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Just thought I'd share some thoughts on a few things now that the 2023 recruiting class is in the rear view.

First, on Harbor (I'll try to keep this short), I know folks keep insisting he went to the highest bidder, it was a money grab, etc. I just want to be clear, that from what I heard, I believe Oregon offered the biggest NIL deal. So it wasn't just a money thing. Did everything change once he signed with an agent/marketing group? Yes, absolutely. But in the end, what I believe truly happened was that it was between Maryland and Oregon (his father actually said this on record to the WaPo), with Oregon likely to win out and Maryland being where his mom wanted him. But essentially with Harbor seeming to waiver a bit, an agent did what a good agent does, which is used Oregon as leverage to get South Carolina to up the ante. Now did they beat Oregon's offer? Based on what I heard, no. But they were able to put together a number close enough that it made the agent happy, made his parents happy that he was closer to home and most importantly, made the kid happy. If you are a Maryland fan it sucks, and this could and likely will have ripple effects in the next cycle, but I just want to be clear while NIL absolutely played a factor, it wasn't the sole reason he's at South Carolina. At the end of the day, he isn't a refined product. He's going to need time to develop and who knows, he might never reach his full potential down in SC and could look to transfer back in a few years. So always best to just wish them well.

As for what's next? I expect Maryland to now wait until after the spring game to make any additional moves with the 2 or 3 remaining scholarships. The priority being an immediate impact corner. Beyond that, I think there's some flexibility, but corner remains a need.

With regards to the coaching search, things should start to ramp up here in the coming days/week. I can say that one name I mentioned, former Texans offensive coordinator Pep Hamilton, appears to be a non-starter. He's turned down multiple interview opportunities and seems to not want to uproot his family at the moment with his son one of the top QBs in the 2025 class. Another name I've heard mentioned is former Houston, Texas A&M and Arizona head coach Kevin Sumlin. He's spent some time in College Park and around the program recently, but I'm not sure he's a viable candidate at the moment either. He's currently got a job as the head of the Houston Gamblers in the USFL. I've also heard that he could possibly be a backup option for a couple of schools down south if they had to move further down their lists.

So now it is on to the spring ball and the 2024 recruiting class.

Should be an interesting game, whether we win or not.

DB Ricardo Cooper Jr. from Calvert Hall
(transferred there from Perry Hall I believe)
-5-9, 165
-Top 10 nationally ranked sprinter; one of fastest players in MD
4.43 40 and also runs 10.7 100. Faster than fellow Terp commit Mykel Morman in 55m indoor this season
-7 int (was leading MIAA when he had 6 leading into Turkey Bowl game so I think he led MIAA in picks)
-10 pbu
-22 tackles
-1 fg block
-1 punt block
-2nd team All-Met Baltimore Sun
-All Conference
-speaking of Turkey Bowl, he ran 23 yards for 1st down on fake punt deep in his own territory for an improbable 1st down that kept drive alive and ultimately set up game-winning field goal for CH with 1:34 left, won 17-14.

Ok, so here's the latest I've gathered on Nyck Harbor and the Harris twins leading up to this afternoon's announcements.

On Harbor, Oregon seems to have clearly taken the lead in the hours leading up to the announcement. The real question at this point simply seems to be who is currently in the No. 2 position. Depending on who you talk to, it is either Maryland or South Carolina. Terps still believe they are in there fighting and it is going to come down to distance and how important the track aspect is versus just football. Locksley spoke with Harbor last night. The South Carolina staff seems to feel equally confident that it is between them and Oregon. Unfortunately, right now, the common denominator is that Oregon seems to be the team to beat. As track and marketing seemed to take on a bigger and bigger role in the final weeks of this recruitment, it just feels to me like Oregon is going to be tough to beat.

As for the twins, I feel quite a bit more confident, although I don't think I can say it is a done deal at this point. As I've been telling you guys for months, the issue here has been that everyone in their camp has been on a different page almost from the outset. And while UCF was the initial call, when the DC left for Arkansas, they opened things back up as he played a big part in getting BOTH twins to agree on the Knights. From everything I understand, it is Michael who is fully on board with Maryland and Andrew who still needed some convincing. It is really strange to me that this is the case as Michael has seemed the more pro UCF twin at times on social media, but I am 100% confident he is all-in on Maryland based on what I've heard from multiple sources. As for mom, she also appears to be on board with Maryland and really does not want them at UCF.

In talking to some Maryland sources, they continue to believe they are going to land the twins when they announce later this afternoon at 1:45 pm. One interesting nugget here? UCF had initially planned a 2 pm presser for Gus Malzahn which would allow some time for the twins to announce and then give him the ability to speak on their commitment. But that presser has since been moved up to 1 pm, BEFORE the twins announce. You would think this move might mean they don't feel confident about their chances heading into the final hours. One final possibility that has been mentioned with the twins is that they shock everybody and compromise by picking Arkansas, but there just doesn't seem to be ANY buzz from the Arkansas side of things that this is a real possibility.

So now we wait and see if Locks can pull off that signing day magic he's so known for with Harbor, while I feel fairly confident that the Terps will ultimately land the twins. Obviously you'd like to go 3-0, but even landing just the twins, especially after their performances in the all-star games, would be huge.

