INDIANAPOLIS–Inside linebacker Jordan Magee went through a lot at Temple. He played for multiple head coaches and didn’t experience much team success during his time at the school, but he’s put himself in a position to make it to the next level after a stellar college career. Magee racked up 235 tackles, including 31 tackles for loss and eight sacks in four seasons. Speaking at the NFL Scouting Combine Wednesday, Magee said that one person who has influenced his career is current Steelers LB Chapelle Russell, who was a senior when Magee redshirted as a freshman.
“When I came in, being a freshman is hard. You’re trying to adapt to things, but Shaun [Bradley] and Chapelle grabbed me by the hand and told me, ‘This is the ropes, this is how you do things.’ They gave me a lot of information based on football and life in general and carrying that single digit (uniform number). I’ve seen them go to work every day and give that 110% effort all the time. It’s great to see that passed down to me.”
Bradley is a core special teamer for the Eagles, who also was a senior on that Temple team, which went 8-5. It was the only season Magee was a member of the team when Temple had a winning record. Russell spent 2022 on Pittsburgh’s practice squad and was on IR for the 2023 season after suffering an injury in the preseason. At Temple, single-digit numbers are awarded to the toughest players on the team, a tradition that began under former head coach Al Golden in 2009. Magee was awarded No. 6 in 2022.
“It was just a blessing to be looked at by your peers as one of the highest honors in Temple football. It’s a blessing,” he said. “I come every day giving 100% effort. I kind of knew it was going to happen. I just didn’t know when.”
Magee was recruited to Temple by Geoff Collins, who left to take the Georgia Tech job. He reaffirmed his recruitment when Manny Diaz was hired, but Diaz left after two weeks to go to Miami. He stayed on after Rod Carey’s hiring and then through Stan Drayton’s hiring over his last two years. It’s rare for a player to stay at the same school for all four years, especially with the struggles Temple has had, but Magee said the brotherhood of his teammates made him want to stay and not explore the transfer portal.
“They’re my brothers, man. It’s a business at the end of the day. You’re going to have coaches leave, but at the end of the day, your brothers are still going to be there,” he said. “That’s how we carry ourselves at Temple. It’s a brotherhood culture.”
Pittsburgh will likely have interest at inside linebacker in the draft, and the Steelers have had formal meetings with multiple inside linebacker prospects, including Texas A&M’s Edgerrin Cooper. Magee said he hasn’t met with Pittsburgh yet but thinks he might meet with the team informally tonight or Thursday night. He also said one player he models his game after is former Steelers safety Troy Polamalu.
If Pittsburgh doesn’t address the position early in the draft, Magee could be an option on Day 3 or as a priority undrafted free agent. He tore his bicep in his second-to-last game last season, but he was cleared medically to do everything at the Combine except the bench press. He’s a high-character individual who also played special teams every season he was at Temple, which adds some value and is especially something that will make him intriguing to the Steelers. We’ll see how Magee tests this week, but given his connection to Russell and his collegiate performance, he’s a name to watch throughout the draft process.
