Maryland is up to 15 commitments with eight along the defensive side of the ball. The Terps’ inside linebacker haul this cycle bolsters confidence to the future of the room with Jaishawn Barham, Ruben Hyppolite and Fa’Najae Gotay currently leading the unit. Meanwhile, the cornerback room adds more speed in a pair of recent commits and a high-ceiling prospect in Lloyd Irvin. But where does Maryland stand with the rest of their targets? We take a deeper look.
Maryland is still working in the trenches where they’re in the mix for a handful of targets. Florida lineman Sincere Edwards finally backed off his pledge to UCF as both Maryland and Pitt have been heavily involved in his recruitment since the early spring. Edwards unofficially visited back in the spring and is expected to take a fall official to Maryland, though Pitt is the clear team to beat after their late June official. Maryland is also battling NC State for Edgewater (FL) three-star Josh Alexander-Felton, who released a top group on Wednesday including Georgia Tech, UCF and Pitt. Coming out of June, Alexander-Felton was expected to take his recruitment into the fall but that timeline could shift to early summer with the buzz pointing to the Wolfpack as the team to beat. The primary target to keep tabs on is Mountain View (VA) three-star Eric Mensah as the Terps and Hokies jockey for position in his recruitment with Virginia rounding out his top group. Mensah has been a prime target for Maryland ever since the staff began recruiting Kris Jones, his former teammate, and have deep connections to him but the Hokies’ juice on the trail has made it a coin toss heading into July. Maryland is also keeping tabs on Bowie edge rusher Sultan Badmus heading into his senior season.
Maryland made the cut for Friendship (DC) five-star Dylan Stewart but it’s Ohio State who’s taken the edge over South Carolina with Georgia and Miami (FL) also in the mix. Stewart’s connection with the Terps’ staff is strong with DC Brian Williams leading efforts, but proximity to home is looking like a hurdle too steep to climb. Meanwhile, Maryland is the biggest challenger to Penn State for Quince Orchard (MD) four-star Jaylen Harvey as they analyze NIL down the stretch. Florida is a wildcard and confidence is still high coming out of Happy Valley, but completely closing his recruitment has been a challenge down the stretch with the Terps the disrupter. A source added that Penn State also felt Maryland was their biggest challenger down the stretch. Harvey postponed his July 4 commitment but is still expected to announce prior to his senior season. Harvey’s status with Penn State will also play a role in their pursuit of Brian Robinson, who is focused on Maryland, Penn State and Kentucky heading into the heart of summer. Should Harvey land in Happy Valley, Penn State won’t be a landing spot for Robinson though Kentucky remains a factor. The cautious optimism that began coming out of his official visit remains with Brandon Collier, founder of PPI Recruits, involved in Robinson’s recruitment.
Maryland has three inside linebacker commits with Keyshawn Flowers, Justin Okoronkwo and Keyari James in the fold and sit well as they now work to hold onto Okoronkwo. After seeing his stock soar through the June camp circuit, Alabama has turned up the heat and now has set plans to host him during the final week of July for an unofficial visit. Maryland will have to fight tooth and nail to keep him in the fold, but they’re also keeping tabs on Florida four-star verbal Aaron Chiles heading into the fall. As for Flowers and James, both recent commits shouldn’t raise much concern about their status for the rest of the cycle.
Maryland also has a trio of commits in the fold in Lakhi Roland, Larry Tarver and Lloyd Irvin with Edgewater four-star Cai Bates a long-term target with Tennessee well-positioned over LSU heading into summer.
Along the backline, Maryland is in great shape with Evans (FL) four-star safety Brandon Jacob heading into his July 20 commitment. Maryland sits as ‘hot’ on the big board with a decision two weeks away, but Maryland is also squarely in the mix for Mainland (FL) safety Ezaiah Shine and is another target who could be upgraded down the line with UCF the main competition along with Iowa State in the mix.
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