Temple Football Position Preview; Offensive Line

Tagged under: News, Pennsylvania Colleges, Temple

Mike Livingston | June 4, 2026

Coming into the spring practice sprint, the offensive line was perhaps the cloudiest position on the Temple roster, with numerous question marks and unproven talents across the trench for the Owls.

Nonetheless, as the Owls emerge out of March and April and look forward to fall camp, things seem a bit clearer on how the front five may line up come Week One. Hints from coaches and players have also pointed to possible rotations that could take advantage of depth, if deemed plausible by K.C. Keeler and company.

Left Tackle –

#71, Giakoby Hill – 6’5/290, R-So
Morristown, NJ (Morristown)

Now coming into his third year on North Broad, last season’s breakout star, Giakoby Hill, is poised to establish himself as a cornerstone of the Owls’ offensive line in 2026.

Hill, who took over for an injured Kevin Terry midway through the 2025 season, played well enough to keep the job following Terry’s recovery and was even named to the PFF Week 7 Team during a stretch of phenomenal play.

Now, at 6-foot-5/290lbs, Hill gave Temple one less position to worry about on the line coming into the spring and reaffirmed those notions throughout the practice schedule, standing on his head at times against a Temple front seven that had its way with a largely inexperienced Owls offensive line at times.

#55, Kevin Terry – 6’5/280, R-Jr
Clearwater, Fla. (Clearwater Central Catholic)

Kevin Terry has been a strong name at left tackle for Temple over the last two seasons, but has never been able to stay healthy, which has very possibly cost him two separate chances at the starting job.

Coming into his fourth season for the Owls, it appears Terry will be the first line of defense behind Hill — and possibly swing in rotational roles to keep the line fresh, as alluded to by Keeler at times this spring.

However, if he can stay healthy and put together a good season, it may open the door for a possible transfer to greener pastures for Terry come next winter.

#56, C.J. Van Buren – 6’3/290, GS
Stafford, VA (North Stafford) – Arkansas State

One of the few graduate students on the roster, C.J. Van Buren spent four years at FCS Arkansas Pine-Bluff and would go on to start all four games of his redshirt sophomore season in 2024 before transferring to Temple the following year.

At Temple, however, Van Buren has largely taken a back seat at the blindside tackle spot.

He comes in a bit undersized for the position at 6-foot-3, but still has most of the measurements to contribute at the position. It certainly won’t be out of the question to see him on the field this season in meaningful roles, especially if the Owls go as deep as they can in their rotation.

#65, Billy Brown – 6’4/315, R-Fr
Swarthmore, PA (Strath Haven)

A local product, Brown walked on to the roster last season as a freshman and didn’t see any playing time.

Brown, a Chester native, had both his grandfather and uncle spend time in the NFL. His grandfather, Mike Evans, played for the Philadelphia Eagles before being inducted into the Boston College Sports Hall of Fame.

Left Guard –

#52, Eric King – 6’3/300, R-Jr
Jersey City, NJ (Saint Peter’s Prep)

Eric King comes into 2026 as one of the most tenured names on this Temple offensive line, having spent the better half of the last two seasons as the starting man on the left interior.

As a part of the 2023 recruiting class, King didn’t see game action in 2023 before getting the nod in his redshirt freshman year and starting nine games. He’d miss only two games due to injury in 2025, an area where he has struggled, despite starting every other game at the position.

Between King and Hill, the left side of Temple’s offensive line is one spot the Owls’ offensive staff won’t need to worry about all that much.

#51, Mausa Palu – 6’4/335, R-Sr
Falmouth Nuku’alofa, Tonga (Bishop Alemany)

After two JUCO seasons at the College of the Canyons, Palu joined the Owls back in 2024.

He’d contribute mainly on special teams, becoming a regular on field goal and PAT teams. Palu would also fill in for Eric King last season when he went down for two games in the middle of the season.

Palu projects to fill in as a suitable backup for King at a spot where the Owls otherwise don’t possess all that much depth.

Center –

#57, Grayson Mains – 6’5/300, R-Sr
Cumming, GA (Lambert) – South Carolina

One of the proverbial “tough guys” on this Temple O-line, Grayson Mains is the heart and soul in the middle of things, literally.

Mains, who transferred from South Carolina for his redshirt sophomore year, has started nearly every game since joining the Owls back in 2024.

He missed just one game in 2024 and none in 2025, though he played through an injury during a late-season game against Tulane and came off the bench.

