Harper hopes to lead Temple turnaround

WHEN KENNETH HARPER committed to Temple from Buchholz High in Gainesville, Fla., he did not do so to be a running back. In fact, he was not even slated to play on the same side of the ball.

"When I first came in, I was coming in at safety," Harper said. "My mindset was to do whatever I could do for the team. Whatever my role would be, as long as I was impacting the team in some way, I was successful."

Harper played both safety and running back in high school, but safety was where he thought his college career was headed. That is, until then-coach Steve Addazio came to Harper during the season about switching to the offensive backfield, and he jumped at the opportunity to help the team. He was one of just five true freshmen to play in 2011.

Fast-forward 3 years and the motto is still the same, except his role is much more defined. He is one of just five seniors, and is the only senior captain. As the defined leader of the team, he has taken responsibility to ensure that this year will go better than last year did (2-10).

"A lot is different from last year," Harper said. "Last year we were immature. We had a lot of freshmen playing and didn't know how hard it is to actually win a college football game. The whole offseason, coach [Matt Rhule] kept pushing us to go as hard as we can and play at a championship level.

"Over the summer, we were trying to get the mindset that you have to take every chance you can get," Harper added. "You have to go as hard as you can as much as you can to make it count."

Making it count in the summer is something that Harper understands, with help from Rhule. He said that Rhule is emphasizing doing things better than they did last year.

The Owls open the season Aug. 28 at Vanderbilt.

For the senior safety turned fullback turned running back, doing better than last year might be what he needs to do to keep his starting job. He made every start for Temple at running back last year, and led the team in rushing yards (613), touchdowns (11) and points scored (66). But he has competition on his heels.

Sophomore Zaire Williams and junior Jamie Gilmore are in the picture for serious playing time this year, with Williams posing more of a threat than Gilmore. Williams played in the first 11 games for the Owls as Harper's backup, rushing for 533 yards.

Despite the talent behind him, Harper does not see Williams and Gilmore as competition; rather he is doing what he can to make the future of Temple football better.

"All I do is stay focused on myself," Harper said. "I try to teach them what they need to know, but at the same time I focus on myself. I don't look back and say, 'I have to watch out for Zaire,' or 'I have to watch out for Jamie.' I just have to focus on myself."