An unexpected question led to an unexpected answer from second-year Temple head coach K.C. Keeler during one of the many media day side interviews.

Someone asked Keeler about “taking back” arguably his top defensive lineman of a year ago, Sekou Kromah, if a court challenge the player had against the NCAA succeeded. The expected answer was that the Owls were supporting Kromah in his effort to play another year but wouldn’t commit either way until the issue was resolved.

The unexpected answer was that, while Temple lost some big-time players along the DL, Keeler said that the line was definitely upgraded at all positions due to the personnel General Manager Clayton Barnes and company brought into the building.

Without Kromah, rush end Cameron Stewart, and Khalil Poteat, the Owls figured to struggle finding pieces from elsewhere to plug and play but Keeler honestly felt the new players represented a talent upgrade. Keeler indicated the reason for that was because he couldn’t “cut” anyone a year ago due to the fact that he told the Owls in the first team meeting that anyone who wanted a Temple degree was welcome to stay and get one.

With all but three linemen on the defensive side either graduated or out of eligibility, Keeler (and Barnes) could go out on the open market and get players who were better than the prior staff recruited. Now Poteat has joined the Kromah party and also filed a lawsuit. With so little time remaining, hard to imagine any other place one or both of those guys end up not being Temple again.

Here’s the kicker (or the three-point stance): Even if they come back, there’s no guarantee they could reclaim their spots as starters.

That’s saying something because, when Stewart, Poteat, Kromah and a couple other interior linemen were healthy they were pretty formidable. Arguably, they were the stars of the 26-21 home win over bowl-bound (and champion Tulane-beating) UTSA, sacking Owen McCown three times and hurrying him into incompletions or interceptions 14 more times.

It was the best pass-rush ratio of any game last year.

The problem was health, though, as Kromah was only able to start five games due to a bum shoulder.

With the entire offensive line returning, it only figured that side of the ball would dominate in the Cherry and White game, but it didn’t and the defensive line had more than its share of moments.

So what Keeler said on Friday pretty much jived with what some of the offensive linemen were saying after the spring game.

With only three players back on the DL who saw significant action last year, the Owls had to fill the other holes with seven transfer portal players and one junior college pickup and those guys proved themselves in spring ball.

The cream will rise to the top when summer camp starts in earnest on Friday and we’ll be able to plug some names into starting spots shortly after that.

While most of those names will be new ones, a couple of Prodigal Sons could be added to the list if their cases are expedited through the courts.

For a team that returned every single ELIGIBLE starter (the only one in the G5), adding a couple of guys who supposedly completed their careers at Temple could be the Cherry on top of this White cake.

Friday: An Under-The-Radar Story

Monday: Keeler’s Biggest Gamble at Temple