Tag Archives: Evan Simon

08.18.24
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Friday’s scrimmage: Reading between the lines

Some highlights from practice action courtesy of Temple football’s official twitter feed.

Nobody other than staff or players and coaches and maybe some University of Pennsylvania facility personnel were allowed at Temple football’s latest scrimmage at Franklin Field.

So getting information out of there was almost impossible.

Fortunately, Temple offers videos and some snippets of what happened last week during practice both on Owlsports.com and its twitter feed so we’re able to read some things between the lines roughly a dozen days before the first game at Oklahoma (7 p.m., ESPN).

One, there might not be single digits--Head coach Stan Drayton said he’s not ready to give out single digits and doesn’t say when he will be.

In some past years, it’s been strictly a vote of the players but former head coach Rod Carey changed that tradition to a vote of the coaches.

Drayton says this will be determined by a hybrid of player and coaching voting but not until the coaches are comfortable with the process. So far, he’s not and one of the reasons he wants to see the Owls under game conditions so the next logical step would be to hand out the single digits after the Oklahoma game.

Evan Simon is sacked by Temple in the 2022 Rutgers’ game

Two, he will wait to determine the starting quarterback–It appears it’s down to Evan Simon and Forrest Brock, but Simon reportedly went 7-for-7 with a touchdown pass at Franklin Field so maybe it’s his job to lose. Logically, he started some games at Rutgers–and even had a 300-yard passing game in the Big 10–so he didn’t transfer here to sit again.

Three, the offensive line appears to be the strength of the team–It certainly has the best position coach in Chris Wiesehan and brought in some big bodies but the biggest clue is that there are no injuries along the line and depth and size seems to be the best it has been since the 2019 season.

Four, a lot of running backs could be in the rotation–When interviewed last week, RB coach and Temple veteran Tyree Foreman said Joquez Smith “had to be taken off the field” in passing situations but “that is no longer the case.” Smith has made the next step but Foreman hasn’t named a starter just yet saying that four players–including FIU transfer E.J. Wilson and Maryland transfer Antwain Littleton–are also in the mix. He calls Lackawanna JC transfer Terrez Worthy a “home-run hitter.” Worthy, a former Big 33 MVP, was the leading rusher in all of JUCO football last year.

Five, the pass rush is 100 percent improved–Injuries and the coaching staff’s failure to use all of their scholarships last year made the Owls move linebackers to the line and that didn’t work out. The Owls made a concerted effort to use their resources for big linemen and, as a result, the pass rush has been a highlight. Look for Tre Thomas and Diwan Black to get a lot of sacks.

Will it be enough to beat Oklahoma?

Err, no.

Will it be enough to be competitive in the more important AAC games?

That’s to be determined.

Friday: Likely scenarios

Monday: Game Week

07.07.24
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5 Newcomers who could make a difference

It’s “Manheim Central” not “Mana” heim Central but these are RU educated people, not Temple.

Not a single Temple fan is holding up 128 fingers (120 borrowed) and saying “we’re No. 128” but that’s what Athlon Sports has the Owls ranked for the upcoming season.

Evan Simon during a spring game for Rutgers.

Sobering indeed, especially considering there are only 130 FBS teams.

The numbers other than 128 aren’t all that encouraging, either.

Temple had the No. 1 passer in the league in yards per game (E.J. Warner) but he’s at another team in the same conference now.

On defense, Temple was last in forced turnovers.

SO, if a difference is to be made, it’s only logical that it will come from the newcomers and not the guys who are left behind.

Since there doesn’t seem to be a newcomer at the quarterback position other than Rutgers’ transfer Evan Simon, we’re going to have to be happy with what we have.

Thanks to Stan Drayton, we have no choice.

Here are the five newcomers who could be impact players for Temple this year:

One, running back Antwain Littleton. When I make an argument that the Temple running game is going to be the best it has been since Ray Davis, people ask me about the offensive line. I think the offensive is going to be at least as good as last year but, if you look at Littleton, at 6-1, 245, he’s an offensive line all by himself. Those aggravating times where we saw Edward Saydee lose balance on a 3d and 1 and fall short of a first down are probably over.

Two, quarterback Simon himself. If Forrest Brock, who was a large part of the reason Temple crapped the bed in a 55-0 loss to SMU last year, beats out Simon for the starting job, we will know what we suspected. Simon stinks. If, on the other hand, Simon clearly beats out Brock, maybe a horse racing analogy comes into play. Those of us who follow that sport know a Grade 3 horse who drops into an Allowance Optional Claiming race usually is a good bet. In this case, the Big 10 is a graded stakes while the AAC is an Allowance Optional Claiming race. Maybe those six interceptions against four touchdowns in the Big 10 translates to 12 and 4 on the good side in the AAC. Let’s face it. He’s not going to put up the numbers Warner did but I will take 12 and 4 over Warner’s 23 and 14 any day of the week. I don’t think we will see it but Drayton probably does and he’s getting paid a lot more than I am. For his sake, I hope he’s right.

That’s a heckuva troll job by Torey Richardson after this interception.

Three, cornerback Torey Richardson. The UTEP transfer actually stopped some top wide receivers at that level and, for Temple fans who had to hide their eyes on every first pass of the game last season, there is a real expectation that those long completions will now be long incompletions.

Four, safety Andreas Keaton. The Western Carolina transfer has a chance to be a difference-maker in the turnover equation. In three years with the Catamounts, Keaton started all 33 games and totaled 184 tackles, five interceptions, and 14 pass breakups. “The main thing with Temple was the relationships,” Keaton said. “Temple came easy. They showed me a great time. It seemed like a family. It just felt right… no bad vibes, everything was cool. There was a brotherhood. They do a great job doing that.” Matt Rhule left Western Carolina to come to Temple so if Keaton does as well, the Owls should be OK. “The players invited me with open arms,” he said.

Five, wide receiver Ian Stewart. Calling him a newcomer would be a misnomer, but he’s been plagued with injuries all of his career so he’s basically a newcomer. If he plays up to the single digit he’s been given, Temple might have the best wide receiver trio in the league with Dante Wright and Zae Banes. He’s going to have to stay out of the injury tent.

Is the talent enough to go from three wins to six?

Not according to the outsiders who objectively look at things. The insiders seem OK with the talent level and they will be the ones who either suffer the consequences or reap the rewards.

Friday: Hidden Genius