Temple’s first training camp practice feels like ‘night and day’ under new coach K.C. Keeler

Keeler, who's been a winner throughout his 32-year head coaching career, has lofty goals at Temple. "I have no interest in being realistic."

Temple wide receiver Kian Johnson competes in drills during the first day of preseason practice at Edberg-Olson Hall on Wednesday.Read moreIsaiah Vazquez / For The Inquirer

by Kerith Gabriel

Published July 30, 2025, 4:46 p.m. ET

The first day of preseason for Temple’s football team? “Average.”

That was the sentiment of new Owls head coach K.C. Keeler, who made sure not to mince his words following the first day of helmets and pads on a sweltering midsummer morning Wednesday at Edberg-Olson Hall, the site of Temple football headquarters.

The on-field temperature was 108 degrees, prompting players to head for the air-conditioned walk-in freezers on the sidelines before, during, and immediately after the two-hour session.

“Texas showed up in Philadelphia today, I see,” Keeler quipped after the practice. He would know, arriving from Sam Houston State, where he became the FCS leader in all-time wins in his eight seasons on the sidelines. “I told the guys, I went two weeks of 114 degrees last year in [Huntsville], Texas, so I’ve felt the heat.”

How did it all affect the team’s first day?

“You could see our guys struggle a little bit,” Keeler said. “Partly because they’re pushing, but as I told them, that was OK. Our standard is a lot higher than OK. I anticipate we’ll be better the next time out. But that first practice, when you’re putting those helmets on and you’ve got that extra gear on and you have a day like this, you know, sometimes you’re going to get an average practice.”

However, there was a good amount to take in that showed promise, namely the continuing quarterback battle between the returning Evan Simon and transfer Gevani McCoy. On Wednesday, Keeler reiterated that neither Simon nor McCoy has secured the job despite Simon’s attendance as a player representative at last week’s media day for the American Conference.

“We’re expecting a toe-to-toe battle,” Keeler said. “I was asked about a time frame [for selecting a quarterback]. I have no time frame. I’ve done this long enough to know that when you put a time frame on yourself, all of a sudden, you’re making decisions that maybe you’re not ready to make.”

However, listening to Keeler speak, the intangibles that McCoy brings seem like a fit for the offense that he and offensive coordinator Tyler Walker want to run. Simon, a transfer from Rutgers last season, was a reliable arm, finishing the year with 181 completions and 18 touchdowns, with 15 of those TDs arriving from the security of the pocket.

In McCoy, there appeared to be a bit more versatility in his reps to get his 6-foot, 190-pound frame out of the pocket and find defensive gaps to exploit. In 10 appearances for Oregon State last season, McCoy ran for 328 yards and five touchdowns, scoring three of those TDs against Colorado State, when he rushed for a season-high 91 yards.

“For us, it’s a combination of consistency and that guy who can make big plays,” Keeler said. “We need a guy who’s going to make some big plays for us; if it’s with his arm, with his legs, we don’t really care. It’s just a matter of, you know, we want to have a dynamic guy at that position.”

It’s something Simon understands. He lauded the early competition, noting that he and McCoy have established a relationship and have bought into Keeler’s plan.

“We’re making each other better, it’s healthy, and I’m so glad they brought him in,” Simon said of McCoy. “Gevani is awesome and we’ve gotten to grow a lot closer in the last couple of months. … Our lockers are close together and we sit together at lunch and I think it’s the small things like that [are] where we get to know each other more.”

Keeler appeared content with a bit of first-day kinks and jitters as players get acclimated to his on-field style, one that intensified since the end of spring ball, and one that Simon noted even on the first practice session felt like “night and day.”

There are still four weeks before the Owls open the season against UMass on Aug. 30 (3:30 p.m., ESPN+), but heading into his 32nd year as a head coach, Keeler made it clear that he’s not looking for average. It’s been the mantra, he says, that has been a huge selling point in attracting prospective recruits and what he hopes will be in the retention of players after the season, understanding that the NCAA’s transfer portal has made all of college athletics, but specifically football, a volatile environment.

“Look, I’m highly critical because, as I told our guys, our goals have to be much higher than just being better than we were last year,” Keeler said.

“July is that time where [certain players] need to take this team over. Who’s going to lead? Who’s going to follow? How are we going to do things? How are we going to work out our differences? … I saw guys today out there, being leaders, starting to step up and encourage guys. Um, so yeah, there’s a lot of good stuff out there, and that’s a positive thing I’ll take from today.”