Mike Locksley, Maryland assistants talk shift in coaching responsibilities

Maryland football returns all but two position coaches from last season, a stat that isn’t lost on head coach Mike Locksley heading into a pivotal month of spring football.

“To bring back eight of the ten coaches and all three coordinators allows for us to continue to have that continuity in all three phases,” Locksley said during his preseason press conference on Tuesday.

Co-defensive coordinator Brian Williams now enters his sixth season with the program while Brian Braswell is in his fourth season as Maryland’s offensive line coach. Lance Thompson and James Thomas, meanwhile, enters their third seasons with the program as the inside and outside linebacker coach, while Thomas has taken over the special teams unit since Ron Zook stepped away from the program. Josh Gattis drew NFL interest over the offseason before returning for his second season as Maryland’s offensive coordinator, while Kevin Sumlin and Zac Spavital enter their second seasons with the program as the tight ends and safety coaches.

That doesn’t mean everything is the same, though, with a shakeup on the offensive side of the ball. With Gunter Brewer no longer the wide receiver coach, Gattis is set to take over the room while head coach Mike Locksley takes over the quarterback room, as previously reported.

“I’ll work there with our graduate assistant, Eric Najarian who now [has] become a graduate assistant as we’ve lost Kyle Edwards, who took up coaching full-time position down at the University of Richmond. I’ll be going back in the quarterback room with such a big decision to be made. I’m excited to get back then and have a position group to coach and call my own.”

With the upcoming QB battle ‘wide open’ according to Locksley, the coaching shakeup on offense gives Maryland’s head coach a hands-on approach for how to separate the competition with the staff tasked with replacing former Maryland star Taulia Tagovailoa, who was in attendance for Tuesday’s practice alongside Tarheeb Still.

“I haven’t seen jack,” Locksley said about the quarterbacks thus far. “I’ve seen the work all really hard in the offseason conditioning program. But as we know, that has nothing to do with playing quarterback. And so from a leadership standpoint, those guys have worked their tails off. They play a natural leadership position but this is where I’ll get to start throwing some opinions on what I’ve seen.”

“What’s different now is last year, I kind of stayed away from the wide receivers room and just coached the quarterbacks,” Gattis added. “We’ve got some great young graduate assistants that can along the way in Eric Najarian with the quarterbacks and Tim Morris also with our skill guys.”

Now, Gattis will lead a room led by Tai Felton and Kaden Prather with a host of underclassmen and third-year receivers looking to carve out roles for themselves in a competitive 2024 room.

“I think those two guys have the ability to be two of the top wide receivers in the country. We’ve got to continue to turn that potential into production,” Gattis said of his two veteran wideouts.

As for Damian Wroblewski, the move to College Park first started when he was in The Bahamas over spring break.

“Talked about it with my family, prayed on it. It made a lot of sense that the opportunity at hand, to be at this program, this great tradition was very exciting,” he added.

He joins the program after five seasons at James Madison and was initially the lone coach retained by the new coaching staff this offseason before bolting for College Park. While fans look to see how Wroblewski and Braswell split duties to rebuild the offensive line, Wroblewski pointed to the teamwork that the unit already commands as a reason why the move benefits the team.

“There’s no better group for teamwork than the offensive line and that epitomizes what the offensive line coaches,” Wroblewski added. “And out there in the profession, it’s not as uncommon as people think. We’re going to work hand-in-hand, we’re going to put in extra hours beforehand so that we’re on the same page and we’re organized and we’re going to give them a lot of energy. They’re going to get double the fun.”

Wroblewski explains what a successful spring looks like for his unit.

“Chase excellence. You want to chase excellence in all that you do. You want to chase excellence in the classroom, you want to chase excellence in your sleeping patterns, your study habits. Champions do more and so we’re looking for that eagerness. We want people that are going to seek excellence, not expect it to come to them.”

The lone change on the defensive side of the ball was the addition of Aazaar Abdul-Rahim, who was announced as the new co-defensive coordinator and cornerbacks coach early in the offseason after replacing Henry Baker at the position. Abdul-Rahim is also tasked with taking over coaching responsibilities at the nickel, but the chance for the D.C. native to return home was one that he always cherished after leaving Boston College.

“I was commuting up to Boston. It was a little bit of strain on my family with me just being a father at home, which is probably the most important job I have. Able to get back home and be in my son’s and daughter’s life and my wife, we don’t have to commute anymore so I’m extremely appreciative about that,” Abdul-Rahim added.

This marks Abdul-Rahim’s second stint with the program for a coach who grew up watching the home team.

“Just being home and from the area, you have so many great relationships here. It means a little bit more to myself. I’m a Maryland Terp fan. I grew up watching the Terps. Just to be a part of the program again is extremely special.”

Spring now gives Abdul-Rahim a chance to get comfortable with his new unit as Jalen Huskey and Lionell Whitaker serve as the lone upperclassmen in the 2024 cornerback room.

“The sky’s the limit. A lot of great players, a lot of untapped talent,” he added. “The defensive staff has done a great job of just evaluating players and guys are long, guys are fast, great short area quickness and body control. I think the biggest thing we’re going to have to decipher from is just the experience. Who really wants to compete? Who really wants to take the job and be the great defensive back in this area?”

What’s caught Abdul-Rahim’s eye since joining the program?

“I’ve been really impressed with the knowledge in the room. I don’t think anyone takes a backseat for anyone else. I really feel like this is the strongest defensive staff I’ve been around.”

Mike Locksley, Maryland assistants talk shift in coaching responsibilities

Ahmed Ghafir