Temple secured a commitment from Kenny Pickett, a dual-threat quarterback from Ocean Township High School in New Jersey, on Saturday afternoon.
Pickett, who was on Temple’s campus for an unofficial visit, chose the Owls over offers from Buffalo, Connecticut, Toledo, Monmouth and Texas State. Pickett also had interest from Rutgers, Boston College and Wisconsin.
“I felt like it was a great fit for me with the offense and how close it is to home,” Pickett told OwlScoop.com. “I really love the coaching staff because I get along with them so well and I can really see myself being around them for the next four years.”
While on the unofficial trip last Saturday, Pickett met with Temple coach Matt Rhule office with his parents and committed in Rhule’s office.
“He was surprised and very happy,” Pickett said of Rhule’s reaction to the verbal pledge.
The lead recruiter on Pickett was Temple offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Glenn Thomas, who made multiple trips to the 3-star prospect’s high school over the winter.
“I just feel like the offense really fits my skill set as a player,” Pickett said of the revamped offense under Thomas, who was named the successor to Marcus Satterfield during the offseason. “Personally, me and coach Thomas really hit it off the first time that we got a chance to talk and we stayed in close contact throughout my recruitment. I really feel comfortable going in with him.”
Pickett also developed a strong relationship with Director of Player Development Adam DiMichele, who was a 3-year starter at quarterback for Temple from 2006-2008.
“He was guy that I could relate to, being a young guy that played at Temple,” Pickett said. “We hit it off right away and [having DiMichele around] was a huge part in me committing there, knowing that I had a guy like that is going to be working with me.”
A prior relationship with recruiting assistant E.J. Barthel, who previously served as the Director of Recruiting under Kyle Flood at Rutgers and is a fellow New Jersey native, also helped Temple close in on gaining a commitment from Pickett.
“E.J. was one of the first guys that I started talking to as my whole recruitment started,” Pickett said. “He was really there with me from the beginning and I really built a great relationship with him and it kind of just built on from there.”
“When he went over to Temple, I thought that would be another great opportunity for us to stay in touch and keep that bond that we created,” Pickett added.
When Pickett finally ends up at Temple, he will have to face some stiff competition. After all, Anthony Russo, a 3-star quarterback from Archbishop Wood (Pa.) High School that was originally committed to Rutgers and turned down late interest from LSU, signed with Temple in February. The threat of a challenge did not a deter Pickett, he said.
“I’m embracing the competition,” Pickett stated firmly. “I realize (that) wherever I choose, I’m going to have to compete. That’s just something that I came to realize throughout the process and it’s all about competition. I feel like I thrive in those environments and I feel like it’s going to be a great environment for me to go into.”
When asked about the potential of taking other visits and talking with other schools, Pickett immediately shut down that idea.
“I’m shutting down my recruitment completely and I’m 100 percent committed to Temple,” he said.
Pickett, who plans to attend Temple early as a mid-year enrollee in January, threw for 1,796 yards off of 64.2 percent passing to go along with 19 touchdowns and four interceptions as a junior at Ocean Township. Pickett also ran for 336 yards and five touchdowns. During the offseason, Pickett was selected to the USA Football’s Under-18 Select squad and was named the International Bowl MVP after throwing for 299 yards and three touchdowns against Ontario in February.
With his commitment, Pickett became Temple’s third commitment of the 2017 recruiting class, joining Booker T. Washington (Fla.) offensive lineman Willa Pierre and ASA College (N.Y.) defensive lineman Dawayne Young.
