Tag Archives: ncaa

11.28.24
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North Texas at Temple: No “D” in Owls

There is both humor and truth to this. Nothing would end all this transfer portal and NIL nonsense faster than for a Saudi man to invest $10 billion in Temple football’s NIL fund. Watch how fast the rest of the college world shuts down the NIL if Temple wins three national championships in a row. The Saudi man would get a good laugh out of it, though.

Any thoughts of an upset for Temple in the high noon season finale (ESPN+) at Lincoln Financial Field on Saturday probably went out the window a week ago.

That’s when the Owls gave up 51 points.

The last coach who called the Temple game his Super Bowl was the Utah State coach this year. He lost, 45-29.

To have a chance to win in college football a respectable defense is a must and the Owls haven’t been respectable since holding Tulsa to 10 points in a 20-10 win.

That was back on Oct. 19, a long time ago. We wrote in this space on that beautiful 70-degree day that “we all be freezing our asses off a month from now at the North Texas game.”

And we will as the temperatures won’t escape the 30s.

Since then, Temple has given up 56 (ECU), 52 (Tulane) and 51 (UTSA).

The lone outlier was the 15 points given up against FAU.

There is no “D” in Temple and even no “D” in Owls. That’s something the next coach is going to have to fix because to have a chance to win at football or even break even, you can’t be giving up the 35+ points per game Everett Withers has in his two years as DC.

There was some hope that a change in the DC to Chris Woods last week would have stopped some of the bleeding but it was apparent that it was the Jimmy and Joe’s as much as the X’s and O’s because the Owls could not sustain a pass rush.

North Texas has called this game its “Super Bowl” and there is a good reason why. The Mean Green have lost five in a row after a hot start and needs the win for a 6-6 record and a bowl game.

Of course, the last coach who proclaimed the Temple game as his team’s Super Bowl was Utah State’s and Temple won that one, 45-29. So there’s that. If it’s a Super Bowl, it will probably be the least-attended one in history as no more than 5-10K fans are expected to rattle around in a 70K stadium.

Still, the incentives seem to be all on North Texas’ side here.

All Temple has to play for is a 4-7 season after three-straight 3-9 ones (one Rod Carey 3-9 followed by two Stan Drayton 3-9s). That’s not what Drayton promised when he was hired and that’s why he was fired.

Now the Owls are faced with an almost impossible task of stopping a team that played Army and Tulane a lot tougher than Temple did.

The football is odd-shaped and can take a lot of funny bounces but for Temple to even be competitive in this one would require a defense that has shown the capability to stop someone.

The Owls aren’t going to get that until a new coach comes in and, with him, a lot of Jimmy and Joe’s who can strike fear into an offense and put a quarterback on his ass.

Late Saturday Night: Game Analysis

Monday: Season Analysis

11.03.24
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Will Temple have a press conference if it finishes 2-10?

Stan talks about the American Conference here but doesn’t make any promises about the bottom line.

Even though Temple football didn’t play over the weekend, the results on the field elsewhere in the American Conference don’t paint a rosy picture for the bottom line.

Tulsa, a team Temple beat, was manhandled by a bad UAB team. UTSA, a team that some thought was a possible win down the line, beat Memphis in the same stadium the Owls have to visit.

So the Tulsa win may have been overvalued and, while the team might have had thoughts of a win at UTSA, that becomes less likely by the way the Roadrunners looked against Memphis.

Two and 10 is a definitely possibility now and you’ve got to wonder if Temple will even do what “normal” schools do when a coach goes 3-9, 3-9, and 2-10: Hold a press conference and bring in another head coach.

That’s not a given.

Drayton was optimistic going into the season as the above video shows but the results are the results.

“I’m excited about this football team,” Drayton said three months ago. “This off-season we were able to put together a roster that enhanced our football team.”

That may be so, but the bottom line is the bottom line. You have to win. Winning isn’t everything. It’s the only thing.

Why is Temple 2-6 if the roster is enhanced? Doesn’t that seem to imply it is the coaching?

“We had some major voids in the defensive line and the offensive line,” Drayton said back in July. “We’ve gotten bigger. We’re not trying to find excuses. We’re setting some standards that are really high.”

