For the second time during spring ball, Maryland football hit the road for an open practice, but this time it provided a homecoming for head coach Mike Locksley on a day that ended with him being honored at his former high school.
Councilmember Trayon White honored head coach Mike Locksley following practice, while Ballou High School announced the weight room will be renamed the ‘Michael A. Locksley Training Center’.
Locksley talked about the importance and impact of practicing at Ballou and the developments through spring ball:
On why it was important for Maryland to practice at Ballou High School
“As a kid growing up here and having a chance to see what the late John Thompson did at Georgetown and the impact he had in this community winning the national championship there in I think ‘82. I was a young kid at that time and I just remember the presence of coach Thompson throughout the city and I got to know coach Thompson during the latter years when I got into coaching and working on the radio, obviously him and Doc Walker, I got to know him over the years and you know, to be able to bring the Terp brand to my high school is kind of surreal. I don’t think very many times Maryland stepped through the doors here when I was in high school or within the city limits. For us to bring the flagship state, University of Maryland here to my hometown, to my side of the city, the south side of the city, which doesn’t get a lot of things like this, it’s a win-win because it gives our players an opportunity to give back to the community that we’re trying to get to come support us.”
On why it was important to practice in the community this spring
“We’ve done this before here, but to me it’s about selling the brand of Maryland football, what we’ve been able to accomplish the last three years here, going to three bowls, winning the bowl games. For us to take the next step is not just about our football. It was about our fan base, our supporters. In this landscape where we’re in now to compete for championships it’s not just on me to get the job done. It’s on the community. Whether it’s my community here, buying tickets and making The Shell a tough place to play or the supporters we have that want to see Maryland win a national championship here. The opportunity is now and to me, I wanted to take the brand and just really put it on throughout this area and this region to just let them know thank you.”
On Leon Haughton at TE
“He was a big receiver for us that we saw a year ago, thought had the ability to make that transition. Today, [I] will be interested to see how he took a step forward [at] a new position. He’s athletic enough. He’s got talent. That tight end position is one that’s really been successful in this system and he’s the guy that we think can help us there.”
On what the spring serves for the underclassmen, freshmen
“I think it’s been a crash course for the young guys. This is the toughest time of the year to come into the program because you come in during our winter conditioning, which is basically the fire that kind of forges the iron. And so you come in and it’s almost like a shock to the system with like a boot camp mentality. But I’ve loved the way that these guys have taken on the coaching. They’re putting in the extra time. These guys come from big time high school programs where they understand how you prepare. I’ve been pleased with the way all the young guys that are out there, mid-year grads that are participating I’m pretty happy with the way they picked up things.”
On what Locksley likes about the first part of spring ball
“It’s been really competitive. Today, it was one of those days I don’t think we played as well. We had one of our better first scrimmages a week ago with the offense, defense and special teams all doing good things. I thought today defensively, they dominated throughout the different segments of the scrimmage. There [are] some things I’m sure the offense did well that we’ll get a chance to see on tape. But all in all, it was a good day. We got out here with minimum injuries. I hope and we got one more week to finish off spring and we’ll be in The Shell for the annual red-white game next week.”
On being back in the QB room
“It reenergizes me to have that room to be with the players. When you’re a head coach, sometimes you’re the guy that they always, I deal with all the stuff. Well, when you develop the relationship that that room gives you, it does kind of reinvigorate me. It gives me the bird’s eye view I need to have as to how they prepare. And then to see the way they take it from the meeting room to the field room is we’ve had pretty good competition. So excited about being back.”
On being recognized by Ward 8 Councilmember Trayon White after practice
“I’m a DC kid and I’m the fabric and the DNA of what this city is all about, runs all through the veins of Mike Locksley. To be honored with a proclamation from Trayon White here, who’s the ward eight councilman that represents the area that I spent half of my childhood. I was one of those guys that was on both sides of the bridge with Southwest being what I call home and then moving over to this side for high school. It’s great to be recognized. It’s great to be recognized for something other than just the football piece. It’s about making a difference in the lives of the community that I serve.”
On recruiting the local talent to Maryland
“There’s no doubt and we all know it. When you look at the last couple of draft classes, I think there’s been 26 guys drafted just from this area alone. So I’ve never backed away from the fact that for Maryland to compete for championships, starts with keeping the top players within that two-hour drive of our campus right here at home. And it’s not just on me to do it anymore. I can’t stress it enough. I mean, as the head coach, we put the sweat, equity and we’re out doing the work. I can’t buy the tickets to sell out the stadium. I can’t encourage those supporters that have the means to give to the One Maryland collective to allow us to be competitive. A national championship was won in this area by the late John Thompson in basketball. And I’m very motivated to do the same thing for Maryland football.”
On the potential atmosphere for Maryland football with continued success
“There’s no doubt with UVA being a great rivalry for the years that we spent in the ACC conference, it was a great environment, but it’s one that we want to consistently have and to win championships, to start with having that championship environment, putting a championship-caliber team that does things the right way on the field and we’re taking the steps necessary to be that type of team.”
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