04.01.13
by

Sky’s the limit for 6-11 walk-on freshman

Devonte Watson’s unannounced arrival at the E-O is the biggest sensation of camp so far.

For the rest of his football coaching life, new Temple University football head coach Matt Rhule will probably do a lot of the same things old Temple coach Al Golden did.
Why not?
Look where it got both Temple and Al.

Devonte Watson’s Temple ‘][‘ gloves had to be specially
ordered and reinforced with extra padding so that he doesn’t
sustain a hand injury from blocking so many field goals.

So I was only amused and not surprised when I heard that Rhule is making folks visiting the Edberg-Olson Football Complex to sign a sheet asking “not to report anything football-related” they see at practice.
Golden used to do the same thing.

“What’s he doing there, enriching uranium?” I asked when someone told me that Rhule adopted the Golden Rhule regarding secrecy.
Enriching uranium  at football facilities is not a new thing.
Enrico Fermi did the same at the University of Chicago in the early days of World War II.
Well, it turns out that Rhule is enriching uranium (in a football-science way) and the result could be of nuclear proportions in the college football world this fall.
At least in the science of sport according to a report in this morning’s Temple Times.
About 150 years ago, Dr. Alexander Graham Bell created a sensation in science with these few words:
“Watson, come here, I need you!”
Thomas Watson was his assistant and Bell had just spilled acid while inventing the phone.
The moment changed the science of communication forever.
Another Watson, this one named Devonte, may have helped change the science of football last week at Temple University’s football practice.

This morning’s Temple Times broke the news.

A freshman on a basketball scholarship, Watson showed up unannounced at Edberg-Olson Hall, the school’s football practice complex, the day after the basketball Owls were eliminated from the NCAA Tournament by top-seeded Indiana.
“All I could see was this tall guy ducking under the door,” Rhule told The Times. “He shook my hand and said, ‘Coach, I’m Devonte Watson, I want to come out for the football team.’
“I mean, he’s 6-foot-11, I thought he was a basketball player and I asked him flat out: Are you on a basketball scholarship?’ He said he got permission from coach (Fran) Dunphy. So we got him in the biggest uniform we could and told him to get out there.”
First off, Rhule said, they tried him at wide receiver.
“He was OK there,” Rhule said. “You see he could catch the ball but he wasn’t comfortable running routes. He’s 6-11, got a wingspan of 97 inches, and we figured we could use him on red zone offense but then some of our other coaches had other ideas.”

“We’re all about giving youngsters college experiences they’ll never forget and Devonte won’t forget this. Look, I didn’t bring him here with the intention of blocking field goals for our football team but that’s where his road led. He obviously has a gift.”
_ Fran Dunphy

Special teams coach Allen Mogridge had the best suggestion, Rhule said.
“Allen asked Devonte what he was known for best as a high school player,” Rhule said. “Devonte said, “Blocking field goals.’
“That’s it, Allen said. Allen suggested that we put Devonte on the special teams, blocking field goals.”
For the better part of all last week, that’s what Watson did.
Block field goals.
Boy, did he ever.
When one of the Temple kickers launched a field goal attempt, the freshman with a vertical leap of 39 inches stuck his big paw out and blocked it almost every time. Kick thud, followed by block thud.
“He’s amazing,” Rhule said. “Nothing gets by him. He’s not only 6-11 but he’s got these incredible instincts to block field goals. He just stands there behind the nose guard and jumps up and the kicker has got no chance. Think about it. In basketball, all of these great athletes are driving in a full speed and he still blocks their shots. In football, all he’s got to do is stand behind the nose guard and time a kick. It’s easy by comparison.
“We tried all three of our kickers and he must have blocked 10, 11, 12 field goals in a row. He’s like Bernie Parent was with the Flyers. Nothing gets by this guy. I don’t want to jinx him, but it’s really going to be hard to kick field goals against Temple this season.”
When asked about Watson going out for the football team, Temple basketball coach Fran Dunphy told the Temple Times he gave his OK.
“We’re all about giving youngsters college experiences they’ll never forget and Devonte won’t forget this,” Dunphy said. “Look, I didn’t bring him here with the intention of blocking field goals for our football team but that’s where his road led. He obviously has a gift. All I asked Matt was not to get him hurt and Matt said he’d do his best. Matt won’t let him catch passes. He won’t allow him on the kickoff return or receiving teams. He just wants Devonte to block field goals. That’s good enough for me.”
Err, one more thing.
Happy April Fool’s Day everyone.

