Maryland Terrapins 2026 Football Preview
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Ah, Maryland. Seemingly dependably mediocre Maryland. After three bowl seasons form 2021 through 2023, Maryland has reverted back to the mean, turtleing to back-to-back 4-8 seasons. College football analytics guru Dave Bartoo unloaded on him recently with an ugly truth.
Phil Steele looked at Maryland with a lot of returning talent with an easier schedule and says… maybe a bowl game. Probably will be 4-0 coming to Lincoln, starting the season with Hampton, at UConn, Virginia Tech and UCLA.
Probably the biggest reason for optimism in College Park is the return of sophomore quarterback Malik Washington (6’5” 231 lbs.). A dual-threat, Washington completed 58% of his passes with 17 touchdowns against nine interceptions. He also was Maryland’s second leading rusher, rushing for 303 yards and four touchdowns, averaging 5.4 yards per carry. New offensive coordinator Clint Trickett will be implementing a spread attack, which should better fit Washington’s skill set. Kent State transfer Devin Kargman (6’3” 225 lbs.), a career 49% passer, will back up Washington.
Sophomore running back DeJuan Williams (5’11” 215 lbs.) started nine game last season, rushing for 501 yards and three touchdowns, but only averaging 3.9 yards per carry. Williams did catch 45 passes last season for 426 yards. Southern Cal freshman transfer Harry Dalton (5’10” 205 lbs.) got four games in with the Trojans to maintain his redshirt, averaging 5.5 yards per carry. If the offensive line improves, so should the Terps rushing attack.
The receiver room is a rebuild with only junior tight end Dorian Fleming (6’3” 245 lbs.) returning as a starters. Fleming caught 40 passes for 351 yards and three touchdowns last season. Senior Kaleb Webb (6’5” 201 lbs.) caught 22 passes for 318 yards and two touchdowns as a reserve. Old Dominion transfer Na’eem Abdul-Rahim Gladding caught 51 passes for 667 yards and six touchdowns for the Monarchs.
The offensive line has two returning starters in junior center Michael Hershey (6’5” 295 lbs.) and senior left tackle Rahtrel Perry (6’5” 317 lbs.). Texas State transfer guard Tellek Lockette (6’3” 327 lbs.) has 31 career starts in his career. This might be the position group to watch this season. Improvement on the line will bode improvement across the entire offense.
The same applies to the other side of the ball, though it’s not quite as clear where the upgrade will be. Only junior defensive end Eyan Thomas (6’3’ 328 lbs.) returns after posting 27 tackles last year. Senior defensive end Lavon Johnson (6’2” 310 lbs.) returns after a one-year fling at Texas, mostly on the bench, playing in just seven games with five tackles. Junior nose tackle Derrick LeBlanc (6’5” 310 lbs.) transfers from UCF where he had 13 tackles. Washington transfers Armon Parker (6’3” 312 lbs.) and Jayvon Parker (6’3” 320 lbs.) also are adding some depth, albeit with not a lot of experience. Sophomore rush end Zahir Mathis was expected to contributed heavily until suffering a season-ending injury in early August.
The linebacking corps is led by senior middle linebacker Daniel Wingate (6’5” 230 lbs.), a third-team All-Big Ten honoree last season with 102 tackles. He’ll be surrounded by three sophomores who made serious contributions in 2025. SAM linebacker Sidney Stewart (6’2” 255 lbs.) led Maryland with seven quarterback hurries last season while weakside linebacker Carlton Smith (6’1” 222 lbs.) had 64 tackles. Jack linebacker Zahir Mathis started ten games as a true freshman with six sacks and 35 tackles. This is where Maryland will be the strongest on both sides of the ball.
The secondary could be strong as well, led by senior safety Lavain Scruggs (6’3” 215 lbs.), who was third on the team last season with 64 tackles. Senior cornerbacks Jamare Glasker (6’1” 185 lbs.) and Dontay Joyner (6’0” 180 lbs.) will be joined by Boston College transfer Amari Jackson (5’11” 190 lbs.). Glasker had four interceptions last season with six pass breakups while Joyner had two interceptions and eight pass breakups.
Maryland will be better this season…but that’s a relative thing. The Big Ten’s unofficial media poll slotted them 15th for this upcoming season, ahead of only Michigan State, Rutgers and Purdue. Is that going to be good enough for Maryland? That might be the question to ask in November.
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