During his NFL career from 1995-2005, Kordell Stewart earned the nickname “Slash” for his ability to play multiple positions. He had 2,874 rushing yards, 658 receiving yards and more than 14,000 passing yards for the Pittsburgh Steelers, Chicago Bears and Baltimore Ravens.
Isaiah Wright was Temple’s version of Stewart last season. He played running back, wide receiver and wildcat quarterback in 12 games. Coach Geoff Collins said he was looking for the same type of position versatility when he was on the recruiting trail.
Former coach Matt Rhule’s departure for Baylor University on Dec. 6 left Temple to find a replacement, fill a coaching staff and recruit players in a 57-day period. The Owls added 16 high school seniors, nine of whom are listed as defensive players, to their roster on Wednesday’s National Signing Day.
“We’re excited about all of them,” Collins said. “We think they’re all players that can help contribute and continue the success that we’ve had and be a part of a Top 20 program and that’s why they’re here. And as soon as they’re ready to play we’re going to put them on the field.”
Rhule’s departure may have led to some players decommitting. Rob Saulin, a tight end and defensive end from New Jersey’s Pennsville Memorial High School, signed at Baylor after decommitting from Connecticut and Temple. On Jan. 24, Raheem Blackshear, a three-star wide receiver from Archbishop Wood, decided to attend Rutgers University instead of Temple.
None of the Owls’ recruits are ranked higher than three stars on Rivals.com. The site ranks Temple’s recruiting class outside of the Top 100. Scout.com ranked Temple’s Class of 2017 group 123rd out of 129 schools.
Collins said the high school highlight tapes of every current Owl have been playing on repeat every day since Monday morning. He said that some of the players’ profiles on sites like Rivals and 247 Sports didn’t even have pictures. Despite the lack of high profile recruits, Temple will enter the 2017 campaign fresh off back-to-back 10-win seasons and a conference title win. The Owls will be without quarterback Phillip Walker, running back Jahad Thomas and four of the five team leaders in tackles, including potential NFL first round pick Haason Reddick.
“The big thing with this class, I was filling needs,” Collins said.
“It doesn’t matter what the outside people say we have stars,” he added. “We can play. We’re tough, we’re going to work, that’s who we are and that’s what we’re built on.”
Geoff Collins on the recruits and the Owls' ranking.
Collins on Mike Jones
Two of the players have already enrolled for spring classes. Former South Philadelphia High School running back and linebacker Casey Williams and Todd Centeio, who passed for 2,344 yards at his senior season at William T. Dwyer High School in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, will be eligible for spring practices.
Centeio will compete against redshirt-freshmen Anthony Russo and Tommy Wyatt, redshirt-sophomore Logan Marchi and redshirt-junior Frank Nutile for the starting quarterback spot.
In addition to the high school recruits, Collins signed Mike Jones, a graduate transfer from North Carolina Central University. Jones, a defensive back, had 30 tackles, two interceptions and five pass break-ups in 2016. He also averaged 22 yards per punt return and scored two touchdowns.
Collins could look to add more transfers.
“There are some targets that are out there, want to make sure that we’ve got some spots saved as we move forward with that case as well,” he said.
Neumann-Goretti’s Emily Moody, who led the Saints in receiving the last two seasons and set a single-season record with 17 sacks in 2016, was among the six Philadelphia-area players and seven Pennsylvanians to sign. Collins said either he and tight ends coach Ed Foley or assistant coach Chris Wiesehan went to local schools on Friday. Temple used a helicopter to quickly travel one local high school to another, especially during the first week. Collins said all of the recruits he saw on helicopter trips signed.
The former University of Florida defensive coordinator took trips to Georgia and Florida to recruit but said he wants to focus on the surrounding area and “supplement” with players from other places. Collins plans to have an “open-door policy” with local high school coaches during Friday spring practices.
Collins also signed six recruits from the Washington D.C., Maryland and Virginia area, one of whom is Christian Braswell, who played cornerback and wide receiver at Friendship Collegiate Academy in Washington D.C. When Braswell’s mother found out that Christian would receive a full scholarship, Collins said she hugged her son and told him she was proud of him.
Collins has been coaching since he was a student assistant at 1993 and gone through many recruiting cycles as a defensive coordinator but still got emotional during the moment.
“Those kind of experiences are special,” he said.
Full Signee List
| Name | Pos | High School | Hometown |
| Jadan Blue | WR | Peddie Prep | Baltimore, Md. |
| Christian Braswell | DB | Friendship Collegiate Academy | Washington, D.C. |
| Malik Burns | DL | Lackey | Marbury, Md. |
| Todd Centeio | QB | William T. Dwyer | West Palm Beach, Fla. |
| Arnold Ebiketie | DL | Albert Einstein | Silver Spring, Md. |
| L'Jeron Holder | WR | Manalapan | Manalapan, N.J. |
| Audley Isaacs | LB | Valley Forge | Philadelphia, Pa. |
| Jeremy Jennings | WR | Downingtown East | Downingtown, Pa. |
| Mike Jones | DB/RS | Milford Mill / North Carolina State | Baltimore, Md. |
| Ifeanyi Maijeh | DL | Poly Prep | Rockaway, N.Y. |
| James Makszin | OL | Norwalk | Norwalk, Conn. |
| Ty Mason | DB | James Hubert Blake | Silver Spring, Md. |
| Emil Moody | TE | Neumann-Goretti | Philadelphia, Pa. |
| George Reid | DB | Abington | Glenside, Pa. |
| Griffin Sestili | OL | North Allegheny | Sewickley, Pa. |
| Collin Washington | DB | Central | Philadelphia, Pa. |
| Casey Williams | LB | South Philadelphia | Philadelphia, Pa. |