Some notable Homecoming Games for Temple:

year
Score
Opponent
Attendance
2013
Temple, 33-14
Army
25,533
2012
Temple, 37-28
South Florida
25,796
2011
Temple, 34-0
Buffalo
25,820
2010
Temple, 28-27
Bowling Green
23,045
03.28.13
by

The depth chart: Who are these guys?


Except for the annoying voice at the opening, this looks like fun.

Life would be a whole lot easier if things always are as they seem to be.
They aren’t and today’s Exhibit A is the Temple University football depth chart.
The chart was updated two weeks ago and it hasn’t been since yet we all know that the starting tight end on that chart, Cody Booth, is now a left tackle.
I’m not too excited about that since I thought Booth is more valuable as a tight end than he is as a tackle.
Put it this way: Not too many guys could catch the ball last year but Booth was a reliable pass receiver.
I don’t like to subtract from an area of weakness.
Hopefully, guys like Chris Parthemore and Alex Jackson have shown enough to give new head coach Matt Rhule confidence to try Booth as a tackle.

The Owls were off today but they are back at it tomorrow.

While there are some head-scratching moves (Nate D. Smith a third-team linebacker, really?) and Wyatt Benson from best blocking fullback in Temple history to starting linebacker (without really hitting anybody), what really intrigues me is to see guys appearing on the chart who I really don’t know all that much about.
Who are these guys?
NATHAN HAIRSTON, WR _ A 6-foot, 176-pound freshman, Hairston is listed as the second-team X wide receiver to Deon Miller and ahead of more heralded recruits like Romond Deloatch, James Whitfield and Tyron Harris. This is how anonymous Hairston is: I could not find a single story online about   any of his football exploits at Governor Thomas Johnson High School in Frederick, Md. and found hundreds of stories on Deloatch, Whitfield and Harris. That doesn’t mean he’s not any good, it just means he didn’t get any ink. Maybe that makes him hungrier.
THOMAS RUMER, QB _ Listed as the “sixth-team” quarterback (I’ve never seen a Temple QB depth chart that went lower than four), Rumer had some success as a championship quarterback at Malvern Prep.
JOHN RIZZO, FB _ Rizzo is a pretty well-known recruit who comes into Temple with strong credentials. What is interesting, though, is that he currently is the ONLY fullback on the depth chart. Last year’s second-team fullback, Kenny Harper, is listed as No. 1 on the tailback depth chart and you already know about Benson. I expect one or both back at fullback once the season starts. I really like Rizzo, though, because he’s a bruising runner, a great blocker and a two-time state champion in wrestling.
JAIMEN NEWMAN _ A former part-time starter on the offensive line, Newman is back in his comfort zone as a pass-rushing defensive end. He’s 6-4, 290. As a senior in high school, he had 14 sacks. Temple needs some sacks out of its defensive ends this year and Newman is now at the top of the DE depth chart along with Sean Daniels on the other side.

Bret Niederreiter

BRET NIEDERREITER _ The redshirt freshman has moved ahead of last year’s pre-season All Big East nose tackle, Levi Brown, on the depth chart. Niederreiter is 6-3, 265. Brown is 6-2, 300. Got to think part of that is designed to light a fire under the talented Brown.
STEPHAUN MARSHALL _ Shot himself right up the free safety depth chart behind first-teamer Abdul Smith, a former Rutgers’ recruit and backup cornerback. Interesting that Nate L. Smith, probably the most heralded recruit of the 2012 signing class and a former first-team all-state safety at Archbishop Wood, is fourth string. Marshall is a former teammate of Khalif Herbin at Montclair (N.J.).

HASSAN DIXON _ Listed as the SIXTH team tailback. As a senior in high school at Germantown (Md.), he had 1,019 yards and 19 touchdowns.
Fourth-team tailback is Spencer Reid out of Harriton. Dixon’s dad is former all-time Temple running back great Zach Dixon. His brother is former Owl great tight end and defensive end Raheem Brock. Reid’s dad is former BYU great offensive lineman Andy Reid.  Sorry, Andy, I like Hassan’s bloodlines better.

