Bill Cosby carries the PR ball for Temple
Bill Cosby, comedian, actor and former Temple football player, can sum up in one word what he remembers about his days as an Owls running back.
âFumbling,â Cosby said.
That may have been the case for his two-year career at Temple. But Cosby is not dropping the ball for Temple these days. In fact, he has been carrying it.
Cosby has given the Owls a clear advantage over UCLA in the area of former-player-turned-Hollywood-personality with the EagleBank Bowl looming Dec. 29 in Washington.
Attempts to reach Cosbyâs closest UCLA counterpart, Mark Harmon, actor and former Bruins quarterback, were unsuccessful.
That leaves Cosby free to run the public relations field. He was a Temple running back in 1961 and 1962 and remained a high-profile supporter of the universityâs athletics. And he has been reveling in the Owlsâ newfound success in football, making the rounds with the media this week, even mapping out some travel itinerary items for the Bruins.
Cosby said he has watched Big Ten teams lose in the Rose Bowl, noting âthose poor kids from Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, come to Southern California, and they load them up on steak. Then they take them to Hollywood and Vine and show them the stars. Then they take them to Disneyland to meet Mickey Mouse, Snow White, Dopey and Goofy, and then they lose.â
Cosby said the snowshoe is on the other foot.
âUCLA hasnât come this far east of the Mississippi River in 30 years,â he said. âWe got them now.â
As for the weekâs activities, Cosby said, âWe are going to reenact George Washington crossing the Delaware by putting the whole UCLA team in open boats. That will take the place of the Disneyland visit. By the time thatâs done, they will have just enough time to get to the stadium and we will win.â
Cosby has performed this shtick the past few days, taking his Temple allegiance to a new level in a conference call with reporters Thursday. Harmon, meanwhile, comes to a few games, and Bruins Coach Rick Neuheisel said, âI have talked to him occasionally.â
The two celebrities are arguably near-equals. Cosby has had television success (âThe Cosby Showâ) and movie duds (âGhost Dadâ). Harmon has had television success (âNCISâ) and movie duds (âBeyond the Poseidon Adventureâ).
Harmon was a starting quarterback at UCLA for two seasons, finishing with 976 yards rushing and 791 passing in his career. Temple sports information department officials were unable to unearth any stats for Cosby -- he did catch a touchdown pass -- and when Owls Coach Al Golden was asked if there was any game film of Cosby in the archives he said, âI donât know. It may be silent movies.â
But Cosby has been leading the Owlsâ media charge, while the last comment about UCLA football from a celebrity came from Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Speaking at his daughterâs USC commencement ceremonies last year, Schwarzenegger mentioned his daughter talked about the Victory Bell.
He said: âShe sat me down and she told me it weighs 295 pounds and how the winner of the annual football game between USC and UCLA takes this bell and gets to paint it in the school colors. And I stopped her in the middle of talking, I said, âWait a minute, Katherine, back up a little bit. UCLA has a football team?â â
In the face of Cosbyâs onslaught, UCLAâs counterpunch was left up to linebacker Reggie Carter, who, when told of Cosbyâs intended boat ride, said, âHe can call us and tell us about it. All I want to do is play football and maybe have a few cold Gatorades with Obama.â
But Carter did say, âItâs a pleasure and an honor to be on Bill Cosbyâs mind.â
Temple players responded the same, only in different context. Cosby admitted there was a time he wanted Temple to drop to the Division I-AA level in football. The reason was obvious, even to the Owls.
âWhen I first got here, locals were throwing rocks at us,â senior tight end Steve Maneri said. âWe were the laughingstock of college football.â
Temple, with a 9-3 record heading into the bowl game, has its first winning season since 1990. The Owls were 40-163 in the 18 years in between. That has changed under Golden, though this is only the Owlsâ third bowl game in the programâs 112-year history.
âI thought we should drop down and play schools like Colgate,â Cosby said. âThen comes this wonderful man,â he said, referring to Golden. âIâve seen a change in the Temple fan. At games, weâd need two yards for a touchdown and it would be, âOh, boy, weâre going to fumble right now.â And [Murphyâs Law] would be out there dancing and, sure enough, Murphy would fumble. Murphy left us two years ago, I hope for good.â
Cosby remained.
âHe has talked with us a couple times and itâs very motivational, very supportive,â defensive back Dominique Harris said.
And the support Cosby can offer UCLA?
âWeâre bringing reality to the California people coming to our East Coast, where they can sit in the stand at 26 degrees at RFKâ Stadium, Cosby said. âThe little avocado people can go to Benâs Chili Bowl to warm up.â
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