Maryland announced a multi-year contract extension for head coach Mike Locksley just one day prior to the spring game to provide much-needed stability for the program and heading into year four in his tenure, that’s an aspect he looks forward to providing for a program that’s so desperately needed it.
“To me, kind of has been the Achilles heel of Maryland football,” Locksley said on Wednesday. “When people describe Maryland athletics, and I mean, look at what we did this past spring in baseball and lacrosse, and then what Sasho was done in soccer. And the things that jump out Kathy Reese with women's lacrosse, and Missy is that there's been so much consistency in all these programs to where the culture is set. And when you look at what Maryland football has been, and I've said this before in basketball, you've had three head coaches, basically, over the last 40 years obviously, I do know, Bob Wade spent a minute as the head coach here as well. But since 1985, I think when I counted, it was like nine coaches when you count the interim coaches that have come through here for football, and I just don't see how you can develop consistency in a program when you change at the top so much.”
On the same day that news became public that Scott Chadwick is leaving the program to return as a head coach at Clayton High School (NC), Locksley added that the program will “lose assistant coaches, you’ll lose players, but the building blocks and the foundational things that need to be in place for a program to grow and become consistent.” Despite the program’s first bowl appearance in six years and bowl win in 11 years, Locksley added he was “a little hesitant” after Damon Evans approached him this offseason with a possible extension. “Not because I don't want to be here,” he added. “But, 7-6 isn't our standard, it isn't my standard.”
While Maryland prepares for a 2022 slate that features a non-conference matchup against SMU, Locksley added he’s a supporter of a divisionless Big Ten with buzz circulating all offseason that the possibility is developing into a reality. With the need to “put our best foot forward” to position Big Ten teams in the college football playoff, there’s a benefit to moving forward with the proposed plan.
“Obviously, the Big Ten East is one of, if not, the toughest divisions in football, I've spent time at Alabama, obviously, the SEC West, will be very comparable to what we go through year in and year out. For me, the reason you join a conference is for everybody to have success or to succeed financially as programs. So for us, I think the big thing that I've always kind of give my decision about these divisions is all about how do we best position ourselves as a conference to get two teams in the playoffs, the way it's set now, obviously, the SEC has dominated that by having two teams and quite a few of the playoffs and that's double the payout to the conference.”
While fans await a final decision from commissioner Kevin Warren, NIL continues to draw national headlines and was sparked again last month after Alabama head coach Nick Saban accused Texas A&M head coach Jimbo Fisher and Jackson State head coach Deion Sanders of pay-for-play. Locksley once again reiterated his support for NIL but with varying rules by each state and the lack of regulation from the NCAA, he sees a needed area of improvement.
“Someone used this analogy, it was like, they raised the speed limit on the highway and they took the state troopers off the highway. And now you're running into a bunch of other issues, whether it's accidents and things that are happening. And now you're trying to come back and put the state troopers back on, but people are still going above the speed limit. So I do think we need to create a little more equitable guardrails. I think the NCAA coming out. I mean, the only rule with NIL is you can't use it for recruiting inducements and that's what I think Coach Saban was trying to make a point of. So it's really no rules, no law with it.”
As he’s said during his appearances on the Terps on Tour, Locksley once again reminded fellow Terp fans and supporters that they’re now in a position to help the program. “I've said before, people, they asked me or the question is, can we become more competitive in the Big Ten? And my answer is, yes, we can. And now I throw the same question back saying, hey, if you want us to be competitive I'd like to see you come support us to help us because now we legally can do things to go get really good players that are right here within hour drive any direction from campus. And because of the NIL opportunities, we have the ability to compete for these guys if we can find people that will want to come help us take that next step.”
Meanwhile, quarterback Billy Edwards and defensive line transfers Henry Chibueze and Quashon Fuller have already enrolled on campus while the rest of the 2022 class will enroll on June 18 and 19 but the veterans have also returned in preparation for summer workouts. While noting the Terps have “so many returning guys on both sides of the ball,” Locksley noted a handful of players that have improved their stock after spring ball.
