Five Maryland football returners likely to rise to stardom in 2025

Ahmed Ghafir
Jul 10, 2025
5 min read

After taking a look at which newcomers are likely to make an impact on the 2025 season, we take a look at five returners likely to become household names for Maryland football this fall:

SAF Jalen Huskey

After making the position switch from cornerback to safety during the 2024 Big Ten slate, the buzz has pointed to Huskey stepping into the alpha dog role in the secondary. Maryland saw a big boost to the top of the cornerback room by adding Dontay Joyner and Jamare Glasker to stabilize the starting tandem, but Huskey’s range has helped instill confidence in the backline. Likely starting alongside Lavain Scruggs with former Austin Peay safety Gavin Edwards rotating with him, Huskey will get a chance to show true freshman Messiah Delhomme the ropes at the position in 2025 as the rising senior looks to stabilize the position with confidence in doing so.

RB Nolan Ray

With now Indiana RB Nolan Ray leading the unit, Maryland has finished with the third-worst rushing attack among Big Ten teams in each of the last two seasons. But for the last 15 months, it’s been Ray who has drawn buzz as a nimble, shifty running back looking to break loose. Fans saw flashes of that in 2024 after Ray notched his first career TD in the opener on a 48-yard run, following it up with his second TD vs. Villanova three weeks later, as he averaged five yards per carry in 2025.

OC Pep Hamilton was transparent about the fact that Maryland has to find more balance on offense in 2025 compared to the last two seasons. “That's why this conference is called the Big Ten. It's all about the big people up front. And we feel great about the depth that we have in the competitions that we have for the different positions on our offensive line,” he added.

Ray was sidelined in the spring after undergoing minor offseason surgery, but he’s back at full strength and expected to resume full activities in fall camp, set to begin on July 30. All eyes will be on the development of the offensive line in 2025 after signing a pair of portal prospects to bolster the tackle position, giving optimism to improved run blocking in 2025, and while the room will lean on DeJuan Williams and Iverson Howard to round out the rotation, it’ll be Ray who looks to take advantage and step into his first season as an impact piece on offense after holding off outside interest from other Power Four schools during the transfer portal windows.

WR Octavian Smith

Smith appeared in every game as a true freshman in 2022 before stepping into a rotational role over the last two seasons, and now heading into his senior year, the Paint Branch product will look to anchor a wide receiver room featuring length and speed. Smith’s athleticism has been clear where he can step into the receiver room to make an impact, whether inside or out. His first career touchdown came in the 2022 bowl win vs. NC State, but heading into his senior year, Smith could be the dynamic slot receiver in Maryland’s offense with Oklahoma WR transfer Jalil Farooq looking to take over as the top receiver in the unit. Smith developed a strong rapport with QB Malik Washington through the spring and finished tied with Ryan Manning for a team-high five catches in the spring game.

ILB Daniel Wingate

The alpha dog of the defense and Wingate’s offseason jersey switch from 16 to 1 is an indication of such. The Pallotti standout drew buzz as an emerging star heading into the 2024 season where he was able to play behind eventual Bears LB Ruben Hyppolite in a rotational role and finishing third on the team in total tackles, but heading into 2025, Wingate will step into a starting role where he takes over as the MIKE. The buzz through the spring pointed to Wingate proving himself as capable of anchoring the linebackers and despite the loss of Caleb Wheatland to Auburn, Wingate is a big reason why there’s steady confidence in the ILB room heading into the season.

IOL Isaiah Wright

After missing the entire 2024 seasons due to an offseason injury, Wright returned to workouts in January before rejoining the team on the field for the start of spring ball. The former Rutgers and Buffalo transfer offers versatility along the line – he has experience taking over at center and has played left and right tackle while at Buffalo. At Maryland, Wright best fits in as a guard where he likely fills Isaac Bunyun’s role at LG where he showed flashes of being the top OL through the 15 spring practices. All eyes will be on how the unit gels together through August, but Wright will be a big part of the question as he was also viewed as a key loss heading into the 2024 season.

Just missed:

ILB Michael Harris: after flashing his quickness and nose for the ball in 2024, Harris will step into a starting role in 2025 where he takes over as the WILL.

CB ‘Kerm’ Humes: one of the most athletic players on the team, Humes will get a chance to make a big leap in year two where he can step in as the nickel corner while he’s coming off a season with reps as a boundary corner.

OLB Trey Reddick: after playing in 11 games as a true freshman, Redick has shown signs of becoming Maryland’s next dominant pass rusher among a host of pieces looking to emerge in 2025. Adding size to his 6-foot-3 frame has been a focus heading into the season as he looks to blossom into the breakout piece this fall.

DL Dillan Fontus: heading into year three, Fontus might be the leader of the defense in an offseason headlined by an accolade after being named the Big Ten’s Jackie Robinson Community & Impact Award winner in April. On the field, Fontus could step into a starting role after the 6-foot-5 junior became an integral piece in the DL rotation in 2023 and 2024.

OL Alan Herron: after making the jump from Shorter to Maryland last year, Herron has progressed through the offseason and showed signs of development in his first spring ball with the program. Maryland also signed former Elon RT Carlos Moore during the spring window, giving Herron and Moore a chance to fill out the right side of the OL.

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