Team preview: Temple Owls

By Mike Medina | Monday, July 31, 2006 | ( 0 )

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Editor's Note: ESPN Insider has teamed with Blue Ribbon College Football Yearbook to provide a comprehensive look at all 119 Division I-A teams. To order the complete 2006 edition of Blue Ribbon College Football Yearbook, visit www.blueribbonyearbook.com or call 1-866-805-BALL (2255).

(All information as of July 1, 2006)

COACH AND PROGRAM
The headline possibilities are endless if Al Golden somehow turns things around at Temple -- Golden Boy, Golden Era, etc.

Then again, those headlines could just as easily read Golden Tarnished. Because Golden, 36, has taken on the mother of all rebuilding tasks, taking over a program that has been a laughingstock the last two decades. Golden, who spent the last five years as defensive coordinator at Virginia, takes over a Temple team that went 0-11 last year, its first winless season since 1959.

"I don't care what's transpired in the past," Golden said. "We're going to start a new era."

Under his predecessor Bobby Wallace (whose aw-shucks Southern personality played about as well in Philly as that of current Philadelphia Phillies manager Charlie Manuel), Temple went 19-71 and was booted out of the Big East Conference. The Owls were an Independent last season and will be one again this fall before becoming a full-fledged member of the Mid-American Conference in 2007.

"I'm excited about leading this program as we transition into the Mid-American Conference," Golden said. "I'm confident in the commitment to excellence that currently exists at Temple University. We have the best university, the best city and the best facilities in the MAC. The future looks bright on North Broad Street."

For the first time since Bruce Arians roamed Temple's sideline, there is reason to be excited about the future of Temple football. The reason is that Golden is considered one of the rising stars in the coaching business -- a guy who was offered the job of Notre Dame's recruiting coordinator in early 2005. But instead of taking Charlie Weis up on his offer, Golden elected to stay at the University of Virginia for a fifth year as an assistant to Al Groh.

"Al Golden is a very engaging, energetic coach," Groh said. "He has contributed a great deal to our program which hopefully gives him a good model on how to do things right. His coming to Temple is a real plus for the Owl program."

Golden has lots of work to do, of course. First of all, he takes over a Temple program that was last in the country in scoring offense (9.7 points per game) and scoring defense (45.3 points per game allowed) and whose fan base has been beaten down by an avalanche of losses. Temple's last winning season was in 1990 and the Owls haven't played a bowl game since 1979.

The losses will continue to pile up in 2006. After opening with a winnable game at Buffalo (like Temple, a down-on-its-luck program with a new head coach in former Nebraska quarterback Turner Gill) in late August, the Owls have a rough September schedule, playing host to Louisville (Sept. 9) and then traveling to Minnesota (Sept. 16), Western Michigan (Sept. 23) and Vanderbilt (Sept. 30). All told, Temple has only four home games, and among its away games are trips to nationally ranked Penn State, resurging Navy and a semi-neutral site contest in Charlotte, N.C., versus Clemson, one of the better teams in the ACC.

This schedule would be tough on a good team. On a team that went 0-11 the season before, well, it's a regular Bataan Death March.

That said, once Temple joins the MAC as a full football member in 2007, the schedule will get easier. So for now, Golden is focusing on changing a culture of losing that's existed at Temple for decades. Good luck.

"It's starting to change," said Golden, who has a reputation as a recruiting whiz. "There is a lot of work to be done. We have increased discipline and unity and we are becoming closer as a team. A clearly defined approach to education, time management and personality is being instilled and the players are learning to trust the staff."

What strikes you immediately is the average age of Golden's assistant coaches. He's hoping his staff's youth and vitality will work wonders on the recruiting trail -- and will allow the players to get lots of hands-on coaching.

Although he's only in his mid-30s himself, Golden knows a great deal about winning. Golden was 31 when he was hired by Virginia as the youngest defensive coordinator in the nation in 2001. He had spent the previous season at his alma mater, Penn State. Golden was the linebackers coach at Boston College for three seasons (1997-99), before joining Joe Paterno's staff at Penn State. He served as linebacker coach and recruiting coordinator under Paterno in 2000. Before that, Golden played three years (1989-91) at Penn State, starting for two seasons at tight end.

"With Al Golden, we now have the final piece in place for the rebuilding of the Temple football program," Temple athletic director Bill Bradshaw said. "We are looking forward to providing our alums and Philadelphia college football fans a bright and promising future -- the Golden Era of Temple Football."