03.26.13
by

Sports Illustrated sits down with coach Rhule

Ryan Alderman (left) and Jalen Fitzpatrick look like they are having fun
after Fitzpatrick caught game-tying touchdown pass at UConn.

You can forget all of that talk about Temple football becoming the Boise State of the East.
How about the Florida Gulf Coast of the North?
That’s essentially the message head coach Matt Rhule imparted to Pete Thamel in today’s online edition of Sports Illustrated.
That’s OK with me.
The message essentially is this:
If Temple’s players have fun, they’ll play loose and with confidence and win, just like  those Florida Gulf Coast kids did over the weekend in Philadelphia.
If Temple’s players play tight, like Georgetown and even our own Scootie Randall did, they won’t perform to their highest level.

Any publicity is good, especially on SI.com

Think Florida Gulf Coast and Khalif Wyatt.
Or the fun Khalif Herbin looks like he’s having when he’s carrying the ball from scrimmage. When he’s running a pass route, Herbin looks out of his comfort/fun element.
That’s the kind of confidence and fun levels that Rhule wants to bring to the Edberg-Olson Football Complex every day.
If the Owls can play with that kind of confidence and sense of fun that FGCU and Wyatt always plays with, the results on the field will be Boise State-like.
I once asked Temple football Hall of Fame coach Wayne Hardin about the fun of playing football.
“Mike, the only way you can have fun is to win,” coach said.
If the only way to win is to have fun and still do work, I’m all for it.
I think Rhule might be onto something here.
We’ll find out for sure in the laboratory environment of September, October and November.

03.23.13
by

Temple football’s Khalif and Wyatt

Temple Football Forever congratulates our friend Fran Dunphy and his Owls on a great season (Fran-haters, he did not shoot 0 for 12) … also congrats to our friends from LaSalle. .. hope Explorers win the NC …

There was a reason Wyatt Benson was the first in the end zone on most TD celebrations.

“I’m only going to switch someone who wants to be switched.”
_ Matt Rhule

Temple’s big man on campus these days is Khalif Wyatt, a basketball player for the Owls.
Temple football has both a Khalif and a Wyatt, though not in the same uniform.
I hope the the football Owls get as much out of their Khalif and their Wyatt as the basketball team has.
Khalif Herbin and Wyatt Benson.
If so, they should be in good shape this fall.
Pick a rushing touchdown, any touchdown, for Temple’s football team in the last three years and if there’s one common denominator it is that Wyatt Benson is blowing up a defender right before it.
Sometimes two defenders.
All you have to do is look at the South Florida film from last year.
Montel Harris sprung free for an exclamation point touchdown only after Benson destroyed someone on a sweep.
Same for all five of Bernard Pierce’s touchdowns at Maryland two years ago.
In all of my 30-plus years of watching Temple football, I can honestly say Wyatt Benson is the best blocking fullback the Owls have had since Paul Palmer followed Shelley Poole through the hole to nearly win a Heisman Trophy.

Nobody appreciated Benson more than Montel Harris.

Now Benson has been moved from fullback to linebacker, a position of strength for the Owls.
Go figure.
Herbin, like the 5-5 Matty Brown four years ago, needs to get the ball in his hands more than a typical slot receiver does. He’s got the potential to make those explosive plays downfield that Steve Addazio always talked about but never delivered. A switch to running back might help get him more than the two or three touches a typical slot receiver gets per game.
Current Temple head coach Matt Rhule indicated the strong possibility exists that Benson will be back at fullback in August.
“He’s our starting fullback, but what does a fullback do?” Rhule told Owlscoop.com. “He came here as a linebacker and I liked him as a linebacker.”
Good point.
He’ll play 15 snaps and you can do that and play linebacker as well.
Hey, if Bill Cosby, Bill Juzwiak, Fizzy Weinraub and John Rienstra can play two ways for the Owls, so can a few of these modern players. (Although Rienstra, an offensive tackle, only played nose guard on goal-line situations.)
It won’t kill Benson to play linebacker and come in to block on the goal-line package, something Rhule was in charge of for the New York Giants this season.
Also notable in practice from Saturday is this quote from Rhule:
“I’m only going to switch someone who wants to be switched.”
He was talking about Kevin Newsome from quarterback to another position, but I hope the same, err, rule applies to everyone else.
Khalif Herbin please report to Rhule’s office immediately and bring a letter of recommendation from Matty Brown.