Mains’ role was put into question this season following the arrival of John Stone to the mix, who transferred in from Rutgers. However, through the spring, Mains seemed to prove himself enough to become a marginal favorite for the starting job; it’s plain to expect a decent rotation at the position for most of the season.

#76, John Stone – 6’2/300, R-Jr
Sewell, NJ (Washington Township) – Rutgers

The aforementioned Stone joined the Owls as a guard/center combo from Rutgers as a transfer after playing in every game on the line for the Scarlet Knights last season.

Stone, who is projected to see time across the offensive line, will be the main rotational guy for the Owls if the depth chart shakes out how it’s projected to as of now — likely seeing time at both guard spots along with the center position if he doesn’t earn himself a starting role.

Right Guard –

#54, Jackson Pruitt – 6’5/315, R-Sr
Detroit, Mich. (Cass Tech)

Jackson Pruitt comes into 2026 as one of the longest-tenured players on the Temple roster as a whole.

The 6-foot-5, 315lb behemoth joined the Owls as a freshman back in 2022 and has been earning sporadic starts since the 2023 season before becoming the full-time man at right guard last season and starting every game.

Despite his tenure with the team, Pruitt can be seen as a weaker link when compared to his peers on the left side of the line, simply never displaying the same ability as the others. He was able to mainly outperform John Stone for most of the spring to keep the starting right guard spot in hand for the time being.

#74, Darvay Venu – 6’5/295, R-So
Montreal, Canada (St. Thomas)

Venu has seen limited playing time for the Owls over the course of the past two seasons and will likely retain his spot as the top positional backup at right guard, though it shouldn’t come as a surprise if he doesn’t swing around in the rotation throughout the year like others.

#58, Logan King – 6’3/265, Fr
Bel Air, MD (St. Francis Academy)

One of the few freshmen on the line, King comes in with an impressive resume from his time at both St. Francis Academy and Calvert Hall, where he also threw the shot put.

With the amount of upperclassmen Temple possesses on the line, it’s easy to expect a redshirt decision for King, who will have plenty of opportunity as soon as next season to rack up snaps.

Right Tackle –

#75, Luke Watson – 6’5/290, R-Jr
Wilmington, DE (St. Mark’s)

Watson headlines an uber-deep right tackle room and came into spring camp in the heat of the competition for the position.

However, after coming into camp as a slight frontrunner at the position, it feels as though Watson pulled away just that much more to make him the favorite to end up starting at right tackle come Week One.

The local product has never locked down a starting job before, but had one in hand before the 2024 season when he was knocked out with an injury that required surgery, ultimately leading to him missing the entire season.

#70, Zach Aamland – 6’7/300, R-Jr
South Brunswick, NJ (The Hun School) – Rutgers – Illinois

The 6-foot-7 behemoth, Aamland, spent the last three seasons bouncing around the Big Ten in search of snaps, which he was never able to find.

The North Jersey native played two seasons in Champaign with the Illinois Fighting Illini and never saw a snap. He’d make the move to Rutgers last season, though he only saw limited playing time for the Scarlet Knights.

With size undoubtedly on his side and good amounts of experience at the highest level of college football, it should come without much doubt that Aamland will have a foot in the door in offensive line competitions in 2027.

Expect Aamland to compete alongside Watson for the right tackle spot and spend time in rotational roles throughout the season.

#77, Ransom McDermott – 6’8/315, R-So
Noblesville, IN (Noblesville)

Just when you thought they couldn’t get bigger, Clayton Barnes and staff outdid themselves again — this time with 6-foot-8 Ransom McDermott.

McDermott, who is coming into his third year in the college ranks after spending his first two seasons at Louisville, also projects to be in the mix for the starting right tackle spot, though with a slimmer chance than the previous names.

McDermott will, however, likely see time in the offensive line rotation, as Keeler attempts to find ways to utilize big bodies up front.

#66, Aiden Zilker – 6’5/300, Fr
Frackville, PA (North Schuylkill)

Another freshman on the line, Zilker, comes in with a good amount of promise on the right side of the line.

However, especially with the current depth at the position, a redshirt seems inevitable, though Zilker’s future seems clear as a guy who will compete for a starting spot on the line in the near future.

#63, John Watkins – 6’5/300, Fr
Baltimore, MD (St. Francis Academy)

Watkins comes in on the same boat as Zilker. He’s a promising prospect with a bright future, but not much should be expected from him this season.

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