An open letter from coach Wayne Hardin

By Mike Gibson
From all reports near Annapolis today, there will apparently be no corps of Navy Midshipmen in attendance for the Navy at Temple game on Friday, Aug. 31 as part of stricter policies set in force by the new Academy Superintendent.
As a friend of mine said today, coach Wayne Hardin's job just got a whole lot tougher.
Hardin, the former Navy and Temple coach, "guaranteed" a crowd of 66,000 for the Temple home opener, which was originally scheduled for Thursday night, Aug. 30.
Eagles' exec Joe Banner "torpedoed" that guarantee when he reneged on a written deal between the NFL club and Temple University that would have given the Owls the more advantageous date. The Eagles hijacked that date for a meaningless exhibition game with the Jets that will feature all backups.
Now Navy's administration has laid a mine field in front of coach Hardin by saying it won't pay for the corps to be moved to Philadelphia.
Ugh.
The news could not be worse.
Will Hardin get his 66,000?
I don't think so, but I'm not about to machine gun him after being torpedoed and mined. Hell, I would have gone out on that incredibly fragile branch with Hardin and guaranteed 66K myself if the game was on Thursday.
Thursday was the perfect night.
Friday and Saturday were bad and horrible second and third choices. Bad, because Friday is opening night of high school football in these parts. Horrible, because there are some ghost towns in Arizona that will have more people than Philadelphia on the Saturday afternoon of Labor Day weekend.
If Temple is going to approach 66,000 for this game, it will have to be with Temple people who don't have enough money or inclination to get to the shore.
Temple people who don't like the feeling of sand between their toes or have run out of suntan oil.
Temple people who just want to do their part to make Temple look good.
Real good.
Nothing would make Temple look better in the Philadelphia media than big, rabid Temple crowd approaching 60K.
So I implore you, if you ever cared about Temple University or attended Temple University, please make a special effort to get to the game.
Even if you hate football, please go. You get two shots at a free car.
If you are a student, please go. You get a shot at free tuition.
What follows in bold is an open letter from coach Hardin in boldface:

WELCOME, JOIN THE 66,000

This is an open letter to all of the �TEMPLE FAMILY,� which includes 190,000 alumni, 34,000 students, a faculty and administration of 9,000, and all the workers and people that support Temple.

We are a diverse group that is divided and splintered into various subgroups, such as the Varsi T, Owl Club, The Team, Football Inner Circle, Athletic Advisory Council, Presidents Advisory Council, Alumni Associations in each School or College, etc. Obviously, there are reasons for this, but we are all on the same team and have the same purpose to enjoy camaraderie and help Temple University. The Team, players that played for me over 13 years, have committed to the challenge of putting 66,000 people into the Linc for the opening game next fall with Navy. We need all the support from the Temple family that we can get in order to make this �MISSION POSSIBLE.� Let�s all band together as one unit and prove that Temple can support itself, by putting 66,000 into the stands for the opening game for 2007.

TEED UP

We have a new President, Ann Weaver Hart, a new coach, Al Golden, a new conference, Mid-American Conference, (MAC). Al has said that they will be bowl eligible next year. The future looks bright. There are many avenues for a successful school to have a winning football team, one of them is a sold out stadium, thus the reason for this effort.

DETAILS

Pre Game: Honorary Captains at Coin Toss: Navy- Roger Staubach, Joe Bellino, Bob Reifsynder; Temple: Joe Klecko, Steve Joachim, Skip Singletary
Francesca dePasquale, 17, playing the National Anthem on the Violin
Half Time: Timmy Kelly, 14, singing God Bless America
PRIZES

Drawing for a one year lease of a Chevrolet or a Nissan donated by
Brian Broomell, Classic Auto Group in Morristown, NJ
Drawing for a one year lease of a Subaru donated by
Dan Polett, Wilkie Subaru in Philadelphia, PA
Free semester�s tuition for current Temple students
Bonus

Any paid Temple-Navy ticket holder is entitled to purchase the same number of Temple-Penn State tickets.
For every five tickets you sell for the Navy game, you get one free ticket.
ALSO ON GAME DAY FROM NOON to 4 PM for "THE TEAM'S" USUAL YEARLY GET TOGETHER IS AT McFADDEN'S WHICH IS ADJACENT TO THE STADIUM. OUR APPRECIATION AWARD WILL BE AWARDED AND ALL THE PLAYERS THAT PLAYED FOR ME AT THE NAVAL ACADEMY ARE INVITED. THE LUNCHEON WILL BE FREE PROVIDED BY BILL BRADSHAW FOR BOTH SCHOOLS EFFORTS IN PUTTING 66,000 INTO THE STANDS. IT WILL BE GREAT FOR BOTH TEAMS TO MIX AND MINGLE. IF YOU SEE PEOPLE THAT YOU DON'T KNOW, JUST INTRODUCE YOURSELF, AND I AM SURE THAT YOU WILL HAVE JUST MADE A NEW FRIEND.

Together we can be a force. See you at the game,
Coach Wayne Hardin