2019 Spring Football Begins

When Temple takes the field for spring ball in 2019, they do so with a new head coach, Rod Carey, and a near-complete turnover of the coaching staff. Carey injected 12 new coaches who had previously worked at Northern Illinois to the remaining staff. Carey is coming off an 8-5 record at NIU in 2018 including a 30-29 victory in the MAC Championship over Buffalo. The Temple TUFF culture remains strong as Carey prepares the Owls for the 2019 season.

The 2018 season was another successful year for the Owls. Temple finished the regular season with an 8-4 record and the senior class finished with 35 wins, crowning them the winningest class in Temple Football history. The Owls were bowl eligible for the fifth season in a row and made a bowl appearance for the fourth straight year.

QB Anthony Russo is the incumbent starting quarterback entering 2019. Russo stepped into the starting role in week three last season and went 8-3, leading his team to six straight wins. Russo had his best performance of the season at #9 UCF, throwing for 444 yards and four touchdowns while rushing for 46 yards and a touchdown. New offensive coordinator Mike Uremovich will continue to employ a smart, tough, and physical offense and help Russo along with the rest of the unit to develop and execute as the spring progresses. In his offense last season, everyone got a chance to get the ball - nine players recorded a rush and 14 players recorded a reception. Under Uremovich, the Huskies had a running back rush for 1,045 yards and five touchdowns. NIU also had a quarterback rush 194 times for 877 yards and six touchdowns. With the departure of Temple's all-time leading receiver, Ventell Bryant, the Owls will have a group of receivers to share the load. Isaiah Wright (33-368-3TDs in 2018), Branden Mack (44-601-5TDs), Randle Jones (23-445-4TDs), and Sean Ryan (12-162-1TD) all had successful seasons and will continue to improve and gain more experience. Both the running and passing game was successful and should continue to improve due to an experienced offensive line. Upperclassmen Matt Hennessy, Vincent Picozzi, and Jovahn Fair complimented by ECAC Freshman of the Year Adam Klein and fellow freshman Isaac Moore clear the way for Owls skill players to get into the end zone untouched.

The Temple defense was relentless this past season and look to keep the same hunger in 2019. Newly implemented defensive coordinator, Jeff Knowles, who guided the NIU defense to one of the FBS' best units - third in sacks (3.6) and 10th in TFLs (8.0) – will push the Owls to be aggressive on defense once again. The Owls ranked first in the nation with eight defensive touchdowns, fifth in fumbles recovered, and fifth in interceptions. The Owls return a number of guys on defense who played valuable snaps a year ago. No unit is as experienced as the linebackers though, who return four of the team's top six tacklers, including all three linebackers. LB Chapelle Russell led the country last season with five fumble recoveries and he also had 70 tackles, 1.5 sacks, and five TFLs. LB Shaun Bradley was second on the team in 2018 with 78 tackles, four TFLs, a sack, and two interceptions-one for a touchdown.

The Owls have prided themselves on being excellent on special teams throughout the past five seasons. The Owls blocked five kicks which was good for first in the conference and fifth in the nation. They also took advantage of good field position on fourth down and pulled off numerous fakes that led to drive extensions or scores. Temple scored on special teams five times last season, highlighted by All-American RS Isaiah Wright's 59 and 73-yard punt returns and 99-yard kick return for touchdowns. Kicker Will Mobley stepped into the starting role in 2018, his longest field goal of the season coming from 41 yards out against #9 UCF. With Aaron Boumerhi returning from injury there will be some competition at the position.

For the fifth straight year, The American will hold a post season game to crown a conference champion. The Owls have been in half of the conference championship games but are looking to make it back to the title game for the first time since 2016. Since 2015, Temple is 25-7 in conference play, including a 7-1 record a year ago.

Temple University Athletics

2019 Spring Football Begins

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Players Mentioned

Shaun Bradley

Ventell Bryant

Jovahn Fair

Matt Hennessy

Randle Jones

Adam Klein

Branden Mack

Will Mobley

Isaac Moore

Vincent Picozzi

Chapelle Russell

Anthony Russo

Isaiah Wright

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