 A Twin Brother from a Different Mother

Player
Height/Weight
40 speed
Yards gained from
Scrimmage in final
High school year
Position started/finished at Temple
Matt Brown
5-5/150
4.40
1,450 (9 TDs)
WR/RB
Khalif Herbin
5-7/170
4.34
1,940 (43 TDs)
WR/???
03.20.13
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Matt Rhule Bobblehead Day

Fans grab their spots prior to the 1919 C&W game. (Nah, that’s across
the street for a 1919 A’s game at Shibe Park, 22d and Lehigh.)
Sean Boyle a few days
before he signed at
Temple, Feb. 5, 2008

Spring cleaning comes around this time of the year for me.
This year, I found an old Al Golden Bobblehead (see right), an old social security card and re-arranged some of the furniture.
Everything for a purpose.
When I looked at Al’s bobbing head, I remembered how he routinely changed a player’s position for the betterment of the team.
Everything Al did regarding personnel moves was for a reason. I don’t remember a single Al Golden personnel switch that didn’t work out. Al was shaking his head yes while I was thinking that.

Matt Rhule interview today
Please click here to read an interview with Matt Rhule that appeared in today’s Harrisburg Patriot-News.

I’m the same way. I re-arranged my furniture for function, not style. I moved the chairs and the sofa this year so I can get to the door quicker when the Publisher’s Clearing House people arrive in a couple of weeks. (Smile.)
So it goes with position changes for the Temple football Owls. Change for a reason is good change.
Head coach Matt Rhule made one I totally endorse.
Sean Boyle, a long-time starter at center, will move to the right tackle spot vacated by the dependable and graduating Martin Wallace.  That makes a lot of sense. Boyle is the team’s best offensive lineman and will be protecting Chris Coyer’s blind side, plus Kyle Friend proved he’s more than a capable center as a true freshman last season. It’s mind-boggling to think that Sean Boyle signed on Feb. 5, 2008 (not 2009) in the same recruiting class with guys like Adrian Robinson and Mo Wilkerson. His maturity will help this team.
Some other functional changes that could make sense:

Kevin Newsome: Temple Owl Forever

KEVIN NEWSOME (QB to DB) _ It would be a shame if Newsome’s path to get on the field was blocked by Coyer and Juice Granger again, but I see that happening. Newsome is arguably the best athlete on the team and wants to play quarterback.  Unlike Coyer and Granger, Newsome can play another position. I suggest safety. I love the way Newsome said last year: “I’m a Temple Owl until the day I die.” He’s 6-3, 215, runs like a deer and has a 37-inch vertical leap. On third down against Maryland last year, starting strong safety Justin Gildea went up for “jump ball” type plays with taller Maryland receivers on four different occasions. Not surprisingly, the Maryland guys came down with key receptions each time. Gildea was in great position to make the plays but had no vertical. Put Newsome in the same position and those balls either get knocked down or picked.

ALEX JACKSON (TE to DE) _ Jackson has some experience as a DE and maybe it’s time to put him back there. For some reason, Alex could not catch a cold at TE last year and Rhule’s new offensive philosophy minimizes the tight end position.  I do see a guy with his height and speed being a nightmare for opposing quarterbacks. I like it when opposing quarterbacks have nightmares against the Owls. It would be great for Jackson and Sean Daniels to be meeting regularly at the opposing quarterback.

Khalif Herbin could be the
 Matty Brown of the next 3 years.

KHALIF HERBIN (WR to RB) _ Temple already has one great Khalif in a major sport (basketball) and put  this Khalif as a RB and he might be the next. This is the exact same situation Matty Brown faced four years ago. When he was moved to running back from slot receiver, his career took off. Brown was 5-5, 150 at the time and ran a 4.40. Herbin currently is 5-7, 170 and runs a 4.34 40. He’s got the metrics to do it.
Sometimes, you’ve got to re-arrange the furniture for function.
Steve Addazio was too stubborn to do it.
One of the intriguing things about this spring practice that starts on Friday will be finding out if Matt Rhule is as open to change as Al Golden was.
If he is, expect Matt Rhule Bobblehead Day to come sooner than later.

03.19.13
by

Five position changes that helped Temple

Schedule is subject to change.

