Golden: "He's Big Enough"

Undersized sophomore Marquise Liverpool was at the top of the depth chart at tailback as Temple started preseason practice on Sunday. Liverpool, who played wide receiver last year, answered the call when Coach Al Golden asked for new tailback candidates in the spring. This year, don't expect to see him anywhere else.

Struggling to find a running game in the spring, Coach Al Golden issued an open challenge to his team.

Marquise Liverpool, who played wide receiver last season, answered.

“When we were in the spring trying to find a tailback, I shouted to the team, ‘Can anybody here run the ball?’” Golden recalled recently. “And [Liverpool] said, ‘I can.’ We gave him the ball the next play and it’s been that way ever since.

“That’s the kind of kid he is. He was dead serious. He is a guy who has confidence, he is a guy who is self-assured and he is a guy who has toughness.”

Liverpool, entering his sophomore season, opened preseason camp atop the tailback depth chart in what should be a fascinating battle against true freshmen Eric Reynolds and Ahkeem Smith and redshirt freshman Joe Jones.

Asked what made him answer Golden on that spring day, Liverpool said he isn’t really sure.

“It’s just one of those things that came out,” Liverpool shrugged. “I wasn’t really thinking about it. I decided to take the challenge and run with it. I said it and I decided to have fun with it. I’m having fun so far.”

Liverpool caught eight passes as a freshman for 163 yards, a 20.4 yard average. He was a running back as a high school freshman at Don Bosco Prep in North Jersey before being switched to receiver, where he has played ever since – at least when he’s been on the gridiron.

Liverpool was the 23rd-ranked scholastic wide receiver in the country according to SuperPrep in 2003 and also a highly-regarded defensive back. He signed with Boston College, but then opted for baseball and signed a contract with the Seattle Mariners. He played in the minor leagues for three seasons before deciding to resume his football career.

“I came here to be a wide receiver, but I’m excited about the position change and I’m ready for the season,” Liverpool said. “I feel comfortable (at running back) now. I just have to come out and work hard every day, find out my strengths and weaknesses.”

Golden practically gushes when he talks about Liverpool. The coach has said he wants somebody to seize the running back position, and he is clearly enamored with his converted wide receiver.

“The thing he does best with the ball is he has excellent lateral mobility in the hole,” Golden assessed. “He’s one of those running backs who is always going forward, whether it’s hit and spin, hit and fall forward, hand on the ground and keep his balance. That’s just the kind of kid he is. He has real strong lower musculature, good power in his legs, and catches the ball out of the backfield.

“The thing Marquise has done well is this summer he has really trained himself. I don’t know how this thing is going to break out, but the kid has put himself in tremendous position with his work ethic and summer. I’m excited to see him play.”

The question about Liverpool might be his size and his ability to handle a heavy workload that he hasn’t been asked to carry in his career. He is listed at 5-11, 195 pounds, but is clearly a few inches shorter, which even the head coach admitted.

“What is he, 5-9, 5-10?” Golden asked. “He’s not 5-11, unless he’s in cleats. But he’s big enough.”

Asked to clarify his height, Liverpool just smiled.

“We’ll leave that to everybody’s imagination,” he said.

Clearly, though, Liverpool agrees with Golden. He’s big enough.

“I’ll take 20 carries or more,” Liverpool confirmed.