Ranking Temple’s Five Most Impactful Transfer Additions for 2026
Tagged under: News, Pennsylvania Colleges, Temple
Mike Livingston | June 18, 2026
Temple brought in 25 transfers through the portal this past offseason, filling key roster holes while supplementing a returning core that remarkably did not lose a single starter to another program.
As the Owls prepare for fall camp, more than half of those additions are positioned to compete for starting roles. In fact, as many as 15 transfers could find themselves in the opening lineup when Temple kicks off the 2026 season.
The influx of talent comes at a critical time for the program. With concerns about Temple football’s long-term future fading and momentum building under second-year head coach K.C. Keeler, the Owls enter 2026 looking to build on last season’s promising 5-7 campaign. A major reason for that optimism is a transfer class that has the potential to reshape multiple position groups across the roster.
Several of Temple’s most important roles are expected to be occupied by newcomers this fall. Here are the five transfers who could have the biggest impact on the Owls’ 2026 season.
No. 5 – Saboor Karriem, Sr, Safety (Illinois)
Karriem joins the Owls after three seasons at the University of Illinois, where he saw a decent amount of playing time across all three years, though only starting one game.
Karriem played all 13 games for the Fighting Illini in 2025 and recorded a season-high 10 tackles against then-No. 21 USC. He’ll come into what will be his first and only season with Temple as the favorite to land one of the two safety spots, with the other likely being occupied by Avery Powell.
Karriem makes this list for the simple fact that he adds a mountain of depth to the safety room all by himself.
With Karriem and Powell at the reins, players like Jaeden Gould, Josiah Jackson, and Kolin Dinkins will all have the opportunity to sit in the wings if needed, while safety is one of the Owls’ deepest positions, with nearly five eligible starters in the room.
Karriem also joins the Owls with three seasons of playing experience in the Big Ten and a chance to be the dominant name in Temple’s backfield this coming season.
No. 4 – Jaylon Joseph, Sr, Edge Rusher (Lafayette)
Joseph joins the team as possibly now the best player on the entire roster.
Following a standout season at Lafayette in 2025, which capped off three strong seasons for the Leopards, Joseph recorded 23 tackles and 7.5 sacks while starting every game.
Joseph joins a defensive front for the Owls that was originally thought of as one of the weaker units on the team as a whole, though following a strong spring camp, opinions around the unit changed. The front that Joseph leads is one that has benefited from depth and consistent unit rotations, which resulted in some dominating practices when facing the Owls’ offensive line.
Joseph comes into his final year headlining a Temple defense looking to earn back its TUFF moniker, and if it’s going to happen, it will all go through him.
No. 3 – Jayce Freeman, R-Sr, Wide Receiver (Stony Brook)
Freeman makes this list for close to the same reason as Karriem, in the fact that they both add ultra-important depth to their positions. Freeman, however, adds depth in a spot but also hikes the talent level to the nth degree.
The Salisbury, Maryland, native spent four seasons playing for the Seawolves and turned in an impressive 2025 to finish out his time on Long Island with 41 passes caught for 774 yards and eight touchdowns.
Freeman comes in alongside the already deadly pairing of Colin Chase and Jojo Bermudez to make a ridiculous three-way threat at wide receiver, with three trusted wideouts for whichever quarterback ends up being named the opening-day starter.
No. 2 – Sam Brown, R-Jr, Running Back (Rutgers)
Brown returns home to Philadelphia after four seasons with the Scarlet Knights and an up-and-down journey in New Brunswick.
At first, it wasn’t expected for Brown to do much more than compete for a spot in the running back rotation as a power guy who could come in situationally. However, he broke out in a big way during spring camp, taking advantage of every snap he received on first-team reps and turning what once seemed to be a running back-by-committee approach into a one-horse race.
And while Brown has a decent way to go to claim that RB1 spot all for himself, it’s plain to see he at least leads the pack in the Owls’ running back room and, if he stays on track, could become the key for Temple’s offense that already has ample power in the air to become a dangerous two-headed monster.
No. 1 – Jaxon Smolik, R-So, Quarterback (Penn State) / Ajani Sheppard, R-Jr, Quarterback (Washington State)
The Owls’ quarterback duo is, without question, the most important pair of transfers the team has.
Following the loss of Evan Simon to graduation, the signal-caller spot was maintained by Camren Boykin, the second-year guy out of Upper Marlboro, Maryland, whom many cited as just not ready for the gig. So the Owls took to the portal and brought in two names with just as many question marks as potential.
Either Smolik or Sheppard, who have competed neck and neck for the starting job to this point, will decide the course of the 2026 season for Temple for obvious reasons. Without a quality starting quarterback, no matter the talent of the team around them, a program will struggle.
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