Temple football coach Stan Drayton finds support in a longtime gridiron friend

The Owls coach announced three new additions to his coaching contingent, led by a new chief of staff who celebrated a national title with Drayton.

Temple coach Stan Drayton (center) added three new staffers to his coaching and support contingent this week.Read moreHEATHER KHALIFA / Staff Photographer

by Kerith Gabriel

Published June 5, 2024, 3:42 p.m. ET

Stan Drayton bolstered his inner circle this week, headlined by a football coach he’s known for more than 30 years.

On Wednesday, Temple announced three new additions, headlined by the addition of a new chief of staff, Earnest Wilson III. The post was held previously by Marcus Berry and current defensive coordinator Everett Withers, the latter of whom has his own roundabout story of ending up alongside Drayton yet again. Berry is now the Owls’ director of player personnel.

Wilson, a former college and professional coach, will oversee the daily responsibilities of looking out for Drayton and the rest of the coaching staff, which has grown to 32 people including position coaches, graduate assistants, and other support personnel.

The duo goes back to the early 1990s, when Drayton set rushing and scoring records as a running back for Division III Allegheny College — and Wilson was starting his career as a position coach there. Both were there in 1990, the same year Allegheny captured an NCAA Division III championship.

“I have a long history with Coach Wilson — it’s tough for me to call him Earnest,” Drayton said in a news release. “He was one of my coaches at Allegheny, so we go back quite a bit. He has had an amazing career in football and will be invaluable to me and this staff.”

In addition to Wilson, Temple made official an assistant role of director of player personnel for Sam Scott, who joined the Owls support staff as a volunteer last February, and added Toriana Brown as director of on-campus recruiting. It will be Brown’s third stop in this role as she has assisted with recruits at Marshall and Illinois, her alma mater. In addition, former Temple offensive lineman Adam Klein has joined the staff as a graduate assistant.

“I’m delighted to add … Sam and Toriana to the Temple football family,” Drayton said. “Sam has been a volunteer here for over a year and has earned this full-time role. And Toriana will be a great addition who comes to us with experience from two respected schools.”

Wilson comes to Temple ahead of Drayton’s third season as head coach. The chief of staff role initially belonged to now-defensive coordinator Everett Withers, who joined Temple the same year that Drayton arrived.

However, during the 2022 season, Withers, a former head coach himself at Texas State (2016-18), James Madison (2014-15), and North Carolina (2011), left the Owls to return to on-field responsibilities as an assistant coach at Florida Atlantic. It was a short-lived jaunt south as Withers returned to Temple in March 2023 after defensive coordinator D.J. Eliot took a defensive role with the Eagles.

Drayton will take all the help he can get this season, as he looks to turn around a stretch that has seen the Owls celebrate just six wins in two seasons (6-18 overall). The Owls kick off the 2024 season on Aug. 30 on the road against Southeastern Conference newcomer Oklahoma (7 p.m., ESPN).