“I've been really, really pleased with the three young running backs Colby McDonald, Roman Hemby, and Antwain Littleton. And ‘Twan and Roman both played in the bowl game along with Colby who played most of the year. And I felt like that room we've recruited to get it back, where we'd like to see it. DJ Glaze continues to really impress us up front as a guy that played quite a bit of football for us a year ago and we see him as a starter for us somewhere. Obviously those guys kind of jump out. And then Deonte Banks being back I thought prior to him being injured, he was one of our better corners that we had in our program and when we lost him and then obviously Jakorian [Bennett] going down for a few games that really hurt us. So those are the ones that kind of really jumped out to me that but there's a ton of players that veteran guys that have gotten a lot of reps, a lot of playing time over the last three years that we built this thing so I feel really good about kind of where we are in terms of that piece of it.”
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More from Locksley
On momentum over the last few months: “We’ve felt the momentum. And I've talked to our team about this quite a bit, the thing that stood out to us, to me at this bowl game, and this is something we've tried to capture. Again, as we were stuck up there in New York, and forced to do a lot of things together because of the COVID situation up there and I really saw our team kind of become really, really close. And so, we were using two pillar words, committed and connected. To me, those were the key ingredients to how we finish the season off and now for us to take that next step this season, it's going to be predicated on just how committed we are to doing things to our standard, but then also how connected we are with each other. And we spent a lot of time and with this the player centric things that has become a college football landscape. And as coaches being around these guys, and spending quality time with them, constantly recruiting them, to keep them in the program is gonna be really, really important to create that stability. And I feel like we've done that and going to a bowl game has kind of created that momentum where our players liked the feeling of it. They like being together during the holidays practicing. They enjoyed the way the game went. And I think to me, it's created that momentum that you want to see going into the next year.”
On taking the next step: “It takes those two words we talked about, it's making a total commitment to doing things to our standard, the work we put in in the offseason our veterans reported back yesterday, our first year, guys, high school players will be coming in June 19. And so to me, the commitment level of the work that has to be put in, when nobody's looking, when nobody's watching, it's going to be really, really important. But then I also think just how connected as a program we are to each other where we really become that band of brothers that you sell where you lay it on the line for the guy next to you and to me, that's the the two important things that for us to become more competitive within our conference and to take the next step that we need to take in as we go into year four. I think those are the things that we've made a point of emphasis.”
On potential pushback: “No, I mean, we're in the Big Ten. So at some point whether we create the playoffs within our league by not having a division, you're going to eventually play and during the course of a four year schedule, you'll go to every one of those venues. So I don't think that part affects it as much as the the success of the league.”
On separating NIL from recruiting inducements: “It is because here's what you do. Instead of me talking to player A, who's a high school kid saying, hey, I'll give you $50,000 to come play football here in NIL deals. You say, listen, we have players in our program that have made up to $50,000 in NIL money. So it sets a case precedent of what guys have been able to do NIL here, right. And then once they get on campus, you're legally able to do whatever you want to as long as it is documented, turned in under compliance. And so to me, it's not, I mean they haven't changed very much. I just can't promise a kid a recruitable kid NIL money. Right now, once he's in our program. These collectives that everybody's setting up and he's LLCs. And all these fans that support and the ones that want to see us be more successful? Well, now you guys have the ability to put some skin in the game with coach Locks.”
On transfer portal: “But I would also say that we're not going to be a program that wants to every year have a different culture of the type of kids. For us, we'll use the portal for by need only. I still want to build my program with the high school players that spend four or five years in this program that get it understand it. I don't want to go out and recruit a guy that the only thing he cares about is how much NIL money because you can't build a football program with individualism. It has to still be a team concept. It's the ultimate team sport. I do think players deserve to make as much money as people want to give them based on their name, image and likeness once they're in your program. I'm a little nervous about seeing like some of the guardrails that scare me is okay, you go sign a high school kid and he comes in and he gets a million dollar NIL deal and he ends up on the scout team all year, does he pay the money back? Like does he like, okay, in real world, that doesn't happen that way. And the NFL was set up that way back in the day where the guys drafted made more than the seven year veteran and they changed it. So to me, that's kind of one of the gray areas of it because it may now all of a sudden, you're investing money in player that hopefully it pans out but when it doesn't how many more boosters or supporters are going to jump up and give money to an NIL or to a collective to bring in players that may not be what you thought they were.”