Temple sets program record with 4 NFL Draft picks; 4 more sign as UDFAs
Temple set a program record this past weekend with four players hearing their name called in the 2020 NFL Draft.
This was the fifth straight year with multiple players selected. Temple had previously seen at least three players get drafted nine different times.
Center Matt Hennessey, the first name off the board for the Owls, went in the third round to the Atlanta Falcons with the 78th overall pick.
Hennessey, a native of Bardonia, N.Y., played in 38 games across four years at Temple. At 6-foot-4, 295-pounds, he shined at this year’s Reese’s Senior Bowl and NFL Scouting Combine, showing great mobility along with effective lateral movement that can translate to the next level.
Coming out of high school, Hennessy turned down Ivy League offers in favor of Temple to pursue a dream of playing at the professional level. And on the second night of the 2020 virtual NFL Draft, Hennessey’s dream came true.
Cornerback Harrison Hand was next to hear his name called by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell. The Minnesota Vikings picked Hand in the fifth round with the 169th overall pick.
Hand previously played at Baylor under former Temple head coach Matt Rhule for two seasons. He spent his third and final season at Temple playing 12 games where he racked up 59 tackles, three interceptions, and a forced fumble.
The 6-foot, 192-pound defensive back is bringing competitive discipline and solid zone-defense scheme technique to a Minnesota team struggling to get over the hump of an early playoff exit.
Then the Eagles used one of their three sixth-round picks on an inside linebacker that has experience playing at Lincoln Financial Field. They took 6-foot-1, 230-pound captain and New Jersey native Shaun Bradley with the 196th overall pick.
Bradley played in 50 games across his four-year career. The Rancocas Valley High School graduate amassed 256 tackles, 22 TFLs, three interceptions, three forced fumbles and a fumble recovery in those four years.
Bradley arrived at Temple as a greyshirt carrying no big time offers. He would go on to etch his name in the Temple football history books as a three-year starter.
Bradley is best recognized for his fourth-down, goal-line stop of running back Anthony McFarland, a fourth-round selection of the Pittsburgh Steelers this past weekend, that helped the Owls preserve a 20-17 win over then-No. 21 Maryland back in September. And two seasons ago in College Park, Bradley’s 78-yard interception return for a touchdown put the finishing touches on Temple’s 35-14 win at Maryland.
The fourth and final Owl to hear his name called was 6-foot-1, 230-pound linebacker Chapelle Russell, who went to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the seventh round with the 241st overall selection.
Russell played in 45 games over four years as an Owl. He overcame two torn ACLs on the same knee but has good size to play at the next level and is praised for his resilience and toughness at the collegiate level.
Temple’s four draftees bring the program’s tally to 78 total players selected in the NFL Draft, dating back to tackle Bill Docherty in 1937.
The draft festivities wrapped up Saturday afternoon, but the day was just getting started for a few other notable Temple players. In addition to the four draftees, Temple had four more players signed as undrafted free agents.
Offensive lineman Jovahn Fair was picked up by the Kansas City Chiefs, linebacker Sam Franklin is joining Matt Rhule’s collection of former Temple players with the Carolina Panthers, defensive end Dana Levine is going to the New York Giants, and wide receiver Isaiah Wright signed with the Washington Redskins.
With the addition of the weekend’s eight players both drafted and undrafted, Temple could potentially have 28 Owls in the NFL by the start of the season. Since 2015, Temple leads the AAC with 15 players selected in the draft.