01.29.11
by

Addazio trying to land last-minute recruits



Bruce Arians got a jem in his first recruiting class at TU.


When it comes to Temple football recruiting, I’m a lot like the guy who reserves the seat one  row behind the middle exit for the plane trip and trusts that I have a good pilot.
I kind of know where the Owls are going, but I trust the guy in charge to take us there safely.

Bruce Arians’ First Recruiting Class included:
Paul Palmer, RB, Potomac (Md.)
Sheldon Morris, RB, Oxon Hills (Md.)
Steve Domonoski, LB, Jerwyn (Pa.).
Mike Swanson, DL, Mount Vernon (N.Y.)
Carl Holmes, OL, Philadelphia LaSalle
Mark Arcidiacono, DL, Philadelphia Father Judge
John Smith, RB, Philadelphia Penn Charter
Don Brown, DB, Pennsbury
Rodney Walker, DT, Philadelphia Cardinal Dougherty
James Thompson, QB, Tallahassee (Fla.) Leon High

For the past five years, all I did was look forward to the trip because Temple had the “Sully Sullenberger” of recruiting pilots in the meticulously organized, persistent and clean-cut Al Golden.
I (mostly) trusted Al because recruiting (except maybe for quarterbacks) was his strong point, he was organized and a good-looking, personable, guy who mothers (they are key in recruiting) welcomed into their homes.
If Al Golden was Sully Sullenberger, then Steve Addazio is Chuck Yeager.
He’s not as good-looking (that doesn’t mean anything to me, but it might to the Moms out there), but he’s just as personable and he was named three-time national pilot, err, recruiter, of the year. So I should have reason to be confident.
Still, I must admit that it’s less than a week to go before signing day and the turbulence on this flight appears rockier than usual.
The first recruit Addazio supposedly “locked down” was a Golden recruit, Cedric “The Entertainer” Walker who de-committed and chose Florida International instead.
Another DE recruit is said to be leaning that away.
For the last three years, Temple was routinely winnning the recruiting battles against the Pitts, Rutgers, BC’s and Marylands.
I must admit losing two guys to FIU isn’t sitting too well.
Maybe Addazio will surprise me and come up with a gem or two.
Geez, I hope so.
Harrisburg quarterback Jalen Fitzpatrick is in this weekend. Daz is also said to be recruiting Bradenton Southeast’s Jared Williams, a blue-chip running back with Bernard Pierce size, speed and vision. I would be thrilled to get one or both.
Daz is also working hard to keep the early Golden commits and I hope he does that. I’m thrilled that Camden Catholic playmaking wide receiver Jerry Watters is finally coming to campus as a walk-on.
People say not to expect much from Addazio because he’s been here only a month,  but Bruce Arians came up with a solid class in less than a month from the time he was hired away from Alabama in 1983. In Arians’ first class was a fullback from Norcross (Ga.), Shelly Poole; an all-state lineman from Mount Vernon (N.Y.) in Mike Swanson; Carl Holmes, a 6-7, 300-pound offensive tackle from LaSalle; Sheldon Morris, a 6-foot, 198-pound back from Oxon Hills, Md., who led was county player of the year and led his team to the state title; Steve Domonoski, a linebacker from Jerwyn, Pa. and, oh yeah, a 5-10, 180-pound running back from Winston Churchill High in Potomac, Md., named Paul Palmer where the bio simply said “rushed for almost 2,000 yards his senior year.”
What has been my recruiting mantra on this blog for years?
“The best indicator of future success is past success.”
Paul Palmer is the embodiment of that statement. So is current Owen J. Roberts’ back Ryan Brumfield, who is an inch taller and five pounds heavier.
If Golden had one Achilles’ Heel in recruiting, it was trying to develop running backs and quarterbacks rather than recruit finished products at both positions. The one solid QB he had, Adam DiMichele, was a first-team all-state player and one of the greatest touchdown-producers in WPIAL history.
Bernard Pierce was a great running back recruit, a 2,000-yard back and state champion sprinter at Glen Mills, but where were the 2,000-yard backs and sprinters to back Pierce up?
You are not going to get it done with a 5-5, 150-pound backup.
Arians understood that so, in his first class, he recruited both Sheldon Morris and Paul Palmer.
A few years later, Temple’s sports information department put out a comic book promoting Palmer for Heisman.
He finished second.
Arians’ first recruiting class was the best of the first-year Temple coaches, but others have found gems, too. Jerry Berndt, who couldn’t recruit a lick, got OT Tre Johnson in his first class. Ron Dickerson, who could recruit, got Easton’s Juan Gaddy in his first class, along with WR Troy Kersey, QB Henry Burris and LB Al Singleton.
Dickerson, Arians and Berndt were all hired in late Dec., about the same time Daz was, so they had the same handicaps he’s facing now.
If Daz can bring me a Paul Palmer (cough, cough, Ryan Brumfield or Jared Williams) in this class, I will do cartwheels.
For now, though, I’m just going to try to enjoy my first time flying with Captain Addazio.
They tell me he’s a pretty good pilot.

