Defense dominates Cherry and White game
Temple held its annual Cherry and White spring game at the Edberg-Olson football complex and Chodoff Field Saturday afternoon, which provided an opportunity for the Owls to showcase new recruits, the progress of returning players, and a look at the state of the program before this summer’s preseason camp.
The defense dominated the intrasquad scrimmage, using its physicality and aggression to shut down the offense for the majority of the game. Utilizing a scoring system that doled out points for things like big plays, takeaways and sacks, the defense beat the offense, 56-41, and matched the offense’s lone touchdown with a score of its own.
The defense looked like a cohesive unit compared to the offense, which appeared out-of-sync for much of the afternoon. This led to plenty of miscues from the Cherry offense, including false starts, holding penalties and sacks.
To be more precise, the White defense was credited with 13 sacks Saturday afternoon, and defensive end Diwun Black accounted for six of them, including one that resulted in a safety.
The offense started off strong, taking a lead through a couple of Carl Hardin field goals and a 17-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Forrest Brock to tight end Reese Clark, the only offensive touchdown of the day.
The turning point of the game came when running back Kyle Williams fumbled the ball and linebacker London Hall returned it for a 60-yard touchdown.
Black led the way with nine tackles and his six sacks. Defensive tackle Sekou Kromah, a JUCO transfer from Monroe College, also impressed with nine tackles and two sacks.
It’s always worth noting that both the offense and defense were not operating out of a regular-season playbook, and there will be much work left ahead in preseason camp this summer.
With that in mind, here are a few reactions to today’s open scrimmage.
Quarterback play
It’s the question that will persist for the foreseeable future: who will replace E.J. Warner? He set multiple passing records during his two seasons at Temple before transferring to Rice, and Rutgers transfer Evan Simon, Forrest Brock, redshirt freshmen Tyler Douglas and walk-on Patrick Keller will all have a shot at the starting role. Clifton McDowell left just two weeks into camp, jumped back into the transfer portal and is now at McNeese State, the sixth different program of his career.
Third-year head coach Stan Drayton reiterated that a starter has not emerged from the spring. That became clear Saturday, as each quarterback struggled to find options throughout the practice.
“I don’t know if our quarterbacks are ready for [Temple’s season-opener against Oklahoma on Aug. 30], and I don’t know if I’m ready to say that they’re ready for that,” Drayton said. “I just think that the development still needs to take place in regards to them taking command of the offense.”
The offense looked stagnant for much of the event with miscues between the quarterbacks and receivers leading to incompletions. Brock had a costly interception trying to fit a ball into a tight window, and safety and former Arkansas cornerback Jaylen Lewis jumped in the way to end the session. Brock led the unit with 10 completions, 102 yards and a touchdown to go with that interception.
Meanwhile, Simon struggled on Saturday, completing six of his 14 passes for just 46 yards. Douglas had two completions for 14 yards, and Keller had three completions for 49 yards but threw a beautiful fade ball to wide receiver Corey Cuascut-Palmer in the end zone that was dropped.
The quarterbacks seemed able to extend plays despite facing pressure for the majority of the day. Brock and Simon both looked comfortable moving out of the pocket while looking downfield for plays to develop. However, while practice was live in the first half, the quarterbacks could not be hit, which could have aided their confidence outside the pocket.
When looking at the sack totals, it’s important to note that the quarterbacks were not allowed to be tackled, and that led to some quicker-than-normal whistles. Still, the spring didn’t provide a clear picture of Warner’s successor, and true freshman Chris Dietrich will arrive this summer with the competition for the starting still open.
It’s also possible that Temple could look to add another quarterback via the transfer portal as it manages its scholarship totals.
Offensive line
The offense had trouble finding rhythm, and poor offensive line play was a big reason why. The line struggled to match the physicality of the defense and allowed multiple sacks off the edge. Offensive coordinator Danny Langsdorf designed several roll-outs for his quarterbacks to allow more time for plays to develop, but the signal callers in black jerseys rarely had a clean pocket on Saturday afternoon.
Grayson Mains and Chris Smith alternated at the center position. Diego Barajas (right tackle), Wisdom Quarshie (right guard), Luke Watson (left guard) and Kevin Terry (left tackle) played key roles in the offense last year and saw significant playing time Saturday. Junior Mausa Palu, who transferred from College of the Canyons, saw several snaps in the interior.
Even when the coaches lowered the intensity of the scrimmage, the line struggled to handle what the defense threw at them. Drayton was happy everyone remained healthy, but there seems to be room for growth heading into the summer.
“That unit has improved a lot,” Drayton said. “It has been a challenge with the communication piece, but that’s a tight-knit group and they’re falling in line. There’s some guys that we know can play that we’re expecting to come in and shake up the room, but they’ve embraced the competition like everybody else on this football team.”
Defense
Last season, Temple’s rushing defense was second-to-last in the American Athletic Conference, letting up nearly 200 yards per game on the ground. The Owls also ranked last in the AAC in interceptions and 12th in forced fumbles.
Defensive coordinator Everett Withers has some new personnel to work with now, and several of the new additions looked sharp Saturday. The White team allowed just over 100 yards on the ground, picked up the aforementioned 13 sacks and stifled the quarterbacks at every level of the field. The new and seemingly improved secondary flew around the field, making plays and providing solid coverage.
Senior safety Andreas Keaton stood out, staying around the ball and being in the right place at the right time to restrict big plays. Lewis also played well, and Temple’s wide receivers had just 75 yards on nine catches.
“To be a secondary guy, you have to play with a different type of confidence,” Keaton, a Western Carolina transfer, said. “[Defensive backs] Coach [Dominique] Bowman and Coach Withers always prep that, and that’s how we try to play. They really emphasize those small little details and to play with that type of excitement and confidence.”
Reese Clark
The offense struggled to create big plays, but when they did, tight end Reese Clark was usually the catalyst. His 17-yard catch-and-run on the offense’s lone touchdown was indicative of how the St. Joe’s Prep product was consistently able to find spaces in the defense to give the offense life when necessary.
Since arriving at Temple as a true freshman in 2022, Clark has taken significant strides, Drayton said.
“There was a lot of changing that had to happen for Reese Clark, ” Drayton said. “In my two years with him, he’s done nothing but humble himself and dive into the preparation of trying to make himself a better person and better football player. I think that’s what you start to see out there as a result of him putting in work.”
Special teams
Redshirt freshman walk-on Carl Hardin, who closed out the 2023 season as Temple’s kickoff specialist, will have to battle Maddux Trujillo for the starting placekicking job, but he showed Saturday that he might be able to make it a true competition. On a windy day, Hardin converted kicks of 47, 45 and 43 yards.
Postgame comments
After the scrimmage, Drayton, Keaton, defensive end Tra Thomas and running back E.J. Wilson, who scored on a 4-yard touchdown in the second half during situational drills, spoke to the media for the final time before the summer.
Watch their sessions below.
Stan Drayton
Tra Thomas
E.J. Wilson
Andreas Keaton