New Maryland quarterback Justyn Martin reveals why he "didn't waste any time" committing to Terps
The UCLA transfer is focused on competing for the starting job in College Park.
Maryland football landed a key piece of its transfer haul on Sunday when UCLA quarterback Justyn Martin announced his pledge and signed with the Terps. Martin heard from Maryland a little less than two weeks ago and quickly took a visit to College Park, deciding to join Mike Locksley's program despite interest from Florida and other programs.
"I was mainly looking for a new opportunity and focusing on having a chance to get on the field," Martin said. "That's really been the emphasis on me moving. Florida and Maryland both were in contact with me, but it was kind of out of the ordinary for Maryland, because they were talking to my high school coach directly. So I kind of was behind the scenes on everything ... They wanted to get me on the visit, so I came out and I really liked it, so I just didn't waste any time."
The Inglewood, Calif., native was a four-star prospect and the No. 14 quarterback in the Class of 2022 as a high school senior. After signing and playing for the hometown UCLA Bruins, Martin is taking the leap across the country as he seeks playing time with three years of eligibility remaining.
"The culture there, first stepping off the plane, there was just a lot of culture," Martin said of the DMV. "Football is going to be football wherever you go, so I'm not really too worried about just it being far. I felt like it was the best decision for me, football-wise. That's my focus when I go there, is to play football. I can focus only on football and still do school, but I'm there to make it to the league and accomplish my goals."
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Head coach Mike Locksley has yet to make changes to his coaching staff this offseason, but the pitch for transfers like Martin has not changed. Locksley's history of development at the quarterback position and an offense that has had proven success was still a big topic in his conversations with Martin.
"[Locksley] knows what he's talking about," Martin said. "He knows how to run an offense. He's done it with many different quarterbacks, many different sizes, frames, play styles, and they've all found success. So, the consistency of development was the main thing that attracted me. And yeah, he's done it all, so he has plenty of experience calling the plays, and I truly believe that he can develop me into the player I want to be."
Martin played sparingly in his two seasons at UCLA, but did get a start against No. 7 Penn State on the road this past season, tallying 167 yards and a touchdown on 22-30 passing with an additional 21 yards on five rushing attempts with no turnovers.
"That game just gave me the confidence and reassured me that I could play with anybody, anywhere, anytime," Martin said. "That was the major takeaway I took from that game, and it was good because that was my first start and first time playing in a while. So just to get that reassurance was pretty good."
Standing at 6-foot-4, 220 pounds, Martin has the sort of large frame at the quarterback position that Maryland hasn't had in some time. No promises of playing time have been made, but he'll compete with MJ Morris, Malik Washington and others for the starting role in College Park.
"I'm a big guy who makes a lot of plays, throws from a lot of different arm angles and can extend the play with his legs," Martin said. "Honestly, I'm going to go out and show it this year, but it's exciting to see what I can do on the field. And I feel like, you know, the state of Maryland will be happy."
Maryland football announced Martin as one of eight transfer signees during the early transfer window with the California native set to join the team over the winter.
