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Spring notebook: Tripodi talks veteran experience up front

Temple is returning a group of offensive lineman, who have a total of 127 collegiate starts under their belt. Only seven FBS teams in the country have more experience returning in the trenches.

With that being said, Joe Tripodi doesn’t want his unit growing complacent. Speaking with reporters on Friday, Temple’s offensive line coach talked about the growing nature of the depth chart and how some of the younger guys can push the more experienced veterans across the line.

Tripodi has been impressed with how guys like Bryce Thoman and Wisdom Quarshie are making the most of their opportunities. They got some running time with the starters during Temple’s intrasquad scrimmage on Thursday and really showed out.

Tripodi wants his offensive lineman to earn their spots and mentioned guys like Joseph Hooper and Isaac Moore, who had to do so last season. Moore got bumped out of the starting lineup for Temple’s season opener against Navy and he had to earn it back. The 6-foot-7, 310-pound Sweden native “practiced his butt off,” according to Tripodi.

That helped him get back in the starting lineup after the Owls had made that Vincent Picozzi’s home for the first game of the 2020 campaign. Speaking of Picozzi, the Owls will have to make do in replacing the longtime starter, who opted to enter the transfer portal, ending up at Colorado State. Picozzi wasn’t the only former Owls offensive lineman in search of greener pastures this past offseason. David Nwaogwugwu also entered the transfer portal and is now with Rutgers.

Even with those two departures, Tripodi harped on competition making the entire room better, and says the older guys have definitely taken notice of how hard some of the younger guys are pushing for playing time right now.

Here are some excerpts from Tuesday’s media availability.

Tripodi on having so much experience returning across the line:

“It’s awesome. When you have a lot of guys, especially with the offensive line position that sometimes tends to take a few years to get all of the techniques and fundamentals down, it’s a very technical position, it’s good. It’s good to have that leadership and have those guys back aboard.”

Tripodi on what last season’s starts can do for Quarshie’s development and how he’s looked in spring practice thus far:

“Wisdom, with those starts, that was huge. For him to be a young guy and thrown into the mix last year. We can simulate everything we want as coaches, but game experience is so invaluable for these young guys to really help that development. So what happens is he gets in the games, he starts, he gets a lot of reps, and really that’s a springboard to his offseason, moving into the next year. I’m really excited about Wisdom. He’s working his butt off this spring and he has this offseason. Look for him to push some of those older guys. We need to be better upfront. We do have a lot of starts, but we have to play better. We have to set the tone. Wisdom’s a guy that we look to push some of those starters."

Tripodi on freshman offensive linemen Sam Davis and Bryce Thoman:

“Both guys are really Temple guys. They’re Temple tough for sure. They’re working hard. Bryce has been working at the center spot for us, so is Sam a little bit...They’re working hard. I think they both have bright futures ahead. I will say this, Bryce Thoman, the last couple of days has really stepped it up. He’s really starting to figure it out, starting to click for him...We’ve been pleased with his progression to this point.”

Tripodi on positional flexibility being one of his unit’s strengths:

“Offensive lineman from the top down, from Coach Carey down, we want to play the best five. Now, it differs. What’s the best five look like? Sometimes that can be three tackles, two guards. I’ve had it where it’s four tackles and a center. However it fits, we have to play the best five. I think with lineman, the more positions they can play, we always tell them the earlier they can play...We do have some position flexibility, but you like to settle in. It’s also on the other side of the coin, you want to make sure, you want to get that continuity, guys playing next to each other. We’ve certainly tried to do that this spring.”

Tripodi on what a veteran like C.J. Perez can do for a younger quarterback’s room:

“C.J., I think can be very calming to those guys. A guy that’s going into Year 6 in college football. He’s been through the battles. He’s been through a lot of college football himself. He’s really taken a leadership role, not only in our room but on the offensive side of the football.”

Tripodi on what Perez’s best attribute is:

“One is his foot speed. As an offensive lineman, he has great feet. Just talking about the attributes that he has on the football field because to be a great offensive lineman, you have to be good from the ground up. Your feet have to be able to move and you have to be able to get yourselves in the right position. He certainly can do that. And then really just been excited to see him step into more of a leadership role. Guys are gravitating towards that. It’s been fun to watch."

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