22 thoughts on “Addazio trying to land last-minute recruits”

  1. TFF,For better or worse, Daz is our coach and we've got to find a way to rally around him…, at least for the first six games. So far, he is not off to a good start. Consider the super six criteria for being a successful big-time college coach:1. Out-recruit your region2. Surround yourself with great assistant coaches3. Run a clean program4. Develop players5. Don't get out-coached on game day, and6. Mobilize the fan base and be media savy.It's not that much of a stretch to figure out why the "U" hired AG when you consider the super six (although AG routinely got out-coached on game day). So, we should not be surprised by our record after the first six games. The team record is merely the outcome of the measured performance against the super six. Every coach who lost his job last year failed to perform in one or more of the six areas. C'mon Daz!

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  2. I'm rallying around him.I am alarmed at a couple of things, though:1) We haven't heard any big-name signees yet and recruiting day is Wednesday (not next Wednesday, this Wednesday);2) People at the Daz press conference told me that recruiting is everything in college football and that signing Daz would solve all our problems. My point is recruiting is NOT everything. Jerry Berndt could coach, but he couldn't recruit his way out of a paper bag. Ron Dickerson could recruit, but he couldn't coach his way out of a paper bag. As someone who has been around Wayne Hardin, to succeed at Temple you need to both be able to recruit and coach.I hope 50 million Florida fans are wrong about his coaching ability.We won't find out about that until the Villanova game.I hope my recruiting concerns about this first class are unfounded. We could find out if that's true as early as THIS Wednesday.

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  3. First of all, the notion that Al Golden was a great recruiter but bad game day coach is ridiculous. See their record the last two years. So is the notion that he could recruit everything else well except QBs and RBs. Come on! Gerardi is very good and I think compares favorably with DiMichelle. And he got Coyer who at one point was leaning towards a big time program. And hello, can you say Bernard Pierce and Matt Brown! And Myron Myles, a former three star prospect who Golden stole from Vandy was a red shirt last year. Perhaps he'll be your "big" backup this year. As for Addazio, I share your concerns. Golden is recruiting up a storm in Miami. In fact, he has received tons of praise and surprise for his 11th hour recruiting efforts from the recruiting g-ds at rivals and other recruiting experts. Addazio isn't even on the map!! Perhaps he's too busy thinking about his next move, switching to a program next year that's easier to recruit for. I think he and Chucky are realizing that it's a lot easier to recruit at Florida, Notre Dame, and Syracuse, and even Indiana for crissakes than Temple. You have to be transcending and special to recruit for Temple. And Al Golden was transcending and special. He put together great classes every year he was here. Not only this, he recruited student-athletes – guys who not only played football well but could hold their own academically. Have you looked at some of the academic areas that Golden's Temple recruits are majoring in. I see multiple engineering majors, a guy in the honors program, guys in computer science and organizational development. And here we are, just hoping that Addazio can fill up a recruting class. Hec, at this point, we don't even care if they come from the junior college ranks.

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  4. I agree with most everything you say, except you can't be seriously comparing Gerardi to DiMichele. They are not even in the same solar system, let alone planet. With DiMichele this year, Owls go 12-0 and lose in the Rose Bowl.

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  5. Did you know that Girardi threw 10 td passes this year in only half a season? His accuracy rating is also very good considering. DiMichelle was good, highly tauted (from all state to Penn State), and helped Temple in a difficult offensive growing phase. But Girardi was / is statistically comparable.

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  6. In fact, Mike, in half a season (in his first starting season), Girardi threw 10 TDs and only had 8 ints. In DiMichelle's fist season, and he played in more games, he threw 10 TDs and four more ints (12). Futhermore, Girardi's QB rating was about 20 points higher at 130 +. He, also, threw for close to 1200 + yards compared to DiMichelle's 1500 +. Again considering that DiMichelle played in more games, that's impressive. Mike Gerardi was not just servicable, he was very good.