The Owls head to Tulane, which has only lost to Oklahoma and Kansas State, as 25.5-point underdogs. Tulane probably is the most physically talented team the Owls will have faced all season, with the possible exception of Oklahoma.

IF … and this is a big IF … the Owls have one win left in them, it looks like maybe a home win against FAU but Tom Herman also is thinking the same thing about Temple.

Drayton can avoid that departing press conference by beating FAU, UTSA and North Texas but now that seems as likely as those teams beating Alabama, Georgia and Texas.

The gap appears to be that large.

A normal school would have a press conference to say something to the effect that Drayton is a great guy but the number on the left hand side of the win column never exceeded the number on the right side and that’s why we have to move on.

It will be impossible to sell any season tickets coming off 1-6, 3-9, 3-9, 3-9, and 2-10 years. The crowds have eroded from respectable to nearly non-existent over those years. This is a fan base that got used to going to bowls on a regular basis between 2009 and 2019. These fans can take one or two years of building, but not five consecutive ones.

You know that. I know that. The question is, “Does Temple know that?”

Or does Temple even care?

While that press conference three months ago was nice, the one at the end of the year appears to be a necessity now.

Friday: Tulane Preview

10.10.24
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5 Guys Earning Their Paychecks

Saturday’s college football TV schedule

Watched the Coastal Carolina game on Thursday night at James Madison and a backup quarterback entered the game for Coastal down, 36-7.

His name was Noah Kim.

“Where did I hear that name before?” I thought.

Looked it up and found out that Kim was once the starting quarterback for Michigan State in five games and yet is now the BACKUP at Coastal.

Geez.

Do you think Kim would rather start at Temple than backup at Coastal?

I do.

Tim Beck, the head coach at Coastal, is doing his job because he had his quarterback room prepared for every eventuality.

Beck is making less than half ($1 million) of what Stan Drayton makes at Temple.

Despite the loss to James Madison on Thursday night, Coastal will probably make a bowl game.

Temple will probably not.

The reason is that Beck did a lot of offseason work in getting his quarterback room in order and, at least the way we see it, Drayton did not.

Drayton had to replace the fourth-leading Temple passer in history and “settled” for an unproven JUCO and a Rutgers’ backup who had four TD passes against seven interceptions in what has been so far an unremarkable FBS career. Temple beats UConn, 28-14, with Warner at QB and maybe Kim and a few others who don’t start for other G5 teams.

Beck has earned his million. Drayton has not earned his $2.5 million.

Here are four other Group of Five Guys who earned their pay this season (taking both the Army and Navy coaches out of the equation since Temple would never run the triple option):

Bryant Vincent, UL-Monroe _ At a paltry $365K per year, Vincent was able to recruit the quarterback we had been screaming in this space for Drayton to go after all winter, spring and summer (General Booty). Booty has had his moments for the Warhawks but is splitting time at the QB spot. Vincent served as the UAB interim head coach in 2022 but that school passed on him to go after Trent Dilfer. Bad move. Vincent beat Dilfer, 32-6, earlier this season with ULM talent. He also beat JMU last week, 21-16.

K.C. Keeler coached at both Delaware and Rowan, knows the Philadelphia area like the back of his hand, but was passed over twice when he applied for the Temple head coaching job. His brother, Kevin, was a longtime basketball coach at nearby Quakertown High (at the same time former Temple great Doug Shobert was the head football coach there).

Bob Chesney, JMU _ After leading Holy Cross on a remarkable FCS run, Chesney probably would have accepted the Temple job that Drayton got three years ago, bringing with him quarterback Matt Sluka. Instead, Chesney waited and took a worse job from a purely pay standpoint (JMU). He hung 70 points on UNC defensive coordinator Geoff Collins. He is only making $550K there.

Tyson Helton, Western Kentucky _ At $800K per season, Helton would not even have to ask the $2.5-million Drayton to pick up the check for any lunch those two would have. Yet the Hilltoppers are 3-2, having beaten Toledo and losing by only a point at Power 4 Boston College.

K.C. Keeler, Sam Houston _ More than once a candidate for the Temple job, Keeler knows the Philadelphia area like the back of his hand having coached successfully at both Delaware and Rowan (N.J.). One story last week said that Sam Houston had the “lowest NIL money by far” in the FBS and yet the Bearcats are 5-1 with a rout of E.J. Warner’s Rice team and a win over a good Texas State team to their credit. Keeler made $600K in total pay in 2023.