Spoken like a true headline writer.

QUARTERBACKS
New offensive coordinator George DeLeone, who ran Syracuse's attack for a decade (1987-96) under Paul Pasqualoni, will earn his paycheck working with the quarterbacks alone.

DeLeone likes his quarterbacks to be mobile, but able to throw. So, DeLeone and his offensive staff took a long look at the team's most experienced returning quarterback, Joe DeSanzo (Mike McGann's 2005 backup who appeared in four games last season), and thought he was best suited to be a linebacker, not a quarterback in their system. DeSanzo, who completed 24-of-54 passes for 212 yards in 2005, disagreed and decided to transfer.

With DeSanzo gone, it's a three-man race among three youngsters in sophomore Colin Clancy (6-0, 195), sophomore Shane Kelly (6-4, 215) and freshman Jarrett Dunston (6-3, 215). All told, the three guys atop the depth chart have thrown a grand total of 25 passes.

Kelly, who completed two of his passes last season for just 18 yards in his one appearance in an ugly 65-0 loss at Wisconsin, has great size, a strong arm and decent mobility (read: better than Clancy but not as good as Dunston).

The lefty Clancy is smallish, but he did see time in five games last year and is an accurate thrower, as evidenced by the fact he completed 10-of-19 throws for 121 yards and one score last year.

Dunston, a mid-year transfer from Hargrave (Va.) Military Academy who participated in spring practice, appears to be the best long-term fit for DeLeone's offense. Dunston threw for 1,437 yards, 17 touchdowns and just five interceptions last season as a postgraduate for Hargrave.

Dunston, a second-cousin of former major league baseball player Shawon Dunston, also rushed for 374 yards and three touchdowns. He's mobile and has a strong arm, but he's clearly a work in progress. But hey, so are Clancy and Kelly too, so the new coaching staff might elect to throw Dunston into the fray right away and live with the growing pains this season.

Another newcomer is freshman Vaughn Charlton (6-4, 210), who threw for 1,337 yards and nine scores last fall for Avon Grove (Pa.) High. However, Charlton won't arrive on campus until August and he comes to Temple from an extremely small high school. Charlton is the first player in Avon Grove football history to earn a Division I-A football scholarship, so the leap he faces figures to be monumental.

RUNNING BACKS
Senior tailback Tim Brown (5-8, 185), who missed all of last season for academic reasons, is back on the field and was one of the stars of spring practice for the Owls. In fact, he appears finally ready to live up to all the hype that surrounded him two years ago when he signed with the Owls.

A former first-team JUCO All-American at City College of San Francisco, Brown averaged more than eight yards per carry as a sophomore there in the fall of 2003 and had folks at Temple envisioning him as the next Paul Palmer or Tanardo Sharps, two smallish, but quick backs who posted monster numbers during their tenures on North Broad Street.

Given those expectations, Brown was something of a disappointment for the Owls in 2004, rushing for just 432 yards and two scores and also snaring 33 passes for 199 additional yards and another touchdown. Any chance to build on that output in 2005 didn't happen, because Brown was one of 12 Temple players (including four other starters) who were ruled academically ineligible for the season just three days before last year's opening game against Arizona State.

"The year away from the game has made Tim hungrier than ever to succeed," Golden said. "He had a really good spring and we expect him to really blossom this fall."

Brown will be backed up at tailback by freshman Jason Harper (5-9, 195), who enrolled at Temple last January and was able to get a head start on learning the Owls' new offense. Harper, a New Jersey native who played at Fork Union (Va.) Military Academy last season, was ranked the seventh-best tailback in Virginia last season by Rivals.com.

When Temple does go with a two-back set, junior Josh Bundy (5-10, 240) will be the No. 1 fullback. Bundy started six games last season and is a strong lead blocker. In fact, Bundy rushed just 16 times for 39 yards and three touchdowns and caught only three balls for 22 yards in 2005.

He's the clear-cut No. 1 fullback, though, after fellow junior Mike Neal (6-1, 210) suffered a serious neck injury in spring drills and could miss the entire 2006 season. The injury is the latest setback for Neal, who appeared in the first three games last year before being sidelined with a leg injury. Neal also had knee surgery in 2004.

With Neal on the shelf, sophomore Vince Yasenchak (6-1, 230), a converted linebacker, will serve as Bundy's backup at fullback.

