Temple University’s athletic department announced Sunday that head coach Stan Drayton is leaving the Owl football program after nearly three seasons with the team.
In a statement, Director of Athletics Arthur Johnson thanked Coach Drayton “for his commitment to Temple University, our student-athletes and the football program” during his tenure. “Under his leadership, our student-athletes have excelled in the classroom, been outstanding community members and Coach Drayton has represented the university with an enormous amount of integrity and class. I wish him and his family the best of luck in their future endeavors” , Johnson said.
Drayton was hired by Temple in December 2021 after spending five seasons as associate head coach at Texas. He also had stints at Villanova, Penn and his alma mater Allegheny (Pa.) College during his 30 years of coaching.
“I appreciate the opportunity I have been given to lead a great group of young men at Temple University,” Drayton said in a statement from the school. “I wish them nothing but the best in football and in life.”
Drayton was relieved of his coaching duties a day after the now 3-7 Owls defeated Florida Atlantic University 18-15 in overtime. Temple is currently ranked 11th in the American Athletic Conference.
“With the changing landscape of college football and the playoff format, the opportunities for Temple football have never been better,” Johnson added. “It is our expectation to compete for American Athletic Conference titles, consistently appear in bowl games and build a program that our fans, alumni and students can be proud of in the classroom and on the field.”
Temple has gone nearly five years without a bowl game appearance. The Owls played in bowl games every year from 2015 to 2019, winning just once against the Florida International in 2017.
The Owls have two more regular season games scheduled, Friday, Nov. 22 at the University of Texas at San Antonio and Saturday, Nov. 30 against North Texas. Defensive coordinator Everett Withers will serve as interim head coach for the remainder of the season.
