DL Zahir Mathis announces return to Maryland in 2026

Ahmed Ghafir
1 day ago
2 min read

Maryland football officially has a key piece of its freshman back in 2026.

Over one week after Malik Washington announced his return for a second season, defensive lineman Zahir Mathis did the same by announcing his return for a second year in College Park.

Mathis, who was also a Shaun Alexander Freshman of the Year Award semifinalist, finished his rookie season second on the team with 6.0 sacks and 8.5 tackles for loss. The Philadelphia, PA native recorded at least a partial sack in seven of the 11 games he played. Despite missing nearly two full games due to injury, Mathis still ranked 11th in the conference in total sacks. He finished second among all Power Four true freshmen with 31 total pressures according to Pro Football Focus (PFF).

Mathis became a key piece in Maryland's front seven alongside Sidney Stewart, Daniel Wingate, Cam Rice and Trey Reddick with Maryland working to build its depth heading into the 2026 season. Mathis arrived in College Park in June, but was a frequent face inside the program through the spring after the four-star arrived as a heralded recruit.

“I love working under coach Ted, he’s pretty unique, he’s real inspiring, he does big things for me, and it's just amazing on how he works with us in the room, and establishes us to be physical on the field,” Mathis told IBG about playing under Monachino.

Mathis served as the final piece to a foundational 2025 recruiting class after connecting with four-star quarterback Malik Washington at the Under Armour All-American game, giving the Terps late juice to beat out Florida State ahead of putting pen to paper last February. Maryland dipped back into Mathis' alma mater in the 2026 cycle to land offensive tackle Jesse Moody.

“I can remember Malik calling me once he got down in the Under Armour game, and at one point Malik wasn't going to play in the Under Armor game, he was maybe going to play in the other one. And then when he decided to play in that game, it all kind of came to fruition because of a relationship that those two had,” head coach Mike Locksley said in the spring. “Malik called me and said, ‘coach, man, we may have a shot at this, at Zahir. And I'm like, let's do it. And next thing I know, it sped up. And, you know, I got up to Philly, chance to see him, and we really hit it off. And I think obviously the relationship with Malik, a lot of the players on this team having played with him, with the Maryland Heat youth program here locally. He would travel down from Philadelphia, to play with this group and it all worked out in our favor.”

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