WIDE RECEIVERS/TIGHT ENDS
Bruce Gordon, Temple's most reliable receiver in 2005 when he snagged 42 balls for 601 yards and a touchdown, has graduated. With Gordon gone, sophomore Bruce Francis (6-0, 175) and senior Jamel Harris (6-0, 190) are battling for the starting nod at Temple's "X" receiver spot.

Both Francis and Harris saw valuable playing time in 2005. Francis caught six passes for 90 yards and one touchdown, while Harris made 20 receptions for 241 yards and no scores a year ago. Harris has 44 career catches for 558 yards, but Francis, a native of nearby Sicklerville, N.J., came on strong the latter part of last season as a freshman.

Francis continued to impress in the spring, earning the Gavin White Jr. Walk-On Award, named for a former walk-on who later became athletics director at Temple.

At the end of spring practice, Francis was atop the depth chart at the "X" receiver position -- with Harris a close second. Both will see lots of field time in 2006 given Temple's plans on utilizing multiple wide receiver sets on many occasions.

The most viable possibilities at the starting "Z" receiver position are seniors Domerio Hamilton (6-0, 195) and Mike Holley (5-9, 185), along with promising sophomore Travis Shelton (5-11, 185). Hamilton started three games last year and caught six passes for 90 yards and one score. Holley, a former starting cornerback, has skills but will need to peel off two years of rust after missing the 2004 and 2005 campaigns because of academic shortcomings.

Shelton was redshirted last season to concentrate on academics. He is one of the fastest players in the program and actually saw some time as a freshman in 2004, catching four passes for 77 yards and a score.

Temple will often deploy a two-tight end, one-back set, so the program's two returning scholarship tight ends -- sophomore Ben Hendy (6-3, 235) and redshirt freshman Bill McGrath (6-5, 245) -- will see the bulk of the snaps. Hendy started six games as a true freshman, catching two balls for 26 yards.

OFFENSIVE LINE
First-year offensive line coach Bob Bicknell, a former Boston College tight end who spent five seasons working as an offensive coordinator with his dad Jack in NFL Europe, has the makings of a decent unit.

The anchor of the forward wall will be senior right tackle Elliott Seifert (6-7, 300), a heady guy (biology major) with lots of experience in Division I-A trench warfare, having started the last 21 games. Seifert is probably the Owls' offensive player most likely to hear his name called on NFL draft day next spring.

Seifert is one of two returning offensive line starters -- the other being sophomore center Alex Derenthal (6-4, 280). Bicknell likes Derenthal's smarts and his nimble feet.

Starting alongside Derenthal will be senior Tariq Sanders (6-6, 310) at left guard and Neil Dickson (6-4, 280) at right guard. Sanders, who started eight games in 2004, was sidelined most of last season with a leg injury. He's good to go now and brings a much-needed nasty streak to Temple's o-line, as will Dickson, a converted nose guard.

The starter at the all-important left tackle spot is sophomore Jabari Ferguson (6-4, 295). If Temple goes with one of the three right-handed throwing quarterbacks (the lone lefty is Colin Clancy), Ferguson, who appeared in 10 games last season, will protect the quarterback's blind side.

Aside from second-string left guard Leigh Denman (6-6, 315), a senior, the rest of the backup offensive linemen are extremely young -- redshirt freshman right tackle Carl Spitale (6-8, 330), sophomore right guard Sean Satchell (6-3, 315), sophomore center Marcos Hanna (6-1, 285), and sophomore left tackle Brison Manor (6-3, 280). Satchell and Manor were moved over from the defensive line this spring.

KICKERS
The kicking game, seemingly always a bloopers-filled weakness under Bobby Wallace, is a major area of concern for the new coaching staff.

Only one kicker, junior Danny Murphy (5-8, 175), a former walk-on, has ever kicked a football in a college game. He's appeared in six games the last two seasons, mostly as a kickoff man, but has attempted only one career field goal. And you guessed it, he missed it against West Virginia back in 2004.

Another possibility at kicker is senior walk-on

Mike Pettinelli (5-9, 160). If neither of those work out well, then punter Jake Brownell (5-10, 195), a South Jersey kid who transferred from Navy and sat out last season under NCAA transfer guidelines, could get a crack at the kicking duties too. For now, Murphy is the No. 1 kicker and Brownell is the holder on extra points and field goals.

DEFENSIVE LINE
After losing all four starters from last year's starting defensive line, most notably, defensive end Mike Mendenhall and tackle Antwon Burton, this area needs some major re-tooling.

