Five minutes into the fourth quarter of Temple’s game at Round Rock last Friday night, Preston Thomas hadn’t made a large impact. The senior wide receiver had two catches for 12 yards, and the Wildcats trailed the Dragons 22-20.

Temple first-year head coach Chad President and first-year offensive coordinator Garrett Campfield recognized earlier in the evening that the fast, physical and sure-handed Thomas needed some positive reinforcement.

“Preston was kind of frustrated. We did a good job of telling him, ‘This is a 48-minute game. You’re going to make a big play for us at some point, so we need you to brush it off, move on and let’s go,’” said President, a former Temple star receiver.

Added Campfield: “We tell Preston all the time, ‘Your time’s coming.’ We had a conversation in the middle of the game: ‘We’re trying to get you the ball.’ He was getting frustrated, but I told him, ‘You’re going to make a play to change this game.’”