Categories: Football

Mike Locksley on spring ball, QB battle, Brian Ferentz hire, run game development

Dante Trader Jr Maryland football courtesy of @Terpsfootball

Maryland football wrapped up spring ball on Saturday as the White Team dominated the Red Team, 34-3, inside SECU Stadium. Head coach Mike Locksley met with the media and talked about the ongoing quarterback battle, progression of two underclassmen, the development of the run game and more.

Mike Locksley’s opening statement

“I appreciate the people that came out today and supported us through the weather. We made the most of it. It was a productive spring. The spring game is the culmination of the work we put in the past 14 practices and I liked the way that it ended. Most importantly for us, it was a healthy team. We didn’t have any major injuries this spring for guys that were counting on it, that’s big. I saw some good things today. I think we got about 108 total plays and to me that’s some good work for a spring game. It was about running, blocking, tackling, catching and throwing the football, the fundamentals. [We] didn’t try to game plan and I think what you saw is what has happened all spring. I see a defensive side of the ball that has created a lot of depth. You look at what we did on defense a year ago, we took some steps forward and I see us now when you look at the two different defenses today, they both kind of played about the same. That’s a testament to the work that Brian Williams and coach Aazaar [Abdul-Rahim] and all those guys on that side of the ball — Lance Thompson, Zac [Spavital] and [James Thomas] — have done. And then on offense, I think you saw we’ve got some guys on the offensive side of the ball. Young running back who was really bright all spring, Nolan Ray. Colby McDonald, who’s been really consistent and Roman Hemby who we saw in a limited capacity today but Roman really had a great spring working on some of the things that we needed to see for him to take the next step. Our players will now get some well earned time off, get away. We’ll have our end of the year meetings here in the next couple of weeks and they hit final exams and they go into their discretionary period where they’ll rest, get their bodies healthy to be ready back here in June to start our summer preparation heading into the season.”

On DJ Glaze, Tarheeb Still getting drafted

“DJ Glaze being drafted [Friday] and Tarheeb Still going today. I can’t say enough about those two types of guys, man. They are what the Maryland football brand has become. Two guys that weren’t probably five stars but through the evaluation process, you saw a guy [in] Tarheeb who in high school was a talented receiver, had the skill set and then transferred over. Has played just about every, from the time he got off that yellow school bus he’s been out there playing for us and has earned an opportunity to play at the next level. DJ, got high school injuries, maybe why some people backed off of him. We believed in what we saw out of him and to see a guy that was a low three-star evaluation, I guess some of those people you guys work for, but gets drafted in the third round and I think it’s a testament to the job that our coaches like Brian Braswell has done in their development. So want to congratulate both those guys and hopefully we hear a few more names here throughout the rest of the day as the draft winds now.”

On the state of the quarterback battle coming out of spring

“What we’ve tried to do is we’ve created some competitive situations. Even today, with the score being lopsided, to see us try to continue to work the two-minute drive. We continue to put them in situational football situations to see how they respond and how they are able to perform. We’re a long ways away from naming a starter. As you can see, the competition is, it’s hard to tell. They’re all talented. They all have made some plays. They all made some mistakes but what I’ve tried to get them back in that room is them understanding every play won’t be a touchdown. And we always talk about the guy that wins the job has to have the mind of a coach, but the skill set of a player and that’s what it ultimately comes down to because as a coach, there’s down and distance situations, there’s placement of the ball in the field situations. There’s turnovers, how you react after a turnover, and I want to see those guys play quarterback. To me playing quarterback is understand the big picture, when to attack, be risk adverse and I saw some guys take steps today. All of those guys that played today took some steps forward. We’ll get to watch the film and really evaluate it. We’ll progress this competition through the summer.”

On how Billy Edwards’ experience helps him

“Just because he’s played in games, his toolbox has a few more tools than maybe some of the other guys. MJ has played some ball too so I think if you look at the toolboxes of some of the competitors, Billy and MJ, obviously the game experience, it’s invaluable. I’m just going to tell you people we gotta get used to you’re gonna have to fail a little bit and you’re gonna make mistakes and guys not gonna make plays and I always say man, the lesson of failing is get the lesson. And every time when these quarterbacks performs and they don’t perform at the level they expect, we got to take the lesson and then you build your toolbox up so both those guys have experience in games. Cam has played in a game or two and that maybe gives him a little advantage, but a guy like MJ is just learning this system and so what you see today isn’t necessarily what the finished product should look like come August as we compete.”

On Isaac Bunyun moving from DL to OL

“I think the big thing is Isaac is a guy that has contributed. He came here as a walk-on. Everything he’s gotten, he’s earned. He started on the defensive side of the ball. I think Isaac Bunyan has a chance to play at the next level. He’s one of those great stories you’ll read about. And I think having done this a long time, been through a lot of NFL Draft seeing guys get drafted, in my opinion, Isaac gives himself a chance to play at the next level as an offensive lineman. This isn’t complete yet. We’ve moved him over this spring to kind of help us get through it. We’ll evaluate it but I’ve never asked a kid to play a position they don’t want to play. So you know Isaac’s gonna have to make a decision if he thinks he feels best to help us and develop for the offensive side of the ball or maybe he decides to go back on the other side. It’ll be his choice but it was good to see him and be able to put it on film this spring. Again, something I learned from being at Bama, for two springs in a row, Devonta Smith, who won the Heisman Trophy as a receiver, they played him at corner. Coach Saban moved him over to corner halfway through spring ball. I’m the offensive coordinator and I’m like ‘you’re taking my guy’. But this is the time of the year to make these type of decisions. And it’s looked really good to me. He’s been uncomfortable, which playing a new position is that but I think he’s got a bright future if that’s the side he decides. I’m recruiting him a little bit so make sure yall write about this.”

