Golden's persistence helped Owls land Caputo

Golden's persistence helped Owls land Caputo

Kenny Walter
OwlScoop.com Staff Writer

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Al Golden is making a name for himself as an aggressive recruiter. Temple's head coach once again sought out a local player and was able to gain a verbal commitment.

This time, Golden landed 6-foot-4, 290-pound offensive guard Steve Caputo from Unionville High School. Caputo also had offers from Buffalo, Delaware and Syracuse.

"[Temple] recruited me harder than anyone else," Caputo told OwlScoop.com. "It was like every day I would come home and have letters from Al Golden. They showed me they really wanted me. And in the end, that helped with my decision."

Caputo, who originally was being looked at by programs like West Virginia, Penn State and Pittsburgh, may have scared some of the bigger names away with his history of knee injuries.

Caputo first tore his anterior cruciate ligament playing junior varsity basketball in 10th grade. After rehabilitating the injury, he was cleared to play his junior football season. But later that year, Caputo tore his ACL again.

"I may have rushed it," Caputo said. "During the rehab I really didn't lift legs. I didn't strengthen the knee. That, and I gained a lot of weight after my first surgery. I didn't realize the pressure I was putting on the knee with the weight I gained."

Caputo approached the second rehab with a completely different attitude.

"I lift legs a lot now," Caputo said. "I squat, dead-lift, clean and eat better. I shed some weight, which allows me to be more explosive. My knee definitely feels stronger then it has ever been."

Caputo has an unusual amount of explosion and quickness for an interior lineman. His combination of speed and strength make him a viable prospect for the Owls.

"I feel that I am real explosive," Caputo said. "My feet are quick, which makes it hard for defensive lineman to get past me. I still need to work on getting lower position before I get to Temple. I am not always low enough. I need to make it so I don't have to think about getting low all the time. I need to get to the point where I am just naturally low."

Caputo is coming off a 10-1 campaign at Unionville and will look to bring the same winning attitude to a Temple offense that will return 10 starters from its 4-8 2007 season.

Caputo, who watched the Owls play against Buffalo and Penn State this past season, has seen the improvement of the team and is looking forward to being a part of it.

"Al Golden and the rest of the coaches remind me of my high school coaches," Caputo said. "I really like what they are doing there. When my coach took over, we were 0-10. My freshman year we were 5-5, and we have won three straight (division) titles since then."



OwlScoop.com staff writer Kenny Walter can be reached at kenneth.walter@temple.edu.