Looking at the spring football roster makes me remember my playing days when I took a tumble on the slanted concrete courts outside my grade school in the Far Northeast.
I’d check to see if all five fingers and 10 toes were still there.
Right about now every year I check the roster to see if all the “good” guys are still there.
Looking over the roster this spring, I must admit I’m rather bummed that POTENTIAL breakaway running back Montrell Dobbs is not listed.
I have to assume he’s gone.
I guess the assembled media will find out why on Friday, the opening day of spring practice.
Oh well.
Time to concentrate on the guys who ARE here, not the ones who aren’t.
Right now, the starting tailback is Jamie Gilmore and the backup is Kenny Harper and everyone else is crossing fingers on the incoming freshmen reporting for duty in July. Gilmore was the No. 7-rated all-purpose back in the nation coming out of North Marion (Fla.) High two years ago. Harper is another Floridian, who was better known for his defensive play at Gainesville Buchholz. The RB depth chart drops off significantly after that. Like Grand Canyon dropoff.
A position change I suggested a few weeks ago is to give Khalif Herbin a long look at running back this spring. He’s bigger and faster than Matty Brown and just as elusive, if not moreso.
If Herbin goes from slot receiver to RB, he’ll be doing exactly what Brown did four years ago.
Position changes that have benefited Temple in the past:

BRIAN BROOMELL _ As a true freshman out of Sterling (N.J.) High, Broomell started as a strong safety on defense for the Owls. He was a helluva hitter and player on defense. By the time he was a senior,   though, he switched over to quarterback and led the nation in passing efficiency. The Owls won a school-record 10 games. Called the greatest and least stealth audible in Temple football history when he lined up to take the snap in a 42-10 win at Villanova, pointed to wide receiver Gerald “Sweet Feet” Lucear, pointed to the end zone and threw a touchdown pass right where he pointed. Very Babe Ruth-esque. Was the Edmonton quarterback in the Canadian Football League in 1980 and 1981.

MATTY BROWN _  Kid made play after play in the summer, but coach Al Golden said he had to switch Brown to running back because they couldn’t get him the ball in the slot enough as a 5-5 receiver. Brown then went on to make four years of great plays for Temple. Probably the toughest running back, pound for pound, in Temple football history. Had he remained as a slot receiver, that would have been the greatest waste of talent ever.

KEE-AYRE GRIFFIN _ Went from running back in the 2008 season to cornerback. In the 2011 game against Penn State, KAG made a spectacular interception of Matt McGloin that nearly sealed the win for the Owls. Griffin was mostly a lock-down corner the rest of his career at Temple and had a pick to the house that kick-started a rout of Kent State. Fumbled in a 2008 overtime loss at Navy and   coach Al Golden had to rescue KAG from under the  bus to make the move to DB. (I still think AG should have punted and made Navy go 80 yards in 17 seconds with no time outs left.)

AHKEEM SMITH _ Went from running back to linebacker and was a solid, if unspectacular, player for Temple. Channeled his inner RB as the short man on a fake punt in a 34-0 win over Buffalo on 2011. He went straight up the gut on a short snap and took it 44 yards to the house. Smith, an All-State running back out of Bethlehem Liberty, was blocked in a running back career due to the presence of  Brown and Bernard “The Franchise” Pierce. The Owls had a need at linebacker and he filled it. Another Liberty product, Levi Brown, now starts for the Owls.

JOHN RIENSTRA _ An All-American offensive guard for Temple, Rienstra begged coach Bruce Arians in to play nose guard on a key series against defending national champion BYU in a game at Veterans Stadium. Rienstra forced a field goal with a sack and a tackle for a loss. “That shows you what a great athlete John is,”  said head coach Bruce Arians.  “He’s just a tremendous competitor.” Highlight of Rienstra’s Temple career might have been appearing on Bob Hope’s All-American Show with the greatest college football helmet in history (simply, TEMPLE) shown proudly to the national TV audience. Rienstra was an under-recruited 5-foot-10, 170-pound lineman out of Academy of the New Church in Bryn Athyn. By the time he left Temple, he was 6-3, 265.

03.18.13
by

The greatest day in sports

My bracket in Yahoo under the group “Temple Football Forever.” Feel free to join the group.

