passes for 196 yards. "We finally got it going in the second quarter."

Five plays after Clark recovered his own fumble, starting tailback Evan Royster ran 32 yards for his seventh rushing touchdown of the year.

Clark added an 11-yard touchdown run and threw a 17-yard scoring pass to wide receiver Graham Zug, his first career touchdown catch. And Kevin Kelly kicked a 44-yard field goal.

After Temple's Jake Brownwell made a 25-yard field goal early in the third quarter, Penn State added two more touchdowns on backup tailback Stephfon Green's 69-yard run and wide receiver Chaz Powell's 7-yard reception. Green had 132 yards on nine carries, a 14.7 average.

Penn State finished with a season high seven sacks. Outside linebacker Navorro Bowman, making his first start in place of Bani Gbadyu, had 11 tackles and three sacks. He also had five tackles for losses, one forced fumble and an interception.

Defensive end Aaron Maybin knocked Temple quarterback Adam DiMichele, a Sto-Rox High graduate, out of the game on the first series with a shoulder injury on his first of two sacks. DiMichele, the one-time Penn State recruit, completed 1 of 2 passes for 6 yards.

"I heard him make a noise, but I wasn't really sure what the severity of the injury was until the next series when I came out and I saw that he wasn't playing," Maybin said.

NOTES -- Starting defensive end Maurice Evans and starting defensive tackle Abe Koroma sat out for the third consecutive game. Both remain suspended after being charged with possession of a small amount of marijuana this past week. Their status remains up in the air. "I don't know what's going to happen yet," Paterno said. "The ball's not in my court right now. It's in the [hands of the Office of] Judicial Affairs. I don't know what I'm going to do." ... Right guard Stefen Wisniewski, from Central Catholic, recovered a fumble by Royster. ... Temple was limited to 10 first downs.