On RB Nolan Ray’s progression

“25 is a guy that I just, I mean, every week I say this and there’s always guys that pop up. A year ago, he would have been one of those guys in the mix but he dealt with some health issues that we got fixed and it’s a testament to our medical staff to be able to work with his parents and figure out how to get him back on the field and to see him out on the field today. You guys finally got a glimpse of what we have seen for the day this guy got here. He’s a big play threat. He’s got great vision, balance, body control. Looks like a few of these Big Ten running backs that we’ve had around here that I think will be a guy that people take notice to this year.”

On LB Keyari James’ pick-six

“Terrible throw, man…we’re a high school team. We’re gonna recruit high school players like Keyari. He’s from Canada, moved to Florida because he wanted to play American football and we’re gonna develop him, man. Lance Thompson is one of the best linebacker coaches in the country. You see guys like Caleb Wheatland developing, Ruben [Hyppolite] coming along. Keyari I think has a bright future. He’s still learning the game but his natural talent, the instincts kind of showed up today. It was good to see it. But that is exactly why you want to bring these high school guys in early because I don’t have two, three years to build a team. I’ve got to build one every single year. We’ve got to speed up the growth process of the young players if we’re going to be a team that recruits high school kids, which we are.”

On having two local pastors serve as honorary coaches in the spring game

“I’m a superstitious guy. I just think if you live your life right, that good things happen. That’s why I’m a little disappointed I didn’t get no sun. I’ve got to reevaluate like what I’m doing, but no man, to have two pillars in this community like a pastor Jenkins and a pastor Battle. I’ve been to both their churches. My dad’s a member of First Baptist Church of Glenarden. Because of the location design in Greenbelt, a bunch of our players. I think back, a story about Vontae Davis who I recruited out of Dunbar DC and my taking players to church started with miss Adaline, grandma Adaline who raised Vontae and Vernon. I recruited Vernon to Maryland and she said well, I thought you said Maryland is the place and then I took Vontae to Illinois. She said if he’s coming out there he’s got to go to church every Sunday coach. You know how I am. So for every Sunday that Vontae Davis went to Illinois, I had to take him to church. And I wasn’t a guy that went every Sunday before but because I sat in her living room and told her I would, I did. And it became a thing to where after the first time I took him, just a bunch of players go coach, I want to go to church…next thing I know, we’ve had 35, 40 players going to church and Illinois goes to the Rose Bowl. So I’m telling you we’re taking the next step and part of that next step is maybe creating a little team that has a foundation behind the faith. And Pastor Jenkins, Pastor Battle have been really supportive of us in recruiting. Grandma still want to know like, my son will be taken care of. Well, that’s part of it. That’s something that may be a little different for others, but for me, it’s part of the process. If I sit on your couch and tell you I’m going to do it, I’m going to do it.”

On the idea of having to lean on the defense in 2024

“Every year, I have to evaluate what type of team we’re going to be. I have no problem with winning ugly. I have no problem, if our defense shutting people out and we take care of the football, it happens. Now, I’ll be the first to tell you we recruit really talented offensive players so what the finished product of what you saw today won’t be anywhere close to what it looks like. It’s easy to kind of make assumptions based on a spring game. Very limited game plan. Our defense is the strength of our team right now and as it should be. Our offense has had to carry us some of the early years maybe in this system that we put in here but I love the way this team is starting to develop. If you look at us when we walked out the tunnel, our offensive line, our defensive line looks like a Big Ten offensive line, defensive line and that’s half the battle. And now we got to just continue to develop them. We’ll figure out the quarterback. We got talented players in that room. I’ve got faith in Josh Gattis and our offensive staff. We’ll find ways to move the ball as we always have here and we’ve got a good skill and I liked the way that the offensive line is coming along and we’ll see how it goes as we progress through the summer.”

On what excites him about the trenches

“I just think when you look at their development. That white defensive line, it had guys like Dillon Fontus, typically Lavon Johnson will be out there, Daniel Owens, we created depth and in the Big Ten and what we’ve found, when we’ve had trouble, it’s in the middle of the year. We get banged up, we play a tough schedule in the Big Ten because we play nine Big Ten games unlike some of the other leagues and so we bang each other up and to be able to create depth in the trenches has been the missing piece. We’ve had some great players leave this area to play in the trenches so we put an emphasis in it. It’s one of the reasons why I went back to the quarterback room, because it gave me a chance to hire a guy like Wrobo and now we’ve got two [offensive] line coaches that allow us to develop the offensive line faster and because we’re recruiting a high school line.”

On the hire of Brian Ferentz as an analyst

“Having Brian here, I mean, he’s like any other analyst. He brings something that I like. Anywhere he’s been, he’s been a part of running the football. What we do is what we do. He’s coming in as an analyst. He’ll make suggestions, he’ll have the ability to, but he has a skill that I liked. I mean, the emphasis for me is how do we develop the run game on offense? To have a Brian Ferentz who has been a part of some of the best offensive lines and some of the best run games, giving ideas how they did it to add some of the stuff we already do. It’s a win for me and it came cheap.”