Terrez Worthy’s return bolsters Owls’ backfield

By Jaison Nieves

OwlScoop.com Staff Reporter

With a new head coach taking over any college football program heading into 2025, players are bound to test the waters of the transfer portal.

Terrez Worthy was one of those players.

Worthy was one of Temple’s few playmakers in an offense that mostly struggled last season. After coming in from the JUCO level at Lackawanna College where he was the NJCAA’s leading rusher, the 5-foot-11 running back saw an uptick in carries in week four and finished the season with 425 yards and four touchdowns while averaging 5.4 yards per carry. 

The rising senior’s breakout speed – he rattled off a 35-yard run at UConn and a 75-yard touchdown at Tulane – made him an interesting target when he announced he would be entering the transfer portal in December, but it only took a couple of calls from new Temple head coach K.C. Keeler for the Salisbury, Maryland native to reconsider and return to Temple.

“Terrez is electric,” Keeler said after Monday’s preseason practice. “He just plays at a different speed. He’s a guy that when we got here, we saw his tape and knew his story. [Head coach Mark] Duda at Lackawanna and I have been friends for 30 years or so, so we convinced [Worthy] to stay and told him this would be the best place for you.”

Now Worthy has his sights set on improving in a running back room that now includes Sam Houston State transfer Jay Ducker, Louisiana-Monroe transfer Hunter Smith and freshman Keveun Mason, along withrising juniorJoquez Smith, and he still wants to make an impact on special teams.

It’s been an uphill battle for Worthy since returning to the Owls as he battled through an upper-body injury that sidelined him for spring ball. During that time, the senior worked to make sure his body was where it needed to be while watching his teammates.

“I was just focusing on getting my body back properly,” said Worthy, “getting my numbers back where they needed to be in the weight room and on the field. We do a lot of strength testing, so I wanted to get everything back to where I’m comfortable before I got back on the field and in pads.”

Worthy has been everything Keeler has expected since returning to the field, but the veteran head coach and running backs coach Andrew Pierce have been working with Worthy to ensure he develops the skill set to be an every-down back. 

Throughout fall camp, Worthy has been utilized in a variety of ways in offensive coordinator Tyler Walker’s scheme. Whether it’s using him in motion, quick pitches or short throws to the sideline, Worthy has been able to display his versatility as a player.

“You can do so many things with him,” Keeler said. “He’s a guy you can put out as a fifth wide receiver if you have to. The thing that he’s working on is learning to (pass) protect, but he’s willing. He’s just working on some techniques and those kinds of things. You like your guys to be kind of more everyday backs so you don’t have to play so much situational, and that’s what we are really pushing Terrez to be.”

In its fourth-consecutive 3-9 season, Temple finished 126th out of 133 FBS programs in rushing yards per game at 92.8 and averaged a paltry 2.8 yards per carry as a team, the fourth-worst mark in FBS. 

In other words, Worthy’s return from the portal and his healthy return to the field this month are a big deal to a new staff and group of players who want to turn those numbers around. 

“[Walker] loves electric players and I believe that I am one of those types of players,” Worthy said. “So just getting into the playback and understanding our scheme to my fullest potential has been the priority. Just doing what I can to maximize the team.”