Maryland football portal commit breakdown: OL Tellek Lockette

rwelchie3
1 day ago
5 min read

As the offseason for football has cooled down and players new and old are returning to Jones Hill House it is time to take a look at the transfer portal class that Maryland has brought in. A place to potentially upgrade via the portal was the offensive line as the Terps struggled immensely to get results on the ground with at least a portion of the problem coming from the front 5. The pass blocking was a strength of the unit but both depth and better pieces were needed. Internally, the staff is high on in-house options such as the return of the entire left side, a returning Jaylen Gilchrist, and other such as Amory Hills and Ryan Howerton. Maryland ended up only adding one offensive lineman thus far via the portal in former Texas State guard Tellek Lockette.

Lockette is a 6-foot-3, 327-pound guard who committed to Maryland with Rutgers, South Carolina, and Arkansas involved. Lockette hails from St. Thomas Aquinas HS in Florida where he then began his collegiate career at Louisiana Monroe. Lockette started in 17 games in his two years at ULM including starts against Alabama and Texas as a true freshman. Lockette then transferred to Texas State for his junior year and started all 13 games at right guard for the Bobcats. In 2024, the Bobcats finished 5^th in total offense in the entire country including 16^th nationally in rushing offense. Lockette returned to Texas State for his senior year earning preseason first team Sun Belt honors. Lockette only allowed one snap during his time at Texas State. Unfortunately, Lockette suffered a leg injury last season and is utilizing his redshirt to transfer to Maryland and will seemingly slot in as the starting right guard.

Lockette is lined up at right guard and is #74 in the following clips.

As mentioned previously, the Terrapins main struggle on offense was the inability to run the ball. The blame pie may be divided amongst many parties, but a portion certainly went to the offensive line. Lockette will slide into the right guard position where he will lock to help the bottom-line results in the run game. As the anchor on an offensive line that had a great rushing attack, Lockette is a strong individual with a great motor. The strength really shines through on tape as Lockette utilizes his strength to win blocking matchups rather than technique and athleticism. Lockette is not the most polished athlete even for offensive lineman standards as he has limited movements. It is often best to judge players who play at a lower-level based on how they do against power 4 competition. Lockette and Texas State took on Arizona State early last year and although it did not go the Bobcats way; Lockette was impressive. Texas State was successful in running behind Lockette, who o multiple occasions, was the catalyst to successful runs. In these clips it can be seen that Lockette was strong with his legs and met opponents with strength in the lanes. In this clip Lockette shows off his strength blowing the player and finishing the play.

Lockette is elite at staying engaged with opponents and using his strength as leverage. Even when Lockette is getting great push, Lockette remains engaged and stops opponents in their tracks allowing runners a lane.

In this next clip, Lockette is extremely impressive in this two-step block. First Lockette helps his center chip an interior lineman getting a great push to set up a lane. The key to this play is Lockette’s ability to get to the second level and create a lane for the running back. Lockette seamlessly gets to the second level and immediately stops the linebacker in his tracks. Although Lockette lacks athleticism, his strength creates play in the open field.

Overall, in the run game, Lockette is very strong and uses his large frame and motor to move opponents. This clip displays his strong motor and ability to finish blocks by moving opponents off the line.

Despite overall lack of athleticism, Lockette has the ability to create running lanes on pull blocks. The next few clips showcase Lockette generating strong blocks off of pulls. This first one in particular is an A+ pull block. Lockette is not the most athletic in getting to his spot but once he is there, Lockette gets a low pad level and creates an impact to create a lane.

Again, in this clip, Lockette is slow to get to his spot but is able to pin the blocker using his strength and strong hand position. In the clip following, Lockette again is strong at the point of contact, instantly stopping his defender.

The lack of athleticism does cost Lockette in the pass protection portion of the game. Texas State does run a lot of three step drop concepts with quick timing. However, Lockette often does not get great depth and is slow in his kick step motion. On this play, Lockette barely moves in his pass pro and is caught flat footed against a speed rush and is beaten.

Against Arizona State, Lockette was overall strong; however, he also got caught flat footed in the pass game at times. In this clip Lockette again does not get depth in his pass protection and is met with a defender with minimal leverage and gets blown back.

Lockette also has the tendency to reach his arms to incoming pass rushers. With his lack of depth created, Lockette reaches his arms and loses a low center of gravity, but oftentimes his strength is able to make up for his mechanics. This clip is an example of his high body frame/pad level and long arms but being still able to overpower his opponent. Notice the lack of leverage Lockette has at impact with his legs immediately moving back but being able to anchor with his strength.

The high pad level and arm reach also came up in the run game a few times. On this play, Lockette stays upright and only shoots his arms towards the defender and is easily beaten.

Throughout these clips, Lockette’s effort and ability to finish blocks has been apparent. This next clip showcases this trait well with Lockette pass blocking. Again, Lockette is more straight up with high pad level but is again using his strength to stop the defender. Lockette has strong hand position to remain engaged as his quarterback scrambles for a score.

A final trait to highlight in Lockette’s pass protection is his ability to recover. Lockette has strong pocket awareness for a guard and despite his lack of speed can get to spots to help his teammates and the overall pocket. On this play, Lockette’s opponent bounces off of him and wraps around the edge. Lockette responds by shuffling to his right and meeting the defender on the right edge to secure the pocket as his quarterback would have taken a sack.

This final clip has Lockette realizing that he has no responsibilities in pass protection and recognize the next threat by helping his right tackle on securing the edge.

Overall, Lockette is a strong guard who gets results in both the run and pass game. Lockette lacks athleticism and is often not at the most ideal pad level but can create “a wall” by using his large frame and strength to create lanes for his running backs and time for his quarterback. A worry at the next level would be his lack of movement and pad level with his leverage being poor at point of impact at times against bigger and better competition. Lockette does excel in the run game with strong awareness, strength, and blocking ability. Pass protection mechanics can improve but not allowing sacks or pressures is a strength. Lockette may need to hit a strong offseason regimen to make a large impact next year but the raw strength and ability is an upgrade for the Maryland offensive line.

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