With the early signing period set to begin tomorrow, we take a look at where things stand with Maryland and a number of recruits following a busy weekend.
For those that don't already know, the early signing period begins Dec. 15 and runs through Dec. 17. All incoming freshmen have until the end of the 17th to sign their letter of intent. The exception being mid-year JUCO transfers, who have until Jan. 15 to sign and enroll at the school of their choice for the spring semester.
As of now, the Terps currently have 13 total commits heading into tomorrow's signing day. Of those 13 commits all appeared to be solid with the exception of two. There was some worry that Belle Glade (Fla.) Glades Central offensive linemen Ja'Kavion Nonar and Keon Kindred might take a last minute visit to Florida, where they have continued to recruit the high school teammates even after their commitment to Maryland and a staff change. Neither Nonar or Kindred ended up visiting UF this past weekend. From what I understand, the fact that Florida still has not publicly named an offensive line coach likely has something to do with that. That said, from what I understand, Maryland feels good that they will both stick with the Terps. We will have to wait and see if they do, in fact, sign during the early period. If they do not, Florida becomes a major threat here.
Amipeleasi Fifita, the massive JUCO D-lineman from Independence that I had been saying was not officially a part of Maryland's class despite being listed as a commit elsewhere, will not be signing with Maryland. He took an official visit to College Park a couple of weekends ago but announced his decommitment *AGAIN* over social media the other day after taking an official visit to Houston last weekend. This kid has been all over the map from the get go but can now officially say, he will not be a Terp.
Octavian Smith - I'm expecting Smith to commit to the Terps and be a part of Maryland's incoming freshman class after officially visiting this past weekend. Smith was initially committed to Northwestern and is a nice late get for Locks & Co. He will be an early enrollee.
Leon Haughton - While it initially looked like Vanderbilt might have a slight edge over the Terps heading into his official visit this past weekend, it looks like Locks & Co. were able to close the deal and I now expect the Terps to land a commitment from Haughton. At 6-foot-4, they see Haughton as being able to come in and be a guy who can eventually replace Demus, stretching the defense and being a big red zone target. This is also a big deal as Benedictine is a big-time program in Virginia which produces a lot of talent on a yearly basis. This is a school Maryland would love to have a pipeline to.
Bennett Meredith - Meredith's official visit was a short one, as he arrived on Saturday evening and stayed through Sunday evening almost right up to the start of the dead period. The Terps are working to try to close the former Northwestern commit but this appears to be a battle down to the wire with Arizona State. I can say that the Sun Devils previously felt very good about their chances with Meredith and that he scheduled the visit with Maryland while there was talk that ASU offensive coordinator and QB coach Zak Hill was possibly leaving to take the same job at Auburn. It appears Hill will remain in Tempe which should help ASU's chances. That said, Maryland got the last word and is working to close Meredith and land his commitment during the early signing period.
Matt McCoy - The Terps were the first P5 offer for McCoy, a Florida native who has since blown up with offers from both UF and Miami. McCoy clearly has genuine interest in the Terps, seeing that he took a visit ahead of the dead period, but with him not expected to sign until the late period in Feb., there is still a long ways to go in this recruitment, which is likely to be a battle for the next several weeks.
Eugene Asante, the UNC linebacker who entered the transfer portal last week and was expected to take an official visit to Maryland this past weekend instead ended up taking a visit to Auburn. It now appears the Terps are no longer in the running for Asante.
Alabama transfer Pierce Quick, had a good official visit with the Terps and Maryland is squarely in the mix with Georgia Tech, where he took a visit the weekend prior to trekking through College Park. From what I was told even before his visit to Maryland, this recruitment is very likely to come down to the Terps and Yellow Jackets. There was some hope on Ga. Tech's part that Quick would not follow through with his Maryland visit and instead just commit to Tech. The fact that he both followed through with the visit and had a good time is an excellent sign for the Terps. With all of that said, Quick does not appear to be in any kind of hurry with making a decision, so we will have to wait and see if he decides to commit during the early period or perhaps take some additional visits before making his decision. Regardless of what he decides, the Terps appear to be in solid shape following his official visit.