You can have Super Bowl Sunday, the NBA Finals, opening day in baseball, even the weekend of the Final Four.
To me, the greatest day in sports is the first day of the NCAA Basketball Tournament.
I’m not talking about that fake “First Four” day in Dayton, just the real first day, the Thursday opening of the tournament.
And it has nothing to do with putting a few sheckles on the tournament because I felt this way even as a kid.

Thursday is the greatest day in sports and not because it’s Pro Timing Day.

Bracket Tip of the Day: I won The Inquirer’s NCAA’s bracket pool two years ago. By then, there were so many layoffs that the winning pot went from $2,550 my first year there to $440 my last. The first 14 years I worked there, I read over every team’s bio in both papers before picking and never won anything. Information overload. The year I won, I just printed out a pool Sunday night and did it myself. Sometimes, too much information is a bad thing. Last year, I understand the Inky didn’t even have a pool. Another sad commentary on the failing state of the newspaper business.
But I digress.
I’m a Temple football fan first and foremost, but I’m also a sports fan.
For all the reasons that compel me to love college football, though, the unique fairness of college basketball’s first NCAA day makes it the most appealing and exciting sports day of the year for me.
Sixty-four teams have, at least in theory, an equal chance of cutting down the nets in early April and walking off National Champion.
I think that’s terrific.
College football, other than FCS, has no such fairness structure.
So if I had to rate sports days of the year, as a Temple football fan first and foremost, they’ve be this:
1) NCAA Opening Thursday
2) Any Temple football bowl day;
3) Temple Football Opening Day;
4) Temple Football Signing Day;
5) Temple Football Bowl Selection Sunday;

Next up on that list would be Phillies Opening Day and Eagles’ Opening Day.
If I was keeping this a Temple-football-centric list, it’d would be:
1) Temple bowl day;
2) Temple opening day;
3) Temple signing day;
4) Temple bowl selection Sunday;

Since Temple football practice starts on Friday, you’d think I’d put that there.
 Or even Cherry and White Day.
I’m like Allen Iverson.
I’m not a big practice guy, but I realize it’s a necessary evil.
While walking off the field after Myron Miles went for 134 yards and three touchdowns in a spring game a couple of years ago, someone said to me.
“They really looked good out there today, huh?”
I said, “They always look like they are going to go unbeaten on Cherry and White Day. Show me in September, October and November.”
We never saw Myron Miles again, partially proving my point.

Tomorrow: Five position changes that have helped Temple over the years.

03.15.13
by

BE split opens path to football title for Owls

Sources say this is the likely split in money.
Would the Philadelphia Inquirer do this for us?

The Big East and as-yet-to-be named conference have split.
Good riddance to the Catholic schools, I say.

According to some pretty good sources, Temple recently negotiated an upward swing in its cash payout.
The Owls were set to be lumped in with the new 2013 schools.
Temple wanted the same kind of split that Cincinnati, UConn and USF received, but those schools argued that they were here longer.
Temple argued that it was here longer than the newbies, so the above schools each chipped in to give Temple a higher payout than the newbies.
After UConn, USF and Cincinnati took the largest portion of the money and the Catholic 7 got $10 million, the rest had to be negotiated.
Since the payouts to UConn, USF and Cincy (and even Temple) are installments, that’s a further incentive to stay.
Temple is in a better place now and not just money-wise.
OK, so the Owls don’t play Villanova in a Big East  basketball game next year but what good was Villanova to Temple?

My original choice for the new conference name.

OK, it’s a decent hoop rivalry but that can be continued on a nonleague basis.
When you look at the big picture, this new conference (I kind of like the name BAM … Big America Conference, which was suggested by Kent in the post below) will be a better one for Temple.
My second choice is Metro America, which incorporates the big-city theme of the all-sports schools.
The Owls get to keep all of their old basketball rivals as nonleague games.
Playing Villanova, LaSalle,  St. Joe’s and Penn will continue. The Owls will just have to drop the Towsons,  Caniniuses  and Detroits of the world.  I don’t think anyone has a problem with that. The MAC affilation is basically over, although I’d like to see Buffalo added (big city, former quasi rival) should someone else leave.
This is about football and when you look at where the Owls were and where they are going, they become instantly more competitive. Heck, I could see them winning the title this year (‘chip, as the kids say) if everybody stays healthy. Since that rarely happens, I see seven wins within sight.
I thought they should have been competitive in the Big East last year, but I blame that on Steve Addazio.

