As offensive line coach Justin Frye looked at his group during football training camp day four, he noticed a stark contrast between this year’s line and last year’s, after losing four out of five starters.

With fifth-year senior right tackle Martin Wallace being the only holdover from last year’s starting line, the Owls will depend on a younger core up front come September. Despite the youth, Frye sees an ambitious group when looking at this year’s offensive line.

“I look at these young guys and they just seem to always want more,” Frye said. “They’ll do a drill and keep going at it over and over again, until finally their eyes light up and you can tell when it works.”

Helping Wallace lead this year’s young line will be redshirt-junior center Sean Boyle, who watched the previous two seasons unfold from the sidelines while his brother Pat flourished at left tackle.

Hampered by shoulder surgeries in each of the last two summers, Boyle has not played in a collegiate game since the fall of 2009.

“I’m excited to be out on the field and play with the guys again,” Boyle said. “Being out of the game for two years, I always had to sit and watch. Now, just being on the field with these guys again is great.”

“I’m playing the best football I’ve played in a while,” Boyle added. “I’m healthy and I feel strong again. There’s nowhere to go but up for me at this point.”

While Boyle continues to settle into his new role as the starting center, Wallace is beginning to embrace his role as a leader of the Temple offense.

A former transfer from the now-defunct Northeastern football program, Wallace has solidified his role as a consistent force over at right tackle.

“I want to have one of the best seasons I’ve ever had both individually and as a team,” Wallace said. “It goes hand in hand. I have to keep the same tough mentality throughout and I have to help lead these guys to that goal.”

In the long grind that is a collegiate football season, according to Wallace, toughness will be the key to success on a team that will have to rebuild its offensive line after last year.

“We have to be Temple tough,” Wallace said. “We have to keep grinding and working hard all year long. We do that, and we’ll be successful as a group.”

-Drew Parent