7:00

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A breakdown of Michael Harris' commitment at the link below. Honestly, this might be the best possible outcome for all parties involved. It was clear from the get go based on what I was told, both brothers were never on the same page. Let them go their separate ways and make their own name for themselves at their respective schools. Better than forcing one to go someplace he doesn't want to be and then transferring out months later.

STORY

48th overall and 56th in avg recruit ranking

10th in B1G and 12th in average recruit ranking in the league.

Thank goodness UCLA and USC don't count yet or it would be worse.

His 5th recruiting class is worst since year 1

36th in 2022
20th in 2021
32nd in 2020
61st in 2019

The portal helps, maybe, as over the past few years we have lost a lot of players as well as added some.

Master Recruiter? NYET

BTW, kinda weird that the higher ranked twin that went to UCF is listed at 6'2, ours at 6'0...

UCF comes to Maryland August 30, 2025.

And it is not Shaw....

In other news, Chig named to NFL All-Rookie Team by the Professional Football Writers of America
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My three takeaways from tonight's win over the Hoosiers. The one thing I did NOT include that I think is worth a mention is the fact that the Terps had zero turnovers in the first half and just 5 the entire game. More at the link below.

STORY

From the national team, the Terps are one of four programs to watch heading into tomorrow's late signing period. More at the link.

STORY

Watch Kevin Willard, Donta Scott and JuJu Reese all react following the Terps' win at the link below.

STORY

We're a little over a half hour from tipoff between the Terps and Hoosiers in College Park. Maryland is looking to extend their win streak to three games, while the Hoosiers are looking to win their sixth in a row as they are back in the national rankings this week at No. 21 in the AP poll.

For the Hoosiers, they will be without athletic 6-foot-6 wing Jordan Geronimo for a 2nd straight game. He made the trip out with the team but he is not dressed and his leg is in a boot. He averages 6 points and 3 rebounds per game. The less depth in the front court for Indiana the better it is for Maryland.

Terps are in all white tonight and yes, there is going to be a flash mob. Should be a good one!

The only odds I've seen.

The Terps have already played top-ranked Purdue and Zach Edey, but they will face the top player in college hoops tonight, according to Kevin Willard. Story at the link below.

STORY

Greetings, any students here can say whether tonight is the annual Flash Mob night? Heard that rumor and trying to use it to encourage some friends to attend but I don't want to be full of it if I can help it.

Thanks

Yes, the silly season is here, where you can't swing a dead cat without hitting someone's new mock draft. This one, from CBS Sports, has Deonte as a Rd 1 pick, and has a pretty nice little write up on him. Terps may have one of their better NFL draft results in years. Of course Sr Bowl, Combine and Pro Days will have a lot to say.

It seems Oregon has made up significant ground following Harbor's official visit this past weekend. No surprise there, that is to be expected. But as the high of the visit wears off, these last couple of days of communication are likely going to decide whether it is Maryland or Oregon. At this point, I just really don't see South Carolina or to a lesser extent Michigan, although I won't completely close the door there. As I had previously mentioned, I expect Locks to have something up his sleeve here in the final 48 hours and he's a guy who knows how to close. But I think beyond just the NIL, the track aspect of Oregon is what is keeping this from being the near done deal to Maryland it was just a few weeks back.

As for his visit to Oregon, his mom did not make the trip and they visited both the newly renovated state-of-the-art track facility and Autzen Stadium. He also met with academic folks who discussed their pre-med courses (education very important here. Mom is a pharmacist and dad works at NASA Goddard as an engineer). Again, sounds like he was very impressed.

The biggest thing working in Maryland's favor here is distance. I get the impression they do not want him on the other side of the country, even as some advising seem to be pushing the Ducks. Everyone is just going to have to sweat this one out a little longer but the Terps are still squarely in the mix as this recruitment nears the end.

The Harris twins, who both got bumped to four-star status following their performances at the UA All-America game and the Polynesian Bowl are taking a final visit to UCF this weekend.

I have not and as of now do not plan on switching my FutureCast for Maryland for the twins. As I've been telling you guys from the start, no one in their camp, including the brothers themselves, have been on the same page from the start. Mom wants one thing, dad another, and even the twins seem to disagree on things. Maryland went in-home with a full staff last Tuesday and they feel good about where things stand.

My gut feeling based on some things I'm hearing? It is a single brother that is pulling strings with regards to this weekend's visit to UCF. I think the majority of their camp prefer Maryland and I'm sticking with the Terps heading into the final weekend.

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Let's beat PSU tonight.

Andy Katz just put out his Power 36 rankings for this week and the Terps are back in the rankings at No. 30.

When you look at the Terps, two of their losses are to the top 2 teams in the rankings, while 5 of their 7 losses are to teams in the top 36 and they have beaten the other two teams they lost to. They also have a win over No. 21 and will get a chance at another big win tomorrow night when they host No. 8 Indiana.

They win the next two and they are likely right back in the AP Top 25. Link below for anyone who wants to see the full rankings.

LINK

NCAA cracking down on NIL deals.

Sounds like this could go in the Harbor thread as well.

RIP to Billy Packer.

I was lucky enough to work as a runner as a kid for Raycom/JP during Maryland games and had the chance to work with/meet Packer a few times. I'll be the first to say, he absolutely could be a surly SOB at times, but he told it like it was and brought a ton of knowledge to the broadcast. Of course, he was on the call with Jim Nantz when the Terps won the championship game in 02 and who can forget this call?

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