me in three classes, and I had A’s in them.”
With the successful completion and high
grades in the three summer courses, Ander-
son was able to rejoin the team.
“People just saw that I was eligible. What they
do not know is how crazy and time-consum-
ing my summer was. The summer is when
you chill and work out. I was in study hall
nonstop. In my room at night, I was studying
like it was life or death. It would have looked
crazy for me to be eligible and to then not be
eligible. So I had a lot of weight on my shoul-
ders but I was able to pull through.”
Anderson made the most of his second
chance. He remained eligible throughout his
senior year. He and P.J. Walker connected
like it was 2013 again. He finished the 2015
season with 70 catches for 939 yards and
seven touchdowns. His performance helped
the Temple Owls win the American Athletic
Conference East Division and garner a bowl
game for the first time in four years.
“That taught me that every time you
have the opportunity, to do something
positive, especially something that you
love, especially something with foot-
ball where it is a once in a lifetime op-
portunity. I did get a second opportunity.
I’d rather look back at
Robby Anderson training in Florida
in preparation for his opportunity with the
New York Jets.
something and say that I put forth my best effort
than look back at it with regrets and know that I
could have done more.”
Not only did his on the field performance help
Temple, but it also got the attention of a few NFL
scouts. He was invited to participate in the East-
West Shrine Game, where he had a good week of
practice. A few more teams became interested.
Then his performance during the Temple Pro Day
had all of the scouts talking. He ran a 4.34 40-yard
dash. He also tested well in the vertical jump (36
½ inches).
“My goal was to run a 4.38. I remember when I
met with the Colts during training camp and the
scout asked what I was going to run, and I said I
was going to run a 4.3, and he just laughed. Then
at the all-star game, I told the scout from the Bills
that I was going to run like a 4.3, probably close
to a 4.2 because I was going to be training. Going
into my redshirt year, when we ran our times, I
ran a 4.38, and that was before I learned the tech-
nique. I’ve been blessed with speed. Florida peo-
ple just have a different speed, and I am taller.”
“I was working down in Florida with my train-
er, and they were getting me right. I knew
I was going to run fast. Down there, I was
clocked at 4.19 seconds, 4.2 seconds
and 4.3 seconds. The slowest time
that I was clocked at since I was
down here was a 4.34, which
was the time I ran at the Pro
Day. I was not too surprised.
My coach told me that my
first run was a 4.4, but they
did that to make me mad.
My second time I ran faster.
It felt really good because I
knew that had boosted my
“Even when I do well, I still feel like I
have something to prove.”
12
Fall 2016
coachandplayer.com
photograph by Shameka Seabrook