Jacob Copeland - I'm expecting Copeland, the Florida transfer wide receiver, to commit to Maryland at some point in the not-too-distant future following his official visit last weekend. Copeland is a talented receiver who put up over 600 yards and 4 TDs last season.
Michael Vice - The Samford transfer tight end is high on Maryland and tight ends coach Mike Miller. Miller went in-home with Vice who appears to be very high on the Terps. I like where the Terps stand although I'm not sure an announcement is imminent.
Virginia Tech commit Ramon Brown is one the Terps have been trying to flip for some time. Virginia Tech, Maryland and South Carolina have all been battling it out for Brown. He took a recent unofficial visit to South Carolina and also to Maryland a couple of weekends ago. That said, he visited Virginia Tech this past weekend and the Hokies feel like they have a good shot at holding on to Brown come signing day. With the last minute visit to Virginia Tech, it does appear the Hokies are likely to hold on to Brown. That said, a flip to Maryland would not be a huge surprise.
Larry Turner-Gooden - The four-star safety from California took an unofficial visit to Maryland this past weekend and the Terps could be in the drivers seat heading into signing day. There was some belief that Turner-Gooden, a former Arizona State commit, was possibly headed to Texas, but with him taking an unofficial visit to Maryland just ahead of signing day after taking an official visit to Maryland a few weeks back, it seems like the Terps have likely done enough to land his commitment.
The Terps appear to be in solid shape with Iowa Central JUCO OL Max McCree heading into the early signing period as they are his biggest offer and appear to lead Syracuse for a commitment.
Jaishawn Barham - If ever there was going to be a crazy surprise, this would be it. Based on some intel I got just prior to his announcing for South Carolina, I could see a last minute flip to the Terps. Maryland has remained in contact with Barham and he is expected to sign and enroll early regardless of where he finally signs this week.
Andre Roye, the St. Frances offensive lineman who committed to Penn State and there was some hope might flip to Maryland, now appears to be a possible flip to USC, where he visited this past weekend. The Terps appear completely out of the picture at this point.
For those that don't already know, the early signing period begins Dec. 15 and runs through Dec. 17. All incoming freshmen have until the end of the 17th to sign their letter of intent. The exception being mid-year JUCO transfers, who have until Jan. 15 to sign and enroll at the school of their choice for the spring semester.
As of now, the Terps currently have 13 total commits heading into tomorrow's signing day. Of those 13 commits all appeared to be solid with the exception of two. There was some worry that Belle Glade (Fla.) Glades Central offensive linemen Ja'Kavion Nonar and Keon Kindred might take a last minute visit to Florida, where they have continued to recruit the high school teammates even after their commitment to Maryland and a staff change. Neither Nonar or Kindred ended up visiting UF this past weekend. From what I understand, the fact that Florida still has not publicly named an offensive line coach likely has something to do with that. That said, from what I understand, Maryland feels good that they will both stick with the Terps. We will have to wait and see if they do, in fact, sign during the early period. If they do not, Florida becomes a major threat here.
Amipeleasi Fifita, the massive JUCO D-lineman from Independence that I had been saying was not officially a part of Maryland's class despite being listed as a commit elsewhere, will not be signing with Maryland. He took an official visit to College Park a couple of weekends ago but announced his decommitment *AGAIN* over social media the other day after taking an official visit to Houston last weekend. This kid has been all over the map from the get go but can now officially say, he will not be a Terp.
Octavian Smith - I'm expecting Smith to commit to the Terps and be a part of Maryland's incoming freshman class after officially visiting this past weekend. Smith was initially committed to Northwestern and is a nice late get for Locks & Co. He will be an early enrollee.
Leon Haughton - While it initially looked like Vanderbilt might have a slight edge over the Terps heading into his official visit this past weekend, it looks like Locks & Co. were able to close the deal and I now expect the Terps to land a commitment from Haughton. At 6-foot-4, they see Haughton as being able to come in and be a guy who can eventually replace Demus, stretching the defense and being a big red zone target. This is also a big deal as Benedictine is a big-time program in Virginia which produces a lot of talent on a yearly basis. This is a school Maryland would love to have a pipeline to.