But new defensive coordinator Mark D'Ononfrio is switching the Owls from a 4-3 look to a 3-4 alignment, so he'll have to find one less starting d-lineman. The biggest hole to fill is in the middle of the line, where Burton was good enough to sign a free agent contract with the Denver Broncos.

Burton played in all 11 games (10 starts) as a third-year senior in 2005, making 66 tackles (26 solo), five tackles-for-losses, four fumble recoveries, three forced fumbles, an interception and three pass break-ups. He ranked tied for 36th nationally in forced fumbles (.27). The Buffalo, N.Y., native made a career-high 14 total tackles, and both a forced and recovered fumble in the team's season finale at Navy. Burton completed his collegiate career by playing in the East-West Shrine Game Classic last January 21 in San Antonio.

With Burton trying to latch on with the Broncos, a pair of beefy sophomores, Terrance Knighton (6-4, 325) and Alston Smith (5-11, 290), will split time at nose tackle. Knighton is an intriguing prospect. Big enough to have his own area code, Knighton made a promising debut last year, recording 11 tackles and 2.5 tackles for loss against Navy in his only start.

Smith played in eight games, all as a reserve, last season. Golden and his staff felt good enough about this duo to move senior Neil Dickson (6-4, 280) over to right guard during spring drills.

One of the starting ends will be redshirt freshman Devin Tyler (6-7, 250), who has packed 35 pounds on to his frame since arriving at Temple. The much stronger Tyler was one of the bright, young stars of spring drills and has the look of a future star.

He'll be joined as a starting end by sophomore Philip Simpson (6-2, 275), who played in eight games as a freshman in 2004 but red-shirted last year to focus on academics. Like Tyler, Simpson, a former high school quarterback in Dade County, Fla., really added some meat to his bones during his year of inactivity, gaining 20 pounds of muscle.

Another name to know is senior Doug Morris (6-3, 280), who signed with the Owls out of Dixie State (Utah) College but was sidelined by injury last year. Morris signed with Auburn out of high school in 2002 but was forced to go the junior college route instead. Morris will push Simpson for a starting role at end. The loser of that competition will be a quality backup end, along with senior David Fatherly (6-2, 255).

LINEBACKERS
Every couple years, Temple has an NFL caliber defender -- whether it's long-time NFL journeyman linebacker Al Singleton, defensive tackle/inside linebacker Dan Klecko of the New England Patriots, defensive end Raheem Brock (a starter the last few seasons with Indianapolis Colts) or linebacker Rian "Goo" Wallace, a rookie with the Pittsburgh Steelers last year.

This year's NFL hopeful is senior outside linebacker Ryan Gore (6-0, 225), a Philly native who has started all 34 games the last three seasons. Gore arrived on North Broad Street as a defensive back but has worked hard in the weight room and has become a top-notch linebacker (60 tackles in 2005). His combination of speed and strength should grab the attention of NFL personnel types, if Gore is as productive as expected -- most likely on Day 2 of the 2007 NFL draft.

"Ryan is an experienced, talented player who will be one of our leaders on defense," Golden said.

With the move to the 3-4 set, Golden and his staff made a number of players shift positions, including two sophomores set to start at linebacker in rush outside linebacker Leyon Azubuike (6-3, 245) and sophomore inside linebacker Keith Holt (6-1, 215). Azubuike, an H-back/tight end who caught five passes in 2005, will now be asked to put pressure on opposing quarterbacks as an edge rusher but will also drop into coverage sometimes too. He's got the physical tools to be a very good one someday, but there will be growing pains.

Holt (33 tackles, an interception in 2005) moves from safety to inside linebacker. Holt bulked up during the off-season and like Azubuike brings speed and athleticism to a linebacking corps in desperate need of both.

Senior Walter Mebane (6-0, 225) will man the other starting inside linebacker spot, opposite Holt. A reserve last season, Mebane recorded 22 tackles in 2005. Like the rest of Temple's starting linebackers, Mebane is smallish, but fast.

"Our linebacking corps came a long way over the course of spring drills," Golden said. "But there's still work to be done, plenty of it in fact."

Serving as some of the Owls' primary backups will be sophomore Ryan Herting (6-2, 215), a Pitt transfer who is the heir apparent to Gore at outside linebacker; sophomore Kevin Armstrong (6-3, 240), who will spot Azubuike at rush linebacker; and junior Andrew Coleman (6-0, 220), a backup at the two inside linebacker spots.

DEFENSIVE BACKS
This is yet another area that needs lots of work -- Temple allowed opposing quarterbacks to complete an astonishing 66 percent of their throws in 2005. This year's secondary will be a mix of something old (senior safety Chris Page, senior corner David Reese) and something new (sophomore corner Georg Coleman and red-shirt freshman safety Dominique Harris).

Page (40 tackles in 2005) was supposed to move from safety to cornerback, but he's back at safety after Garrett Schultz left the program after spring practice. A JUCO gem from Garden City (Kansas) Community College, where he started in 2003 and 2004, Schultz started all 11 games for the Owls last fall and would have been the team's top returning tackler (91 stops in 2005).

Schultz's decision to leave means Page will return to safety after auditioning at left corner during spring ball. Joining him at safety will be either redshirt freshman Dominique Harris (6-3, 190) or true freshman Wilbert Brinson (6-0, 190), a post-graduate who transferred into Temple last January and therefore was able to participate in spring drills.

Senior Michael Loveland (6-0, 190), a former walk-on wide receiver who eventually earned a scholarship, is scheduled to be Page's backup.

The starting left corner spot will be senior David Reese (5-11, 180), a projected starter in 2005 until he was ruled academically ineligible just days before last year's season opener. The loser of this battle will likely be quite busy, serving as the Owls' nickel back.

Battling Coleman (6-0, 180), a converted tailback who rushed for just 31 yards last season but who seems to have found a home on defense, will be sophomore Evan Cooper, Jr. (5-10, 185), whose dad Evan is a former Philadelphia Eagles player.

Providing additional depth at cornerback will be junior Thato Manyoga (5-10, 170) and redshirt freshman Nickolas McAlister (5-10, 175).

PUNTERS
Navy transfer Jake Brownell has never punted in a college game, but he has to be better than last year's trio of Mike McLaughlin, Jake Hendy and Ryan Lux, doesn't he? That threesome averaged just 27.8 yards per net punt, easily the worst average in D-I-A football.

Backing up Brownell will be Danny Murphy, who is penciled in as the team's No. 1 kicker.

SPECIAL TEAMS
There was nothing special about Temple's special teams last fall. In addition to averaging a nation's worst 27.8 yards per punt in 2005, the Owls' coverage teams were atrocious, allowing 26.3 yards per kickoff return and 13.4 yards per punt return. Need more leaks to fix? No one on Temple's current roster has ever long-snapped, been a holder, or punted in a college game.

As mentioned, Danny Murphy and Jake Brownell are battling for the punting and kicking jobs and both must do a good job in terms of hang time. Otherwise, Temple's lack of true Division I-A speed will be exposed yet again.

The return of senior tailback Tim Brown and the addition of freshman tailback Jason Harper should help the return game.

Brown and Harper join middle school-sized, but shifty senior Nick Santa Cruz (5-7, 165), sophomore wide-out Travis Shelton and sophomore defensive back Georg Coleman as candidates to return punts and kickoffs.

BLUE RIBBON ANALYSIS
After an 0-11 season in 2005, there's nowhere to go but up, right?
True, but significant improvement won't happen overnight. Al Golden, who has been involved with three successful programs along the Eastern Seaboard (Penn State, Boston College and West Virginia) is a great coaching hire by Temple. He's young, enthusiastic and a proven winner.

He's already brought a new energy and tempo to Temple's practices and he recruited pretty well -- especially considering he had only a month between his hiring date and national letter of intent day. As a result, for the first time in eons, Temple has a young, high-energy staff that will truly motivate the players and will be able to actually get on the field and show them how to do things.

The young quartet of quarterbacks will have George DeLeone (an old pro who enjoyed great success at Syracuse) and two young guys who were both successful quarterbacks within the last few years in Ryan Day, Temple's wide receivers coach who was a standout quarterback at New Hamphire before graduating in 2002, and former Penn State signal-caller Zach Mills, a four-year starter for Joe Paterno.

While life will be better at Temple, the Owls will continue to take their lumps in 2006. They're simply way too young, especially in key positions like quarterback, and the schedule is still a bit too hard.

But give Golden and his staff two or three more recruiting classes and the pieces could be in place (better practice facilities, a nice NFL stadium to play in, a future full-time home in the MAC) for a mini football revival on North Broad Street.

For the most comprehensive previews available on all 119 Division I teams, order the "Bible" of college football, the 2006 Blue Ribbon College Football Yearbook, at www.blueribbonyearbook.com or call 1-866-805-BALL (2255).

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