Temple trying to get noticed

05.02.2008

He's listed at 6-foot-4, 251, and Browns' fourth-round draft choice Martin Rucker may even be bigger than advertised.

At least part of the Browns' attraction to undrafted rookie signee Darnell Terrell is that Terrell, at 6-foot-1, 203, might blossom into the big cornerback the team covets.

If you're keeping score at home - or at the University of Missouri - that's a big Tiger tight end and a big Tiger cornerback. As for the other former Missouri player at this weekend's Browns' rookie minicamp, running back Tony Temple, size is not the attraction.

Temple is tiny, by NFL standards anyway. He's listed at 5-foot-9, and he knows this weekend he has to find a way to stand out in a crowd of more than 70 players.

Temple is one of 54 tryout players participating in this camp and one of five at the running back position. Being one of many instead of being The Guy, as he was when he rushed for more than 1,000 yards in each of his last two seasons at Missouri, is an unfamiliar position, but it's one he needs to make the best of.

"I'm here to become a better football player," Temple said. "I want to learn, make sure I don't make any mental mistakes. Just see where I can take it."

The last time Temple was on a football field, he set a Cotton Bowl record with 281 rushing yards in Missouri's win over Arkansas. He didn't think it would be his last time in a Missouri uniform, but later in January he lost an NCAA appeal to regain a year of eligibility.

Temple played in just one game as a much-ballyhooed true freshman before suffering an ankle injury. He thought the NCAA would grant him an extra year, but he instead was a late entrant to the NFL Draft pool.

"(Losing the appeal) kind of hurt, but that's how things go," Temple said. "You take the good with the bad. I have to take advantage of my next opportunity. I can't worry about the past.

"Today was the first time I wore a helmet in a long time, but it's a good feeling."

Temple said his first impressions of Cleveland and the Browns are "great," and he said having two college teammates in camp has made a whirlwind 24 hours easier.

"With those guys (Rucker and Terrell) here, I think it helps us all adjust," Temple said. "I just look at this like a great opportunity. The Browns are coming up in the NFL. I'm trying to catch on and make the best of it."