Temple is paying Drayton $2.5 million to have a soaking wet 160-pound redshirt freshman backup quarterback try to do a tush push with the game, and a season, on the line.

The question everyone at Temple, from the newest fan to the newest President, has to ask now is why.

That kind of decision-making is not worth two cents, let alone $2.5 million, and a university that wants to get a return on investment has to look at guys who are doing more with a whole lot less.

09.26.24
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Everett Withers strikes again

Any good vibes after Utah State were destroyed by a terrible defensive game plan.

When Stan Drayton gets fired by new Temple president John Fry at the end of this season, one major CEO decision will be the only reason why he was sent packing.

Undeserved loyalty.

After his second unacceptable 3-9 season in 2023, Drayton promised to review the entire operation “including the coaches” and, instead of getting rid of the guy who was responsible for the worst Temple defense in history, DC Everett Withers, decided to jettison a couple of lower-level assistant coaches.

After a 42-14 loss to Army on Thursday night, a third-straight embarrassment on ESPN in front of the entire nation (coming off 55-0 to SMU and 51-3 to what turning out is a not-as-good-as-expected Oklahoma team), it’s clear that being a buddy of Drayton is good for Withers and terrible for Temple.

Hiring your buddy is the No. 1 thing that has ailed Temple football since Matt Rhule left in 2016 and nobody is a bigger buddy than Withers. Athletic director Pat Kraft, who played football at Indiana, hired his buddy Rod Carey, who also played football at Indiana at roughly the same time.

New Temple AD Arthur Johnson, the Texas football director of operations, hired buddy Stan Drayton, who was the Texas RB coach when he was there. Drayton hired longtime buddy Withers to be his DC despite Withers giving up 40 ppg as a DC at FIU in 2021.

Ugh.

The beat goes on and those black eyes belong to Temple fans who deserve better.

We can now compare Withers to another former Temple DC in Phil Snow.

In the opening game against Army in 2016, Snow stubbornly kept his base 4-3 defense and the Owls fell, 29-16.

Before the AAC title game against a better triple-option team, Navy, Snow studied the Army film and came to the conclusion that the reason the Owls lost that opener was because he left the “A gap” uncovered.

Before the Owls faced Navy in the title game, he also noticed that SMU left the same middle uncovered and Navy won in Dallas, 75-31, a couple of weeks before the title game against Temple. Snow decided the secret sauce for Temple to win was to alternate Averee Robinson and Freddy Booth-Lloyd at nose tackle, take away the fullback dive, and force the triple option from sideline to sideline.

Mostly, Robinson, a three-time Pennsylvania state heavyweight wrestling champion who not only destroyed the Navy center but stopped the Navy fullback every time for no gain. That left superior athletes like Haasan Reddick and Sean Chandler chasing the pitchman and forcing him out of bounds or, better yet, punching the ball free for Temple turnovers.

That’s what I’m talking about Willis.

That worked for a 34-10 championship win.

Withers?

Played the same base defense against Army on Thursday night that he played a couple of weeks ago in a 38-11 loss to Navy.

My only bet on this game was that the over would be accomplished because Withers likes to clock in a 9 a.m. and clock out at 5 p.m. and won’t do anything to change his base defense to scheme against the strength of the opponent.

This guy doesn’t give a shit about Temple, only the paycheck he gets from it.

Drayton, on the other hand loves Temple, but is also blinded by his love for mentor Withers.

It will be his downfall.

I was right once again. I wish to hell I was wrong.

What’s the definition of insanity?

Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.

What Drayton should have done at the end of last season is sever his relationship with Withers and gone out and replaced him with the best FCS defensive coordinator in the country.

Drayton might be more comfortable shooting the shit with Withers on Friday morning over the office copier than some stranger who might have shut down Army but Temple fans are the ones squirming now.

Unless Drayton does something drastic like replace Withers with linebacker coach Chris Woods next week, the new Temple president will notice and decide to do something about it. Woods was a successful DC in the USFL. Withers hasn’t been a successful DC since one game in the 1980s.

Unfortunately, Drayton is too nice a guy and we all know what Leo Durocher said about nice guys.

They finish last.

Monday: Avoiding the inevitable