Sam Brown almost walked away from football. Now he looks to lead Temple’s backfield.

There was a time when Sam Brown thought his college football career was over.

Before transferring to Temple from Rutgers this past offseason, the running back was limited to 16 carries for 38 yards during an injury-riddled 2025 season with the Scarlet Knights.

“There was a point where I didn’t really want to play anymore,” said Brown, a fifth-year senior from La Salle College High. “It was a lot on me mentally. Injuries were weighing on me a lot, and I didn’t want to be in a situation where I got hurt again.”

Brown has been hampered with injuries throughout his college career. He dealt with a season-ending lower-body injury in 2024 which lingered into 2025, when he played in just three games. As a freshman in 2022, , he suffered a broken foot in the middle of the season. His sophomore year was his only complete season; he had 216 yards and two touchdowns in 12 games.

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Before his foot fracture in his freshman season, he had rushed for 374 yards and three touchdowns. Now, in his final year of college, he’s looking to get back to that.

“I wanted a fresh start,” he said. “I wanted to go somewhere that was definitely home-oriented, with a great coaching staff and great teammates. That is what went into my decision. And I met with everyone when I took my visit. It just felt like the right place and the right fit.”

The injuries took a physical and mental battle on Brown. But he spent most of his life playing football, so walking away wasn’t going to be easy.

“I noticed that [quitting] wasn’t the right way to go about things,” said Brown. “I just thought [about] all the sacrifices that my parents made for me since I was 4 years old playing football, and I was like, I can’t just give up. I have another year left, and I need to take advantage of that.”

But it’s taken Brown some time to feel like himself again.

“It was definitely tough,” he said. “But my coaching staff at Rutgers and I, we already had kind of talked, and we kind of knew what the plan was for me [last] year. Even through that season, I wasn’t myself.”

When Brown entered the transfer portal, he had an idea of what he wanted in a new school. As it turned out, that school wasn’t entirely new to him.

While playing for La Salle College High, Brown, who grew up in Hunting Park, was recruited by Temple out of high school, albeit by a different regime.

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With the Owls losing one of their top producers in Jay Ducker to graduation, the starting spot was open. Brown has been competing in the backfield with Hunter Smith and Keveun Mason.

“I think it’s a testament to his ability to fight through adversity,” said running backs coach Andrew Pierce. “He could have easily just said, ‘I’m done with football after injuries and all of those things,’ he could have said, ‘Football’s over for me, I’m going to move on.’ It’s just his ability to put his head down and work every single day, and I think that just improved the room overall.”

Brown came into spring practices, getting reps with the second- and first-team offenses but quickly built separation between himself and the rest of the room.

During the Owls’ Cherry and White spring game, Brown was the first running back to have his name called in the first drive of the game.

Brown, at 6-foot-1, 215 pounds, is a powerful figure on the field. He can put defenders on their backs and trudge through the line in short-yardage spots.

But Brown’s new calling card since he made it to North Broad has been speed.

Since taking the field, and healthy for the first time in nearly two whole years, Brown’s acceleration out of the backfield has changed the Owls’ offense.

“A lot of the work that I put in with the strength program played a big part in everything,” he said. “Having the spring, having the summer to train, even in the moments where I wasn’t in here, I was at home with my trainers. That all [played a] part in just staying positive and staying confident in my abilities through it all.”

Temple kicks off its season against Rhode Island on Sept. 5 at Lincoln Financial Field, and Brown looks poised to headline the backfield.

“The first thing is his character,” Pierce said. “Just who he is as a person, he’s the right fit for this program and what we are trying to accomplish. I think his character speaks volumes, and obviously, as a player, just his ability to be a big physical back who also can just run as well.

“He is not a very talkative guy, but he also leads by example. Anybody in that building can tell you he’s in here 24/7 trying to get better every single day. And that, I think, trickles down to our room, which I think only improves everybody in there.”

Nearly a year after Brown questioned whether he still wanted to play football, he is preparing to enter this season as one of the Owls’ most important offensive pieces.

This time, there’s little question about whether he wants to be there.

“I’m just grateful for every opportunity I get,” Brown said. “I just got to keep working and I’ll get what I deserve.”