Maryland football may be in the midst of its first true quarterback battle since Mike Locksley took over the program heading into 2019, but that didn’t stop Billy Edwards Jr. from being honored.
The redshirt junior quarterback was selected to the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm preseason watch list, the organization announced today. Edwards was one of 13 Big Ten quarterbacks recognized on the preseason watch list as the award annually recognizes the top senior or upperclassman quarterback set to graduate with their class.
Edwards is battling Cam Edge and NC State transfer MJ Morris for the starting job with one scrimmage down and the second set for this upcoming Saturday, Aug. 17, as head coach Mike Locksley noted all three have flashed through the first two weeks of camp. “So it looks like it’s three and you would say [that] with Billy [Edwards] having had game experience, Cam [Edge] having played in a system and with MJ [Morris] coming over from NC State. All three of those guys have had some really good times and days throughout practice. All three of those guys have shown why they are in the mix for competing for it. And they’ve all shown that they have the ability to run it,” Locksley said on BTN.
Full list of Terps included in preseason watch lists:
QB Billy Edwards Jr.: Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Watch List
LB Ruben Hyppolite: Butkus Award Watch List
RB Roman Hemby: Doak Walker Award Watch List
SAF Dante Trader Jr.: Allstate Wuerffel Trophy Watch List
More via release:
In two seasons at Maryland, Edwards Jr. has played in 15 games with three starts, most recently leading the Terps to a 31-13 victory in the TransPerfect Music City Bowl over Auburn and earning the game’s MVP honors. He has totaled 436 passing yards and four passing touchdowns.
Additionally, Edwards Jr. has proven to be a threat on the ground, tallying 63 career carries for 227 yards and eight touchdowns. Seven of his eight rushing touchdowns came during the 2023 season where he led the team in that statistic. The Springfield, VA native recorded three rushing touchdowns against Michigan last season and became the first Maryland quarterback with three rushing touchdowns in a game since C.J. Brown had three against James Madison on Aug. 30, 2014. He also became the third FBS player over the past 25 seasons to record at least three rushing touchdowns on four or fewer rushes and three or fewer rushing yards in a single game.
This season’s watch list acknowledges 63 of the nation’s leading quarterbacks, representing all 10 FBS conferences as well as football independent.
This year’s award winner will be presented the Golden Arm Award trophy at the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award celebration at the Four Seasons Hotel in Baltimore, Maryland on Friday, December 6, 2024.
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