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  7. By the way, if you like DiMichelle, did you know what he said about Matt Rhule: “When you look at Knighton, (Brian) Sanford, Andre Neblett or even Junior Galette, Coach Rhule is the one who helped send those guys on their way to where they are now in the NFL and got the most out of those guys…If you ask Terrance, he was way overweight, and the guy who turned his whole career around was Coach Rhule. He fixed him up and helped him drop weight…I would not have been as successful as I was if it wasn’t for Coach Rhule…He’d be the top candidate for me. I obviously don’t make the decisions on these things and respect the process, but I think he’s the right guy for the job without a doubt. Changing the whole staff and bringing in an outside staff could possibly hurt the players in having to learn a new system and kind of go away from what’s been working, especially over the last two seasons. We’re a program on the rise, and we don’t want to go back.”

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  8. The constant worshipping at the alter of Bruce Arians is getting old. FIU has better facilities, better coaching, better players, better weather, and a better chance to win their conference so why wouldnt recruits choose them. I want Temple to win but they made a bad hire.

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  9. Don't know if it's a bad hire yet. I can tell you after the Nova game.If SA hammers them like he should (and AG didn't), that's a pretty good indication it's a good hire.If he, like AG, struggles vs. Nova, it's a bad hire.I wish I didn't have to wait that long, but I do.

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  10. I like DiMichele as a QB. He's got that "special quality" few QBs have. I don't think ADM would have permitted the team to score only three points against Miami. He would have scrambled around, made plays, bought some time for himself to find open receivers.Gerardi doesn't have ADM's mobility. Not even close. Three points vs. Miami is damning.We were too one-dimensional with no mobile QBs and no running game once BP went down.As good as Matty Brown was against Army, he got exposed against Ohio, Miami and Penn State (which had no prayer of stopping BP before he went out).I think Gerardi can win with two Pierces, not one (one for when the original goes down). I saw Myron in high school. Played in a terrible league (Suburban One American) and just got to 1,000 yards. I don't think he's the answer, I don't care what AG or Vandy thought. Hopefully, Coyer can inject some mobility and playmaking into the position, too.I haven't seen enough of Reilly to make a judgment either way.

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  11. I think you're reasoning is more based on feeling than statistics. "Special quality"? Dude, the proof is in the statistics and wins. And Gerardi beats him in both (when measuring their first seasons under center) and he only played a half season! And how can you give an example of one game that was played without Bernard Pierce? Get serious, Mike. Petty and chincy called and said they were worn out and needed to benched. And why are you bringing up Matt Brown? Brown was used a lot to take the load off of the injury prone Bernard Pierce and played and ran the ball extremely well. He was very consistant and provided a spark throughout the season. And he and Pierce are only juniors! And why do you harp on the whole Villanova game so much? While that game is rivalry game, it's against a team that is in a conference below us. I expect Addazio to beat Nova but that's not where the expectations end. I think a 9-3 season with a bowl game is a fair expectation coming off our recent success and program momentum. And if they beat Penn State, as they were close last year after leading at half time, that would certainly be an positive measuring stick and feather in Addazio's cap.

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  12. Statistics are for losers. Everybody who saw ADM knows ADM was 10x the better QB than Gerardi (and I like Gerardi but he's got no … zero … none … nada … mobility). ADM could throw, throw accurately on the run and duck out of a rush and gain the needed eight yards on 3 and 7 every time.In big-time college football today, you need to have the "sixth sense" to duck out of the rush.Stewart doesn't have five senses and Gerardi certainly doesn't have that sixth.By the way, Gerardi's supporting cast was better than ADM's by a good shot.As far as Brown, you must be Stevie Wonder if you think he didn't get exposed against the fake Miami and Ohio and Penn State.Also, the last I looked, Stevie Wonder is leading Matt Rhule in the poll on the right.

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  13. A big win over Villanova jump-starts a great season (and means everything to the fan base going forward). Struggle against Villanova, like AG did, and you struggle to recapture those fannies in the seats for the entire home slate, lose credibility in your hometown, disgruntle the fan base and cause people to question the new guy's competence.Hammer them, 55-3, and you are off and running, confidence-wise, and the whole city thinks Temple might have something here.It's just one game, but it means a lot and gives a measuring stick vs. the old guy.Does Addazio have his shit together?We'll find out that night.

