Temple University Athletics
Football Participates in Be the Match Campaign
3.28.25 | Football
On Wednesday, Temple Football took to campus to participate in the National Marrow Donor Program's "Be the Match" initiative. The program's goal is to encourage individuals to register as blood stem cell donors, with the hope that their cells could be the cure someone else desperately needs.
Ronald Francois has worked with NMDP for four years, traveling the Mid-Atlantic region to encourage people, primarily college students, to register as donors.
"Today, we are trying to add as many people to the registry as we can. And potentially, in either four weeks or four years, if a potential donor gets a call, they can make an informed decision, as they may be the only match for a patient," said Francois, who represented NMDP at Temple on Wednesday.
The organization has made a significant impact throughout its history. "NMDP has been around for over 30 years," added Francois. "We've been able to perform over 130,000 transplants and save over 7,000 lives annually."
Players, coaches, and staff, including Head Coach K.C. Keeler, helped drive participation among Temple students and faculty.
Keeler is no stranger to the program, having coached in the Tri-State Area during his time at Rowan and Delaware. At the same time, then Villanova head coach Andy Talley led the charge by establishing a donor drive for the Wildcats program, while encouraging other teams in the area to host their own drives.
Temple Football was one of the first teams to host their own donor drives when Andy Talley reached out to surrounding schools. What began as a small initiative grew to mean so much more to the program than anyone initially anticipated.Â
In 2008, Temple student equipment manager Michel'Le Daughtry was diagnosed with leukemia and received a bone marrow transplant. Unfortunately, Michele'Le passed away in 2011, but some good was able to come out of a terrible situation.
Â
In 2013, Michel'Le's friend Marc Shaffer received a call informing him that he was a match for an unknown 21-year-old with lymphoma. Shaffer was able to donate the bone marrow that ultimately saved the person's life.
This is the first year since 2018 that the Owls have hosted their own on-campus stem cell donor registration event, which the team embraced right away.
"Temple has saved a number of lives, and this program as a whole under Coach [K.C.] Keeler has saved a whole bunch of lives, so being able to impact people in that way, for one, gives me a sense of purpose in life. But it also impacts people and saves lives in a great way," said junior tight end Peter Clarke.
Community service has been a core value for Keeler and his staff since arriving in North Philadelphia just a few months ago. In addition to the stem cell registry event, the team has invested in the community by reading to local elementary school students weekly and keeping the surrounding area of Edberg-Olson Hall clean through frequent trash pick-up events.
"It shows we care about more than just football; it shows we care about our community and making sure everyone around here is doing good, you know, just taking care of our city," said redshirt freshman offensive lineman Giakoby Hills, when asked what the engagement within the community has meant to the team.
To learn more about the "Be The Match" registry and all the work NMDP is doing to save lives around the globe, click here.
Â
Ronald Francois has worked with NMDP for four years, traveling the Mid-Atlantic region to encourage people, primarily college students, to register as donors.
"Today, we are trying to add as many people to the registry as we can. And potentially, in either four weeks or four years, if a potential donor gets a call, they can make an informed decision, as they may be the only match for a patient," said Francois, who represented NMDP at Temple on Wednesday.
The organization has made a significant impact throughout its history. "NMDP has been around for over 30 years," added Francois. "We've been able to perform over 130,000 transplants and save over 7,000 lives annually."
Players, coaches, and staff, including Head Coach K.C. Keeler, helped drive participation among Temple students and faculty.
Keeler is no stranger to the program, having coached in the Tri-State Area during his time at Rowan and Delaware. At the same time, then Villanova head coach Andy Talley led the charge by establishing a donor drive for the Wildcats program, while encouraging other teams in the area to host their own drives.
Temple Football was one of the first teams to host their own donor drives when Andy Talley reached out to surrounding schools. What began as a small initiative grew to mean so much more to the program than anyone initially anticipated.Â
In 2008, Temple student equipment manager Michel'Le Daughtry was diagnosed with leukemia and received a bone marrow transplant. Unfortunately, Michele'Le passed away in 2011, but some good was able to come out of a terrible situation.
Â
In 2013, Michel'Le's friend Marc Shaffer received a call informing him that he was a match for an unknown 21-year-old with lymphoma. Shaffer was able to donate the bone marrow that ultimately saved the person's life.
This is the first year since 2018 that the Owls have hosted their own on-campus stem cell donor registration event, which the team embraced right away.
"Temple has saved a number of lives, and this program as a whole under Coach [K.C.] Keeler has saved a whole bunch of lives, so being able to impact people in that way, for one, gives me a sense of purpose in life. But it also impacts people and saves lives in a great way," said junior tight end Peter Clarke.
Community service has been a core value for Keeler and his staff since arriving in North Philadelphia just a few months ago. In addition to the stem cell registry event, the team has invested in the community by reading to local elementary school students weekly and keeping the surrounding area of Edberg-Olson Hall clean through frequent trash pick-up events.
"It shows we care about more than just football; it shows we care about our community and making sure everyone around here is doing good, you know, just taking care of our city," said redshirt freshman offensive lineman Giakoby Hills, when asked what the engagement within the community has meant to the team.
To learn more about the "Be The Match" registry and all the work NMDP is doing to save lives around the globe, click here.
Â
Players Mentioned
TE
/ Football
OL
/ FootballEp. 10: Temple Homecoming Preview; Volleyball Assistant Coach Taylor Davenport
Tuesday, October 07
Temple Offense, 10/4/25
Sunday, October 05
Temple Defense, 10/4/25
Sunday, October 05
K.C. Keeler, 10/4/25
Sunday, October 05