Addazio blamed it on a youth movement, but the youth movement was of his making. In the home opener against Villanova, nine of the 11 starters on defense were either juniors or seniors. By the time they played Syracuse in the season finale, nine of the 11 starters were sophomores or freshmen.

People say he had MAC talent going up against Big East talent but Kent State had MAC talent going up against Rutgers, Toledo had MAC talent going up against Cincinnati and Ohio had MAC talent going up against Penn State and they all accomplished what Addazio wasn’t able to do:
Win against those same foes.
Could Addazio have AT LEAST been competitive? With better coaching and a more balanced offensive approach, I think so.
Addazio blamed it on a youth movement, but the youth movement was of his making. In the home opener against Villanova, nine of the 11 starters on defense were either juniors or seniors.
By the time they played Syracuse in the season finale, nine of the 11 starters were sophomores or freshmen.
Convenient excuse.
New coach Matt Rhule will throw the ball on first and second downs, which should immediately improve the whole structure of down and distance for four quarters. I only hope and pray that Phil Snow is as good as Rhule says he is.
Now while newcomers like SMU and Houston figure to be tough, Temple can be competitive against them.
Kent State beat Rutgers by blitzing its linebackers and putting constant pressure on quarterback Gary Nova, forcing him into six interceptions. Hint: Temple’s got fast linebackers.
A win over regional rival Rutgers, a going-away gift to the Big 10, would be nice.
Good riddance, and welcome.
The door is open for Temple to win a title now if it has the courage to walk through it.

03.13.13
by

Here’s the kicker: Brandon McManus is one

Brandon McManus has some classy things to say about Temple fans.
The big story out of the March 3rd Regional kicking combine was that 47 reporters requested credentials.
Usually, it’s no more than four or five.
Reason?
Lauren Silberman was trying to make history as the NFL’s first female kicker.
She either paid $275 or was given $275 to make the trip.
She would have fared much better putting a 50-1 bet on the Temple men’s basketball Owls winning the NCAA championship.

CFPA winners
Year
Placekicker
School
2013
Brandon McManus
Temple
2012
Carlos Santos
Tulane
2011 (tie)
Caleb Sturgis
Randy Bullock
Florida
Texas A&M
2009
Brian Walsh
Georgia

As it stands now, and stood then, the bet on Temple cutting down the nets would have been much safer.
Her two kicks TOTALED 30 yards, one 19 and one 11.
All 47 reporters raced to her side to do the story.
Here’s the real kicker: Brandon McManus is one.
At the other end of the field, McManus was going 6 for 6, including 3 for 3 from beyond 50.
None of the reporters bothered to talk to him, but that wasn’t why he was there.
His stock immediately soared for the upcoming NFL draft.
Kickers are almost never picked in the draft but now it seems McManus could go somewhere in the middle rounds because of his performance at the combine on the heels of an outstanding season at Temple.
On Sunday, McManus received his CFPA as the specialist of the year for his performance while at Temple and got a rousing ovation from the 10,200 fans in attendance to watch the Owls top VCU.

France checking in, and we don’t mean former Soul
and Eagle kicker Todd France.

McManus ended his collegiate career as Temple’s career leader in scoring (338), punting average (45.4), field goals made (60), and field goals attempted (83).  The 2012 first-team All-BIG EAST punter and 2012 second-team All-BIG EAST kicker set the season record for field goal accuracy (82.4) and set game records at Army for extra points made (9) and attempted (9). McManus played in EVERY game of his collegiate career. In 2012, McManus led the Owls in scoring (74) and went 32-of-33 in PAT. He punted 54 times for 2,433 yards (45.1 average), including a career-long 68-yard punt against No. 19/17 Rutgers, while 15 punts longer than 50 yards. McManus went 6-of-7 on field goals of 40+ yards, including a 50-yarder in the win over South Florida. He also kicked the game-winning field goal at Connecticut in overtime and contributed 40 touchbacks on 56 kickoffs (71.4 percent).
McManus had a Temple connection long before he arrived on campus. His coach at North Penn High, Dick Beck, was the captain of the 1990 Temple team that went 7-4.
Jim Cooper, Jr., the kicker coming on board this year, has another Temple connection. His dad of the same name was the kicker for Bruce Arians in the late 1980s.
McManus proved that you can stay home and do great things at Temple, following in the, err, footsteps of his good friend, Bernard Pierce, of the Baltimore Ravens.
While the reporters were taking notes talking to Silberman, let’s hope future recruits were making mental notes watching McManus.
That’s the bigger story, after all.