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  14. I guess we'll have to agree to disagree. I measure success in statistics and wins. If a QB has great mobility but doesn't get you wins and doesn't even wow you with statistics by comparison, the only competition he can win is a beauty contest. I suppose you're endorsing the beauty contest. The only realistic point that you make is that Girardi's cast and support was stronger than DiMichelle's. As far as Brown goes, I don't think running backs get "exposed". I think defenses and offensive lines can get "exposed". I think you're suggesting that Brown didn't measure up when he was given the chance. But again, if you look at the statistics, especially his yards per carry, you'll see that it's very impressive. In at least six games, his yards per carry were over 4.5, the gold standard by which running backs are judged. And his season average was 5.1 per carry on 162 carries, which is higher than Bernard Pierce's 4.7 on 154 carries. And guess how many fumbles / turnovers he was responsible for on 162 carries and 830 yards – zippo!! And who almost single handedly won the Army game with an amazing performance after Bernard Pierce was out and injured? Matt Brown. As far as the Ohio and Miami games, his statistics were average for Matt Brown, but still productive. He wasn't shut down which is what I think you allege. I might be Stevie Wonder, but you sure sound superstitious.

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  15. I think 'Daz really hurt himself and the school with "UConngate". Why would you let your kid sign four years of his life to a guy already planning an escape route?Temple's response and Daz's lack there of, just amplified the situation. Plus, how can an offensive recruit commit to a team that dosen't have an OC yet? Not to mention, the Brumfield issue.I have a sense that 'Daz is getting his coaching team together for his next coaching gig. I bet he is promising them, "Look, we have a good Temple team here. We'll win a bunch of games in 2011, then we're outta here, so wat-da-ya-say?"God, I hope I am wrong, but I see several red flags and there is no Temple "T" on them.

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  16. PPB,You da man, but I agree to disagree on the QB thing. I wish we had both DiMichele and Pierce last year for 12 big games. I know Temple would have been on the cover of SI in a good way if that happened.But we're 2 years removed from ADM and we must move on….I fear Temple Rugby is right on… what the hell is Daz doing?WTF?Unless he has a 5-star commit from the Gators at RB ready to de-commit, he screwed up big-time not pursuing Ryan Brumfield.Read the rest of Temple Rugby's post and save it.The man speaks the truth as I see it.

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  17. OK, here is a strange 'WTF'. I just read Temple has a committment from Andy Reid's son to play running back and defensive back.These are Brumfield's positions.Really?? WTF???

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  18. Brumfield is Paul Palmer re-incarnated, runs a 4.4 40, is a three-time first-team all-state player and second leading rusher in the history of Pa. (and that goes back a long way) and Spencer Reid is second-team All-Central League.WTF indeed?I'm not getting a good vibe on any level from Addazio. I hope I'm wrong but hope doesn't get me to a bowl game.

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  19. So who are these six last minute recruits and are there anymore on the way? Have you seen what Golden has done with Miami. No matter how good Addazio is as a recruiter, he will never be half the recruiter Golden is. I think you hit on it in an earlier post. If you're a parent and kid who plays football, who do you get more excited about when he makes a visit to your home, Al Golden or Steve Addazio? Golden is not only the personifcation of his name, but his enthusiasm for academics and building the total person must sound more reassuring than Addazio's Vitamin A speech. And where Golden wreaks of integrity, Addazio leaves us bereft of such sense. Let me remind you that Golden stayed for 5 years and built a house of brick. Addazio has been here for five minutes and has already looked into the UCONN job. If he stays for at least four years and graduates his current recruiting class, I will consider him a better man than what our original impression was of him. Ironically, he said his message to future Temple recruits would be to make Temple a "destination." We'll see if he practices what he preaches.

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  20. I don't think his silence on the UConn thing can be underestimated. People who are recruiting against us are using this against Addazio and Temple and it's having a big impact. We lost two kids to FIU.FIU? Give me a break. We aspire to be a BCS team, we have a world-class university in a world-class city, the No. 1 business school in the nation, play in the best stadium in America, and we lose kids to FIU?Golden never lost a kid to FIU.

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  21. Ditto. Except the part about us having the #1 business school in the nation. We don't even have the number #1 business school in the city – that would be Warton at Penn. But your point is well taken. This guy wreaked of used car salesman the moment I heard him give his introduction speech. In this way, he is the polar opposite of Al Golden who also talked a good game but gave us a lotta bang for our buck. Yes, we lost Walker and Andre Coble (who was one of out top recruits).

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