Matt Rhule does not wear this owl mask in real life, but you wouldn’t know that without this helpful caption. (AP)

By Holly Anderson

Crucial information for the hordes of you headed to Temple’s spring game this Saturday:

• Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. ET.

• “Use of video capable cell phones” is prohibited, for any Fordham Rams spies hoping to gain useful intelligence on Temple’s strategies for the upcoming season.

• “Footballs” also appear on the list of items banned from Saturday’s scrimmage. We assume this prohibition extends only to footballs brought in by fans, not in use on the field, but just in case, any wayward punted, passed or kicked ball that finds its way into a bleacher seat will be promptly escorted from the premises.

• We make fun, but can you imagine the multiball havoc that could be wrought by tossing stray footballs into a live play? All spring games should have wacky arena rules because it’s not like they’re good for much else.

• Every time we write about Temple football we’re going to use this introductory photo of Matt Rhule, because we worked really hard on it, so nobody even try to talk us out of it.

Matt Rhule does not wear this owl mask in real life, but you wouldn’t know that without this helpful caption. (AP)

We’re going to blurb an interview from our own website here, but please understand we have really good reasons for doing so: First, there’s a lot to unpack in this paragraph from Pete Thamel’s talk with newly installed Temple skipper Matt Rhule:

SI: How far has the program come since you first arrived in the 2006 season?

MR: I remember my first spring practice out on the field. I had just come from a [Division] I-AA school, and I remember saying to myself, ‘Oh my goodness.’ From the work ethic to the talent level to the expectation level and mindset. We’d practice and people would walk by and yell how bad we were and throw rocks at us. It’s to the point now where the community and people around here have embraced us. I would say everything from top to bottom was uprooted. Al used to refer to it as a revolution. I actually had a picture of Che Guevara on my screensaver for a couple years. You were literally fighting a revolution in the mind of a team and changing their mindset saying, ‘We will win.’

Second, it means we get to reuse this photo of him in an owl mask. We knew you’d understand. (Also, read on to find out that Rhule’s wife is a former Chili’s waitress who’s now a dietician. We want to hear her stories.)

DeWayne Walker set the coaching carousel spinning once more with his late departure from New Mexico State. (AP)

Tommy Tuberville’s sitting by the phone* and Jimmy Sexton’s got that particular sparkle in his eye. It can mean only one thing: The coach firin’ season is upon us once more. We’ll be tracking the carousel of progress, right here, for as long as it takes to stop spinning. Raise a glass to times past, won’t you? * Well, not anymore, but never tell us we don’t have the gift of very specific prophecy through throwaway jokes.

New Mexico State [updated 02.01.2013]

• Who’s out: DeWayne Walker, who jumps to the NFL with less than two weeks remaining between now and Signing Day. And not even for a coordinating gig: Walker will coach defensive backs for the Jacksonville Jaguars. Walker released the following statement through the athletic department: “I really appreciate the opportunity that Dr. Boston and New Mexico State gave me to be a Division I head football coach. Unfortunately, I did not get the program as far as I would have liked from a wins and losses standpoint. But, we do have a better locker room, better kids and a better foundation for the program moving forward. There are a lot of people that I want to thank for their support and will be reaching out to those individuals in the coming days. They have helped me in moving the program forward. I am excited about starting a new chapter in my coaching career, as is my family. I wish New Mexico State great success in the future and wish everyone the best. Go Aggies!” • Who’s in: Doug Martin — the one who played at Kentucky, not the one who played at Boise State. Although if Martin The Younger is really so opposed to his excellent nickname, we’re gonna refer to Martin The Elder as coach Muscle Hamster instead. It’s been a whirlwind courtship for Martin and the Aggies: He was announced as offensive coordinator on January 17, temporarily promoted to interim head coach on January 24 and will be officially announced as DeWayne Walker’s successor on Monday, February 4. Martin’s previous head coaching experience consists of a seven-year stint at Kent State, from 2004-2010. Read More…

Florida incoming transfer Darious Cummings is going by “Bear” Cummings. What do you guys want to be called?

— Jason Lieser (@PBPjasonlieser) January 15, 2013

• How would he feel about “Bearious” for more formal occasions? If we’re all supposed to be taking after forest creatures for a fresh new look for spring 2013, we would like to be referred to from here on as “Killer Otter.” Thank you for your attention to this matter.

• And speaking of spring. Army’s spring game, which graced our neck of the woods at Fort Benning last year, continues its freshly-established traveling tradition with a March 8 scrimmage set to take place at Fort Hood, Texas.

• The Coliseum just needs a place to crash for a few days, until it gets things figured out. The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Commission is behind in its rent, per the L.A. Times, but once it gets its free-range vegan water bottle business up and running things are really going to turn around. It’s not a pyramid scheme. It’s not!

• That’s a helluva windbreak. Texas Tech approves plans for a “freestanding high-definition video board,” theoretically to be installed and operational in time for the 2013 season.

Read More…