In-state WR Jayden Kitchens becomes latest local commit in Maryland football's 2026 class

Ahmed Ghafir
Jul 16
2 min read

Head coach Mike Locksley and Maryland football are now up to 12 commits in the 2026 class, with nine hailing from the DMV, as St. James (Md.) three-star Jayden Kitchens went public with his decision nearly one month after his official visit.

Kitchens, a 6-foot-2, 180-pound receiver, committed to Maryland over Cincinnati and Virginia Tech as the in-state target closed out June with an in-depth official visit to College Park beginning June 20. Kitchens also visited for the Michigan State game last fall, while he also becomes the first wide receiver commit of the cycle as the Terps held all the buzz in his recruitment since his third and final official visit.

“I definitely learned that it’s not really home. It’s definitely far enough from actual home. At first, I didn’t want to stay at home at all, for real,” Kitchens told IBG. “It was everything that made me realize it, really. All the factors with the coaches and players but coach Locks definitely talked to me, had some great conversations. Me and coach Aazaar [Abdul-Rahim] have known each other for a long, long time now.”

Kitchens was able to reconnect with longtime high school teammate and current Maryland freshman Nahsir Taylor on day two of the visit, giving the Terps more juice with the longtime teammates reunited once again. Kitchens also met former Maryland and new Bills WR Kaden Prather during his official visit, while Oklahoma WR transfer Jalil Farooq served as the player host on day one as the St. James product heads to College Park next season playing the same spot in the receiver room.

The presence of co-defensive coordinator Aazaar Abdul-Rahim loomed large as the two have built a relationship through Kitchens’ high school career, dating back to Abdul-Rahim’s time at Boston College when the Eagles became the first offer. Syracuse, Oregon, Duke, West Virginia and Minnesota are among the other schools who offered the local receiver.

Kitchens began his high school career at Rock Creek Academy, led by former head coach Andre Kates who once played under Aazaar Abdul-Rahim, before transferring to Riverdale Baptist in 2024. Kitchens played a big role in an offense that dazzled against some of the area’s top teams as the three-star receiver posted 747 yards and five touchdowns on 40 catches, helping Riverdale Baptist finish a perfect 8-0 with wins against Good Counsel, Hayfield and Friendship.

Jayden Kitchens is rated a three-star and 85 overall by On3. He joins athlete Jianni Davis, TE Brayden Marko, LB Kaden Carter, edge Zion Elee, TE Damon Hall, safety Khmari Bing, CB Hakim Satterwhite, TE Javonte Williams, IOL Day’jon Moore, OT Jesse Moody and safety Zahir Cobb.

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