Bennett Meredith - Meredith's official visit was a short one, as he arrived on Saturday evening and stayed through Sunday evening almost right up to the start of the dead period. The Terps are working to try to close the former Northwestern commit but this appears to be a battle down to the wire with Arizona State. I can say that the Sun Devils previously felt very good about their chances with Meredith and that he scheduled the visit with Maryland while there was talk that ASU offensive coordinator and QB coach Zak Hill was possibly leaving to take the same job at Auburn. It appears Hill will remain in Tempe which should help ASU's chances. That said, Maryland got the last word and is working to close Meredith and land his commitment during the early signing period.
Matt McCoy - The Terps were the first P5 offer for McCoy, a Florida native who has since blown up with offers from both UF and Miami. McCoy clearly has genuine interest in the Terps, seeing that he took a visit ahead of the dead period, but with him not expected to sign until the late period in Feb., there is still a long ways to go in this recruitment, which is likely to be a battle for the next several weeks.
Eugene Asante, the UNC linebacker who entered the transfer portal last week and was expected to take an official visit to Maryland this past weekend instead ended up taking a visit to Auburn. It now appears the Terps are no longer in the running for Asante.
Alabama transfer Pierce Quick, had a good official visit with the Terps and Maryland is squarely in the mix with Georgia Tech, where he took a visit the weekend prior to trekking through College Park. From what I was told even before his visit to Maryland, this recruitment is very likely to come down to the Terps and Yellow Jackets. There was some hope on Ga. Tech's part that Quick would not follow through with his Maryland visit and instead just commit to Tech. The fact that he both followed through with the visit and had a good time is an excellent sign for the Terps. With all of that said, Quick does not appear to be in any kind of hurry with making a decision, so we will have to wait and see if he decides to commit during the early period or perhaps take some additional visits before making his decision. Regardless of what he decides, the Terps appear to be in solid shape following his official visit.
Jacob Copeland - I'm expecting Copeland, the Florida transfer wide receiver, to commit to Maryland at some point in the not-too-distant future following his official visit last weekend. Copeland is a talented receiver who put up over 600 yards and 4 TDs last season.
Michael Vice - The Samford transfer tight end is high on Maryland and tight ends coach Mike Miller. Miller went in-home with Vice who appears to be very high on the Terps. I like where the Terps stand although I'm not sure an announcement is imminent.
Virginia Tech commit Ramon Brown is one the Terps have been trying to flip for some time. Virginia Tech, Maryland and South Carolina have all been battling it out for Brown. He took a recent unofficial visit to South Carolina and also to Maryland a couple of weekends ago. That said, he visited Virginia Tech this past weekend and the Hokies feel like they have a good shot at holding on to Brown come signing day. With the last minute visit to Virginia Tech, it does appear the Hokies are likely to hold on to Brown. That said, a flip to Maryland would not be a huge surprise.
Larry Turner-Gooden - The four-star safety from California took an unofficial visit to Maryland this past weekend and the Terps could be in the drivers seat heading into signing day. There was some belief that Turner-Gooden, a former Arizona State commit, was possibly headed to Texas, but with him taking an unofficial visit to Maryland just ahead of signing day after taking an official visit to Maryland a few weeks back, it seems like the Terps have likely done enough to land his commitment.
The Terps appear to be in solid shape with Iowa Central JUCO OL Max McCree heading into the early signing period as they are his biggest offer and appear to lead Syracuse for a commitment.
Jaishawn Barham - If ever there was going to be a crazy surprise, this would be it. Based on some intel I got just prior to his announcing for South Carolina, I could see a last minute flip to the Terps. Maryland has remained in contact with Barham and he is expected to sign and enroll early regardless of where he finally signs this week.
Andre Roye, the St. Frances offensive lineman who committed to Penn State and there was some hope might flip to Maryland, now appears to be a possible flip to USC, where he visited this past weekend. The Terps appear completely out of the picture at this point.