03.09.13
by

A look at the new foes

New Opponent
Recent common foes
Result
How Temple fared
SMU
Army, Navy
Army 16, SMU 14 (2010)
Navy 38, SMU 35 (2009)
Temple 42, Army 35
(2010)
Temple 28, Navy 24 (2009)
Houston
UCLA, PSU
UCLA 31, Houston 13 (2010)
Houston 30, Penn State 14 (2011)
UCLA 30, Temple 21 (2009)
Penn State 14, Temple 10 (2011)
Central Florida
Buffalo, Ball State
UCF 23, Buffalo 17 (2009)
UCF 24, Buffalo 10 (2011)
UCF 38, Ball State 17 (2012)
Temple 37, Buffalo 13 (2009)
Temple 34, Buffalo 0 (2011)
Temple 42, Ball State 0 (2011)
Idaho
Wyoming, Bowling Green
Wyoming 40, Idaho 37 (2011)
Bowling Green 32, Idaho 15 (2011)
Temple 37, Wyoming 15 (2011)
Bowling Green 13, Temple 10  (2011)

Chart shows that, with the exception of Houston, Temple has done significantly better against recent common foes.

A couple of years ago, the Princeton football team was about six games removed from winning the national championship based on the faulty theory of transitive property.
You know, if Team A can beat Team B and Team B beat Team C, then Team A can also beat Team C.
By now, every fan who handed in a losing slip at the football betting window knows that way of gambling is Fool’s Gold.
Still, transitive property is a useful exercise in getting a GENERAL idea of how a team might perform against another.

We all know about the Notre Dames of the world. The Irish just recruit in a


Bryant Rhule has a sister!
TFF congratulates
coach Matt Rhule and family
on the birth
of a new daughter
(below) football scoop
seemingly has
every scoop
ever uncovered

different stratosphere than Temple.
That one is going to be a rough go for the Owls, even if Khalif Herbin switches to running back and Kevin Newsome becomes a strong safety in a couple of weeks.
Cincinnati and Louisville also figure to be tough,
but I’m not conceding Rutgers.
I don’t think Matt Rhule is conceding any loss,

either, but beating a regional rival like RU on the road would be a nice statement well within his reach.
Temple returns everyone and Rutgers was relatively wiped out on both sides of the ball.
Had Steve Addazio used the pass the way it was meant to be used, even the young Owls would have been a lot more competitive against Rutgers in the second half and might have pulled that one out. A week later, Kent State showed what an effectively-coached team could do against Rutgers.
To me, seven wins against this schedule (Idaho, Fordham, Memphis and Army as the givens and three of the other eight) is realistic and attainable. (Army has had a more recent history of success than Memphis has had and Temple has handled the Cadets pretty easily.)
The key to the season is how the Owls do in the so-called America 12 toss-up games and, while teams like Houston, UCF and SMU have had more success in the past couple of years than Temple has, the Owls have not embarrassed themselves against common foes.
Rhule is guiding the program based on the principles (or core values) of Al Golden, not Steve Addazio.
Addazio was stubborn and Golden was flexible.
So that could mean switching a guy like Matty Brown to running back from slot receiver or switching a guy like Kee-Ayre Griffin from running back to cornerback. In Rhule’s case, it could mean Herbin to Brown’s role and Newsome as an upgrade over departed starter Justin Gildea at strong safety.
Nate L. Smith, the best playmaking defensive back in Pennsylvania high school football for Archbishop Wood two years ago, finally gets on the field at free safety and with Newsome and NLS back there maybe the secondary finally starts to make some plays.
It could also mean getting the team’s other best playmakers (linebackers) on the field by going from a 4-3 to a 3-4.
That worked for those guys and expect similar adjustments in personnel this spring.
While you can’t win them all, you can at least try. Things won’t be perfect when practice starts in 13 days, but you can rest assured they will be tweaked in that direction.
Let’s put it this way: Spencer Reid is a nice kid and a credit to the program, but I don’t expect to see him get 17 carries in the spring game again this year.