Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1545675
A U G U S T 2 0 2 6 8 9 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M There's a long history of quar- terbacks losing position battles at Penn State and finding success elsewhere. Jeff Hostetler developed into an All-American at West Vir- ginia and went on to win two Super Bowls. Will Levis parlayed a couple of strong seasons at Kentucky into a spot in the second round of the NFL Draft. Beau Pribula opened eyes last year at Missouri and is set to start for Virginia this com- ing fall. And now it's Jaxon Smolik's turn to try his luck at another school. After seeing his career in State College sidetracked by injuries and the continual presence of more- experienced rivals, Smolik trans- ferred to Temple in January. He was seeking an opportunity to become a starter, and it appears the redshirt sophomore is close to achieving that goal. In the Owls' spring game, Smolik com- pleted 15 of 19 passes for 241 yards and 3 touchdowns. His rival for the starting job, Washington State transfer Ajani Shep- pard, went 6 of 21 for 70 yards. Second- year coach K.C. Keeler said it was too early to declare a victor in the Owls' quar- terback battle, but he added that Smolik "definitely had the better day today." If he does win the job, Smolik will re- ceive another enticing opportunity — the chance to face his former team. Hostetler got that chance in 1982 and '83 as the starter at West Virginia, but the Moun- taineers lost both games. If he's going to fare better, Smolik will need a lot of help. The Owls return last year's top receiver in redshirt senior Jojo Bermudez (38 catches, 500 yards, 4 touchdowns) and their second-leading rusher in graduate Hunter Smith (62 carries, 403 yards, 2 TDs). The skill- position depth chart has been filled out with transfers, the most noteworthy of whom is redshirt senior running back Sam Brown. In four seasons at Rutgers, Brown totaled 829 yards and 8 touch- downs. Temple will be looking for substantial improvement on offense after av- eraging 344.8 yards per game to rank 99th in the FBS. Defensively, one of the top prior- ities will be to intensify a pass rush that produced only 16 sacks last year. Only two players had more than 1 sack, and both are gone, so the Owls will need someone new to emerge in their edge rushing corps. On the back end, Temple will also be looking for more intercep- tions after totaling 7 as a team last year. The Owls welcome back cor- nerback Adrian Laing, who had a team-high 2 as a redshirt fresh- man. And they've brought in senior safety Saboor Karriem, who gained 32 games' worth of Big Ten experi- ence in three seasons at Illinois. If there's a reason for optimism at Temple after six consecutive losing seasons, it's that the 66-year-old Keeler has thrived at every stop in his long coaching career. He has winning records at the other three programs for which he served as head coach, and he won FCS championships at Delaware and Sam Houston State. If he were to bring a national title to Temple, it would make Indiana's miracu- lous turnaround look like a card trick. Just getting the Owls back over .500 for the first time since 2019 would be a nice ac- complishment. If Smolik and some of the other transfers work out, it looks entirely attainable. — Matt Herb S E P T . 1 2 | N O O N | E S P N 2 | L I N C O L N F I N A N C I A L F I E L D | P H I L A D E L P H I A , P A . Former Nittany Lion Jaxon Smolik completed 15 of 19 passing attempts for 241 yards and 3 touchdowns in Temple's spring game. PHOTO COURTESY TEMPLE ATHLETICS GAME 2 TEMPLE RISING STAR PETER CLARKE | TE Clarke, who came to Temple in 2023 from the NFL Academy in London, England, is a handful at 6-foot-6, 265 pounds, and not just as a blocker. He was also a more effective vertical threat than his size would suggest. As a junior, Clarke finished with 483 yards and 6 touchdowns on 30 receptions. Among pass catchers with more than 5 receptions, his average of 16.1 yards per catch topped the team. QUICK FACTS All-Time Series: Penn State leads, 40-4 Head Coach: K.C. Keeler (5-7 in one sea- son at Temple; career coaching record: 276-119-1) 2025 Record: 5-7, 3-5 American Conference Returning Starters: 9 (7 offense, 2 defense) RETURNING LEADERS Rushing: RB Hunter Smith (403 yards, 2 TD) Passing: None Receiving: WR Jojo Bermudez (500 yards, 4 TD) Tackles: LB Curly Ordonez (66) Sacks: LB Curly Ordonez (1) Interceptions: CB Adrian Laing (2) 2026 SCHEDULE Date Opponent 2025 Result Sept. 5 Rhode Island — Sept. 12 Penn State — Sept. 19 at Toledo — Sept. 25 Army L, 14-13 Oct. 3 at South Florida — Oct. 10 Connecticut — Oct. 17 Charlotte W, 49-14 Oct. 31 at East Carolina L, 45-14 Nov. 7 at Navy L, 32-31 Nov. 14 UAB — Nov. 19 Rice — Nov. 28 at Memphis —