Temple adds three football transfers on signing day
The three players join the 21 who committed to Temple in the early signing period.
The Temple football team added three transfers Wednesday, the start of the second NCAA signing period, to the 21 players who signed in the early period in December.
The newcomers for coach Rod Carey are offensive lineman Michael Niese, a 6-foot-5, 275-pound graduate transfer from Dayton; defensive end Manny Walker, a 6-4, 250-pound graduate transfer from Wake Forest; and Kwantel Raines, a 6-3, 200-pound redshirt freshman safety from West Virginia who will have three years of eligibility.
Niese and Walker, as graduate transfers, will be eligible immediately. Raines would need a waiver from the NCAA to play this fall.
Niese earned first-team all-Pioneer Football League honors at Dayton, a non-scholarship Football Championship Subdivision school. An offensive guard, he was an honorable-mention all-conference choice in 2018.
Niese was part of a Dayton team that led FCS in scoring, averaging 42.5 points, and in red-zone efficiency, 94.5%. Niese has earned a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering.
Walker has played only two years at Wake Forest, so it’s possible he will have two years of eligibility, pending a waiver from the NCAA. This past season, Walker appeared in 11 games for Wake Forest and had seven tackles.
Raines, a graduate of Pennsylvania’s Aliquippa High, appeared in six games for West Virginia. He contributed nine tackles and forced a fumble. Raines has been enrolled in school. Niese and Walker will enroll in the summer.
Temple had an 8-5 record in Carey’s first season last year, and still more players could join the program via the transfer portal. That is not just for Temple, but also for many other college football teams.