Temple Football adds six recruits to its 2019 class

The Owls gained four verbal commits on Independence Day — the program’s record.

05 July 2018 Football, Sports
Coach Geoff Collins leads a tug-of-war drill during Temple's first spring practice on March 13 at Chodoff Field. Collins recieved six verbal commitments from Class of 2019 recruits on Wednesday. | EVAN EASTERLING / THE TEMPLE NEWS

Temple University’s football team celebrated the Fourth of July by adding six verbal commits to its 2019 recruiting class.

The Owls added three defensive linemen, and one quarterback, running back and wide receiver. The six recruits announced their commitments on Twitter on Wednesday starting at 11 a.m. through 3 p.m.

Now, Temple’s 2019 recruiting class stands at 20 players. Only Army West Point, the University of Mississippi, Texas A&M University and Miami University have more verbal commitments than Temple this year.

In his first two recruiting classes, coach Geoff Collins has received 33 verbal commitments from recruits by the Fourth of July, which is more than any of the previous four coaches reached before the holiday during their tenures.

Before Wednesday, the highest number of recruits to verbally commit to Temple on Independence Day was four in 2009 under former coach Al Golden.

The Early Signing Period Division I recruits is from Dec. 19 to Dec. 21. The regular signing period is from Feb. 6 to April 1.

THE RECRUITS

Victor Stoffel, Defensive End

Stoffel was the first recruit to announce his commitment to Temple on Wednesday morning.

Standing at 6-feet-7 inches and 240-pounds, the Stockholm, Sweden native is the third Swedish-born athlete Temple has added under Collins. Offensive linemen Isaac Moore and Oskar Andersson are in their first seasons at Temple after leaving Europe.

Stoffel played football with the Stockholm Mean Machine under-19 team in Superserien, Sweden’s American football league. He won the league championship in 2017 with Stockholm’s under-19 team. That year, Stoffel recorded 56 tackles, eight sacks, and one fumble recovery in six games.

On Jan. 12, Stoffel played against a selection of under-19 players from America in Dallas for Team Nordic. As part of a group of the best under-19 players from Denmark, Finland and Sweden, Stoffel lead Team Nordic in tackles with six.

Jamal Speaks, Running Back

The Upper Marlboro, Maryland native chose Temple over Maryland and Toledo University.

The 6-foot, 185-pound three-star running back will join Ra’Mahn Davis as running backs in the 2019 recruiting class, according to Rivals.com

Speaks plays high school football at Dr. Henry Wise High School in Maryland. Speaks scored 18 touchdowns and totaled 1,324 rushing yards during his junior year, according to 247sports.com

Jacoby Sharpe, Defensive End

Sharpe is listed at 6 feet, 3 inches tall and 240 pounds. Playing his high school football at Lanier High School, in Sugar Hill, Georgia, Sharpe sees snaps at both defensive end and tight end.

Sharpe was the third Owl to commit on Wednesday. Ten other schools offered scholarships to Sharpe, most notably Marshall University and the University of South Alabama.

After Wednesday, Collins would have added two Georgia recruits to the 2019 class, both of whom committed today.

Zaylin Wood, Defensive End

The second of the Georgia recruits is 6-foot-2-inch, 250-pound Zaylin Wood.

Wood received 23 offers during the recruiting process, and Virginia Tech has shown interest in the Bowden, Georgia native. Wood also chose Temple over American Athletic Conference opponent Tulane.

The defensive lineman has a three-star rating and ranks as the 150th-best 2019 recruit in the state of Georgia, according to 247sports.com.

Joshua Youngblood, Wide Receiver

Youngblood is capable of running the 40-yard dash in less than 4.5 seconds, according to 247sports.com. The Tampa, Florida, native attends Berkeley Prep in Florida, and is seen as an offensive weapon. He totaled more than 1,800 all-purpose yards and 20 touchdowns during his junior year.

Youngblood attracted attention more than 30 schools. The 5-foot-11, 170-pound receiver chose Temple over American Athletic Conference schools like Navy and East Carolina.

Kennique Bonner-Steward, Quarterback

Bonner-Steward announced his commitment to Temple at 3:18 p.m.

Bonner-Steward is ranked as a three-star quarterback from Cornelius, North Carolina. At 6 feet, 4 inches tall and 215 pounds, Bonner-Steward is the 45th-ranked dual-threat quarterback in the nation, according to 247sports.com.

Temple was one of 14 offers he received. The Owls received his verbal commitment over Tulane and Old Dominion University.

Michael Zingrone

can be reached at michael.zingrone@temple.edu Or you can follow Michael on Twitter @mjzingrone Follow The Temple News @TheTempleNews

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