The Temple Owls improved to 3-7 on Saturday when they won in overtime against Florida Atlantic, an American Athletic Conference foe.
Unfortunately, the victory wasn’t enough to save head coach Stan Drayton’s job.
On Sunday, the university announced a change in leadership, ending Drayton’s tenure as head coach just two games shy of three full seasons.
“I would like to extend my appreciation to Coach Drayton for his commitment to Temple University, our student-athletes and the football program over the past three years, Temple athletic director Arthur Johnson said in a statement. “Under his direction, our student-athletes have excelled in the classroom, been outstanding members of the community and Coach Drayton has represented the University with a tremendous amount of integrity and class. I wish him and his family well in their future endeavors.”
Drayton also released a brief statement: “I appreciate the opportunity that I was given to lead a great group of young men at Temple University. I wish them nothing but the best in football and in life.”
Before being hired at Temple, Drayton’s first head coaching job, he was a running backs coach with the Syracuse Orange, Florida Gators, Ohio State Buckeyes, Chicago Bears, and Texas Longhorns. He went 9-25 in his three seasons with the school.
Defensive coordinator Everett Withers will be Temple’s interim coach for the season’s final two games. Withers has previously coached the North Carolina Tar Heels, James Madison Dukes, and Texas State Bobcats.
