Seven More Owls Join the NFL Ranks as Free Agents

Temple Sent Nine of Its 2017 Seniors to the NFL

Seven More Owls Join the NFL Ranks as Free Agents

4.30.18 | Football

PHILADELPHIA - After a weekend in which the Temple Owls had two players drafted into the NFL (DL/LB Jacob Martin, Seattle Seahawks; and DT Jullian Taylor), the roster of former Owls in the NFL continues to grow. By the end of the weekend OL Cole Boozer, Tampa Bay Buccaneers; DB Sean Chandler, New York Giants; DE Sharif Finch, Tennessee Titans; WR Adonis Jennings, Cincinnati Bengals; OL Leon Johnson, Denver Broncos; WR Keith Kirkwood, New Orleans Saints; and FB Nick Sharga, Oakland Raiders; had all signed free agent contracts.

"The presence that this program has had in the NFL Draft and in free agency over the last five years rivals any other school in the Northeast, and is probably better than a lot of places," said Temple head coach Geoff Collins. "The culture and development that we place an emphasis on in this program and at this university speaks volumes. Really proud to be a head coach of a program that produces such great NFL talent."

Boozer (Hunt Valley, Md.) began his career at Temple as a 220-lb. tight end. Over the years he bulked up and became a reliable blocker before successfully making the transition from tight end to offensive line. As a senior, he was the only Owl to play every offensive snap and earned first-team All-East recognition from the ECAC.

"We are a developmental program," said Collins. "Cole Boozer he began playing tight end and developed into an elite offensive tackle. He started 13 games for us as a senior. Physical, dominant, tough, and even though as an offensive lineman he could not wear a single digit, he is a single-digit TUFF football player which is the epitome of everything that we do in this program."

Chandler is three-time all-conference player for the Owls and has been a starter since his freshman year. He has climbed into the Temple record books finishing his career with 10 interception, tied for seventh all-time. His 265 career tackles place him 14^th all-time. The Camden, N.J., native also earned the respect of his teammates becoming the only freshman ever to earn one of the prestigious single-digit jerseys awarded to Temple's toughest players.
"Sean Chandler is a four-year, single-digit guy at Temple University," said Collins. "He is Temple TUFF through and through. He is a four-year starter and can play every position in the secondary - safety, nickel, corner, and dime - and does a great job on special teams."

Finch, is a four-year letterwinner who was awarded second team all-conference honors in 2017. That season, he ended up finishing first on the team in sacks (8.5) and TFLs (14.5), and first among DL in tackles (55). His 53 games played as an Owl is tied for the school record. Finch had five blocked kicks during his career, which was the most among active players in the NCAA upon graduation. The Henrico, Va., native finished his career with 15.5 sacks which is 12^th all-time in TU history and his 32.0 TFLs is good for sixth all-time.

"Sharif Finch is an athletic playmaker, a dominant edge rusher, a physical kid," said Collins. "He wore a single digit as one of the toughest players in our program. He overcame a lot of his adversity throughout his career, and played at a high level as a defensive end."

Jennings (Sicklerville, N.J.) came to Temple in 2015 after a season at Pitt. He played in all 41 games during his tenure as an Owl and progressively matured into a game-breaking receiver. His catches went from 14 to 27 to 42; his yardage improved from 146 to 474 to 742; and his touchdown production grew from two to four to seven. His 83 receptions and 1,362 career yards place him in the top 20 in Temple's record books and his three year total of 27 wins is more than any player in a three-year span in school history.

"Adonis is a long, athletic playmaker," said Collins. "He's a highly productive wide receiver from a top 25 championship caliber program. He wore #1 and he is the epitome of Temple TUFF, receiving the premiere single-digit in our program."

Johnson (Plainfield, N.J.) is a fifth-year senior who played 44 games for the Owls. He was the starter at right tackle in 2015-16 and moved over to anchor the left tackle positon in 2017.

"Leon was such an outstanding player for four years as a leading member of a senior class that was the all-time winningest class in Temple football history," said Collins. "He is a prime example of everything that is great about our culture that emphasizes relentless effort, accountability and toughness."

Kirkwood (Neptune, N.J.) transferred to Temple in 2014 after one season at Hawaii. He was granted a hardship waiver and was able to play in all of the Owls' remaining eight games that year. He played in 27 games over the 2016-17 seasons averaging 42 catches, 660 yards and five touchdowns. He was the first player to earn a single-digit jersey under head coach Geoff Collins – given to the toughest players on the team - and became a captain as a senior. Kirkwood was a semifinalist for the Jason Witten Award, given to the Collegiate Man of the Year.

"Keith Kirkwood is Temple TUFF; a long, physical, dynamic playmaking receiver," said Collins. "He is a dominant special teams player in all four phases. Everything you need to know about a Temple football player is embodied in Keith Kirkwood."

Sharga (Cherryville, Pa.) is a versatile player who has started games at linebacker, defensive end and fullback in his three seasons with the Owls. The two-time CoSIDA All-Academic District team member has played in all 41 games from 2015-17 and was a Campbell Trophy semifinalist. His best season in the backfield was 2016 when he was 18-97 rushing and was the lead blocker for the duo of Jahad Thomas and Ryquell Armstead who rushed for 900+ yards and 13+ touchdowns each, the only pair of running backs in the country to do so.

"Nick Sharga is one of the toughest players I've ever coached," said Collins. "He was a walk-on and eventually earned a scholarship. He is one of the best fullbacks in college football, and is a great person, player, and student. Nick played defensive end and fullback for us, can carry the rock at tailback when needed, and is a dominant special teams player. He led the country in special teams tackles as a senior."

That makes 23 Owls in the NFL, and 20 joining in just the last three seasons. These seven new pros join the following former Owls currently active in the NFL:
Arizona Cardinals – Praise Martin-Oguike, Haason Reddick
Baltimore Ravens – Tavon Young
Buffalo Bills – Dion Dawkins
Chicago Bears – Colin Thompson
Denver Broncos – Brandon McManus
Green Bay Packers - Muhammad Wilkerson
Indianapolis Colts – Nate Hairston, Phillip Walker
Kansas City Chiefs – Brandon Shippen
New York Jets – Robby Anderson
Oakland Raiders – Tahir Whitehead
Pittsburgh Steelers –Tyler Matakevich
San Francisco 49ers – Jullian Taylor
Seattle Seahawks – Jacob Martin
Washington Redskins – Matt Ioannidis

Draft Notes:

The nine players in one year to join the NFL ties the number signed in 2017 and is three shy of the 12 who were signed in 2012, the school record.
The American Athletic Conference had 18 players selected in the 2018 NFL Draft, sixth among all conferences. Temple was among six schools with multiple selections this year.
Temple is one of only 26 teams to have multiple players drafted in each of the last three NFL Drafts, the only one from the AAC to do that.
Only one team in the Northeast (Penn State) has had more players drafted in the past three seasons than Temple's eight.