One week after taking in College Park for fall camp as the BTN crew shared their takeaways on the 2024 Maryland football team, analyst Howard Griffith joined Glenn Clark Radio to share his take and observations on the quarterback competition, what Maryland needs to do this season and how he’s seen the program develop heading into Mike Locksley’s sixth season as head coach.
Griffith on how Maryland fares in a division-less Big Ten
“I think the scheduling part of it is just part of it. I mean, you can say you get rid of Michigan and Ohio State, but you can trade those in this year for USC and Oregon. So, Penn State’s still there. I think it’s just a process. And I think one thing fans really have to be cognizant of is it takes steps. It takes time to get to where you want to go. And the real question is where do you want to go? Where are you trying to get? You’re trying to get to the Big Ten championship game being one of the top two teams, ultimately that’s where they want to go, but it’s about taking steps. And they’ve been able to do that over the course of time with coach [Mike] Locksley being back in here as a coach, they’ve made strides in that direction and they keep taking that next step. I think it’s a reason for optimism. I think the roster has continued to get better since he’s been there so I definitely believe that they’re heading in the right direction.”
On the ongoing quarterback competition
“I think ultimately, who’s going to put the program in the best position to win, which, and part of that is not turning the ball over, part of it is getting the program of the offense in and out of, getting out of bad plays and on to good plays. So, I think that’s the big part of it. Who’s the king rallying behind? Is there a situation where he could play two quarterbacks early? I don’t know that anybody wants to go in that direction. The day we were there, [MJ] Morris had a nice day, but I think Edwards was probably the star of the day at the quarterback position. But that’s part of the issue for me is I just come in and see what I’m practicing. You don’t know what the rest of the practice is going to look like. I can tell you what, I like both of the guys. I think they have weapons outside and also in the back field, and that’s an improved offensive line. I think that’s a big part of where I’ve seen the biggest growth in this program.”
On whether Griffith has seen enough from Billy Edwards Jr. being the starting QB
“I do believe that. I do believe after what I’ve seen, the sample size that I’ve seen and he can, he has the ability to win the job, both quarterbacks obviously can do that, but I think Edwards definitely can win football games for Maryland. And that’s a big part of it. Yhis is what this offense wants to be able to do and, it’s actually kind of fun to watch voach Locksley back coaching quarterbacks again and really involved with that group. I think that’s reinvigorated him to really be back in that position and I think the players are responding to it. But I think part of it also is just being able to go out. There’s a different vibe right now. I mean, I think this is a program that knows that they can win and now it’s time to continue to take those next steps as hard as those steps are. There’s still, I think they have to be able to take them.”
On what Maryland needs to do heading into 2024 aside from QB
“You think about shoring up their offensive line. Really eliminating a lot of those stats when quarterbacks are under duress. They’ve got to be able to run the ball. [Roman] Hemby is an outstanding back. I think that’s going to be shored up because I think this is a better offensive line. Last year, they were 116th so that’s not going to be good enough. Although they were able to make some plays and get to win the bowl game, I think that they have to get better running the football. But again, those are things that all take place up front with the offensive line. Again, I think that they’re much better at that spot right now.”
On the defensive line expectations heading into 2024
“I’ll say this – Jordan Phillips has the opportunity to be the best defensive lineman from the Big Ten. The numbers, he’s the type of player where the numbers aren’t going to show up. An interior guy, but I don’t know that there’s a more athletic 300-pounder running around in the conference right now. He is unbelievable when you just watch his athleticism. And he’s a difference maker. And he’s a guy that the team really responds to. And they’re following. I mean, his work ethic, what he’s trying to do. Guys are on board with it and that’s the type of leadership you have to have. And then again, you talk about [Ruben] Hyppolite, obviously done a great job and then they’ve gone into the portal and try to bring in some good additions there. But I think the biggest thing defensively is that they are stout and they are much better there. Again, the interior of the defensive line and the offensive line, and where that team needed to make their biggest jumps. And I think they are right there. And now it’s about continuing to add that depth where you can roll, you know, four, five, six, seven guys into that [defensive] line and keep them fresh and keep them running. The same thing has to happen on the offensive line. You want to have that continuity. But to be able to have players that can push one another inside is really the biggest difference between the haves and the have nots. You can get elite corners and wide receivers. There are a lot of them. So it’s about plugging them into the system. The difference becomes the line of scrimmage.”
On the expanded College Football Playoffs
“Well, I think right off the bat, it has more organizations, more programs feel like they have an opportunity to get in. You can lose a game here and there. You can lose one early and you can come back. But I think one of the things with the four-team playoff, the problem with it was, it became regional football. So you lose a game and you felt like you were out of it. Now, I think you can go late into the season and still feel like you have your team, your program, has an opportunity to make the playoffs. And I look at it a lot like the NCAA when we talk about the Elite Eight, the Sweet Sixteen. Now, I even think because of these megaconferences that are developing and the ones that are out there, from an administration standpoint, from a coaching standpoint, you can hang your hat on, we’re a team every year going to be in the midst of the playoffs. We got a shot. And that means something. You think about college coaches on the basketball side, you make it to a Sweet 16, you’re revered. Elite Eight, you’re revered. You can get your team there. So I think it’s going to do wonders for the sport. Are things going to be difficult? I think absolutely. But I think it gives all the programs that really were just almost there, it gives them the opportunity to be right in the thick of things. I even look at our own conference, we look at a team like Penn State, who if there’s a 12-team playoff, they’re there every year. It’s not that big of an issue. You look at a team like Iowa, as bad as they have been offensively, they’re so good defensively that they’re right there. They’re in the mix. I just think it’s great for the fans and then you couple that with being in the playoffs and having home games at some iconic stadiums throughout college athletics. I think it’s really going to be great for the fan bases. I think it’s great for the college experience as well.”
On the impact of the Michigan penalties on the 2024 season
“You just don’t know, right? I mean, some people will be under the feeling that, okay, this stuff happened last year or the year before and it should have been dealt with then. This is a different team, so why should they be penalized? There’ll be others that say, hey, if coaches were involved in it and they’re still on the staff, they should be penalized. So I think it’s probably going to be somewhere in the middle. Who knows? We’ve seen crazier things happen but it’s just one of those things. They feel like there’s punishment that needs to be handed down and they’ll have to deal with it. And as we saw last year, and that Michigan team is a special team. They’re not nearly as talented as they were last year, but they found ways to block out the outside noise and continue to move forward. We’re fortunate because they worked hard and did what they needed to do to win a championship.”
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