Temple Owls 2018 Early Signing Period Results

Update: Wide receiver Sean Ryan (Erasmus Hall, Brooklyn, NY) has officially signed his lettor of intent to become the 25th signee of the 2018 class. He is the Owls top recruit, according to 24/7 Sports composite rankings. He was expected to sign on Wednesday, but the necessary paperwork still hasn’t been completed.

The Temple Owls are in the midst of preparing for their bowl game against FIU on Thursday, but head coach Geoff Collins is pulling double duty in the next couple days as the early signing period is officially open until Friday.

Everyone is still adjusting to the new signing period, and Temple has already locked down a significant portion of their 2018 class. They have already signed 24 players, and are waiting on one more to sign his letter of intent. They currently rank 72nd nationally, and fifth in the American Athletic Conference.

Collins took the job late in the recruiting process last season and that put him in a bind. He then needed a month to fill out his coaching staff, and that really put them behind the eight ball. The Owls finished with the worst class in the conference as a result, and ranked 118th in the country.

What we do know is that Collins is a relentless recruiter. He was known for drawing pictures for recruits and introduced the country’s first SWAG Coordinator. In his short time as Temple’s head coach, he scooped up what he could, but again, it just wasn’t enough time. Here is what I wrote about Collins after last year’s signing day.

“Collins made news when he used a university donor's helicopter for recruiting visits on the first day of the NCAA contact period. It was thought to be a great move to land some of the local prospects and make a scene nationally. It worked as Collins said all six recruits he visited in the chopper committed to Temple.

That was not enough time to bring in a significant class, however. Temple's class finished last in the American Athletic Conference and 118th in the nation, according to 247 Sports. In all, the 2017 class fielded 17 players, with their top addition being quarterback Todd Centeio, who was ranked 899th nationally. No other player was ranked in the top 1,000 recruits.”

That will certainly not be the case this season. Collins and company have had a full season to prepare themselves for the new signing period. The next couple days will determine just how well those recruiting tactics have worked in Temple’s favor.

Here’s a rundown of how the new three-day period played out for the Owls:

The earliest and most impressive signings for Collins is two massive offensive linemen that hail from Sweden. Oskar Andersson stands at 6-foot-6, an inch shorter than fellow countryman, Isaac Moore, who is 6-foot-7-inches.

It’s no secret that quarterbacks are the prize of any recruiting class, and Temple landed a highly-coveted one in Trad Beatty. He chose Temple over Mississippi State and 20 other offers. He will join the team in January as an early enrollee.

Khris Banks is the highest rated recruit, according to 24/7 Sports. The Wayne, N.J. native had de-committed from Boston College and chose the Owls over Temple’s recruiting rival, Rutgers.

The Owls will lose Adonis Jennings and Keith Kirkwood to graduation, and will look to make up for those losses by adding at least five new receivers. Ronnie Stevenson, a 6-foot-5 wide receiver from Montour High School in Mckees Rocks, Pa. was drawing some interest from Pitt and Penn State. He will be joined by Jordan Smith (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.), Kadas Reams (New Berlin, N.Y.), David Martin-Robinson (Landisville, Pa.) and Jose Barbon (Lancaster, Pa.).

Aaron Jarman is the lone tight end in the class. He’s a three-star recruit from North Lenoir in La Grange, N.C.

Joining the Swedes on the O-line are Adam Klein (Newtown Square, Pa.), transfer JD Gomez (ASA College, Miami, Fla.) and two-star prospect Jean Paul Rodriguez (Lakewood, N.J.), who is considered a two-way player along the line.

Collins' calling card has been on defense and with significant turnover coming along the defensive line, the Owls added depth on the line on Wednesday. They were able to land Nickolos Madourie, a junior college transfer that rescinded his commitment from the UCF Knights following Scott Frost’s move to Nebraska.

Dante Burke, Evan Boozer - the younger brother of senior offensive lineman Cole Boozer - and Antonio Colclough round out the new additions along the defensive line.

Linebacker Daesean Winston from Archbishop Spalding in Severn, Md., will look to make his mark. Winston had several Mid-American Conference teams after him, including Bowling Green, Buffalo and Central Michigan.

Chauncey Moore, a safety from Friendship Academy in D.C., was sought after by both service academies and a handful of FCS schools as well, but will leave the D.C. area to play his football in Philly.

Amir Gillis, a local product from Philadelphia's Simon Gratz High, had offers from Akron, Buffalo and Kent State, but chose to stay close to home.

Elijah Clark was the Owls' first commit in April. He is a cornerback from Sayreville War Memorial in Parlin, N.J.

Temple signed 19 three-star recruits, according to 24/7, and could land one more before it’s all said and done. The Owls remain in the mix for wide receiver Sean Ryan (Erasmus Hall, Brooklyn, NY). He was expected to sign yesterday, but the necessary paperwork still hasn’t been completed.

Anyone who does not sign by Friday can sign between Feb. 7, 2018, and April 1, 2018. Regardless of how the rest of the class shapes up, it’s already a big jump from the 2017 class.

This story will be updated as more information becomes available.