Next step for Maryland QB Malik Washington? Be a ‘weapon’ in the run game.

NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos...

COLLEGE PARK — Last fall, Maryland quarterback Malik Washington proved with his right arm that he belonged in the Big Ten.

Now his coaches want him to use his legs.

The next step in the sophomore’s evolution under center is using his mobility to keep the offense on the field and score points. Offensive coordinator Clint Trickett, who joined the program in February, said Washington’s running ability is another weapon he wants to unleash this fall.

“We’ve got to do it every now and then to keep them honest and play with that 11th player,” Trickett said during the team’s spring media day last month. “But we also know you’ve got to protect him, too. So there’s that give-and-take.”

Washington, unsurprisingly, is open to adding that responsibility to his repertoire.

“Whatever I can do to help the team win, I’m here for it,” the Glen Burnie native and Spalding graduate said.

Last season, Washington met the four-star rating attached to him by national recruiting experts. He completed 273 passes (a Terps record for a freshman and fifth in school history) for 2,963 yards (another record by a freshman and sixth in program history), ranked in the top five in the Big Ten in completions and passing yards per game (246.9), and threw for 459 yards in a season-ending 38-28 loss at Michigan State (second-most in school history).

Washington became one of only two freshmen in the conference since 1996 to end the year with more than 2,500 passing yards and 300 rushing yards, but more than half of that occurred via a 164-yard outing in a 35-20 setback at Rutgers. In nine of 12 starts, he did not exceed 18 yards on the ground.

There were some flashes. Washington scampered for a 74-yard touchdown against the Scarlet Knights and ran for 67 yards on six carries in a 20-17 loss at UCLA.

Coach Michael Locksley said Washington is capable of more.

“I think the big thing for him is his ability to add to the run game,” he said. “I think we saw bits and pieces of some of that in the Rutgers game, where he took off and made some plays with his feet. I think there were times — and this isn’t necessarily designed QB runs — but he’s one of those guys that typically tries to hold onto the football to make a throw down the field. And I think there’s some opportunities because of the athletic ability he has.”

Washington’s elusiveness was on display last fall when he was sacked just nine times, the second-fewest total in the Big Ten and fifth-lowest at the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision level. He noted that staying in the pocket longer allowed him to find his receivers downfield.

“That’s what comes with the position. You’ve got to be a decision-maker sometimes,” he said. “You have to try a lot of things at the same time in a short amount of time. And most of the time, if you have a positive outcome on the play, you can live with the decision.”

Related Articles

In three years as a starter at Spalding, Washington gained 736 yards and 19 touchdowns on the ground. His high school coach, Kyle Schmitt, is now the tight ends coach at Maryland, and Locksley said he has tapped Schmitt on how to capitalize on Washington’s potential.

“It was one of my first questions. ‘Hey, bud, you ran this guy a lot in high school,’” he said. “He’s his coach. You need to use him. And so we’ve got to use him in the run game to be a weapon, but as I’ve always done with those quarterbacks, you’ve got to have him protected to make sure that we keep him healthy.”

Washington was the only Terps player to rush for 100 yards in a game last year. The team added former USC tailback Harry Dalton III to a backfield that includes redshirt sophomore DeJuan Williams, a Baltimore resident and St. Frances graduate, and sophomore Iverson Howard, but Trickett has ideas for making the running game more productive.

“It is my job to come in and kind of spice it up a little bit,” he said. “We don’t want to be cute or anything like that, but we will be cutting edge, and we will be very trendy. It’s my job to put the defense in conflict. And then we’re going to make them be in conflict, and we’re going to make them talk and communicate and make them see stuff that they hadn’t necessarily seen before.”

Have a news tip? Contact Edward Lee at eklee@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/EdwardLeeSun.

More at NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos