With another busy week for Maryland basketball in the books, spring ball now in full swing and recruits visiting campus, the latest premium notes coming out of College Park.
On the basketball side, it’s been another busy week for head coach Kevin Willard with the official return of Jahmir Young and departure of Tony Skinn. Rumblings of Skinn’s departure resurfaced after Virginia assistant Jason Williford opted to remain with the Hoos, paving the way for an opportunity to rejoin his alma mater. Willard has long viewed Skinn as a future head coach, a sentiment he wasn’t shy about dating back to last summer, and though the move to Maryland wasn’t expected to be this short-lived, the opportunity to return to his alma mater was too much to turn down. I posted some names to know to fill the position and while this priority #1 this offseason, there’s little doubt that the focus is adding a recruiter plugged in locally. The buzz with Simpkins, however, continues to sit with the American head coaching gig where he’s viewed as the possible favorite. With Ed Cooley now at Georgetown, Willard knows it’s just as important this offseason as it was last to retain its local footprint. No exact timeline, but should start hearing of news about interviews in the coming days.
Meanwhile, I have yet to hear anything substantial to change my initial stance and I’m still moving forward with the expectation that Donta Scott moves on, along with additional attrition in the frontcourt, leaving Willard with possibly three scholarships to work with. Sounds like the pro route may be more likely than a transfer portal announcement that Hakim Hart released, but nonetheless, his career in College Park is expected to be over. From there, the focus will be finding a shooter to replace Carey and a forward to replace Donta with flexibility on a potential third scholarship. One contact said that Penn State is the early expectation for VCU transfer Ace Baldwin, following Mike Rhoades to Happy Valley, though Baldwin would make more sense for Maryland had Jahmir Young moved on from Maryland. TBD on timing as the roster and staff developments remain the top priority for Willard as things stand.
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Football wrapped up practice number two on Thursday with full pads set to come on Saturday for the first time. I expect concrete developments and progress reports to come this weekend once the first week of spring ball is in the books.
On the recruiting scene, I’m hearing that Cummings (NC) four-star WR Jonathan Paylor is in the process of scheduling an official visit to Maryland and is working through his track schedule on finalizing a date. It isn’t the most surprising twist as the Terps have been in consistent pursuit dating back to last summer, but Paylor did release a top eight without the Terps in the mix last month. Intel has suggested some in Paylor’s camp have pushed the bigger schools in his recruitment, while NC State is also a notable player in his recruitment. While we await a finalized date, two local targets already set to visit for the spring game include Pallotti (MD) four-star linebacker Gabe Williams and Loyola Blakefield (MD) three-star tackle Trevor Szymanski.
Meanwhile, safeties coach Zac Spavital has inherited the local targets on the recruiting board with guys like Edrees Farooq and Ify Obidegwu still in play, but he’s after another defensive back. St. Thomas More (CT) three-star Justin Denson, a 6-foot-2, 185-pound athlete, has been in steady contact with Spavital and is expected to visit campus in April. How Maryland shakes out in the secondary in the 2024 cycle remains to be seen as they’ll chip away with guys making their way to campus, but Denson will head to College Park looking to walk away with an offer. Penn State and Michigan State are the two primary schools in the mix early.
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