Football Set to Open Spring Drills March 31
6/21/1999 8:00:00 AM | Football
15-DATE SPRING CAMP STARTS TUESDAY AFTERNOON
University of Maryland will open up its 15-date spring football practice period this Tuesday. The Terps are scheduled to practice approximately four times a week for the next four weeks. Spring drills will conclude Saturday, April 25 with the annual spring game.
YEAR 2 OF VANDERLINDEN ERA GETS UNDERWAY
Ron Vanderlinden, who helped rebuild struggling programs at Colorado (1983-91) and Northwestern (1992-96), begins his second season as head coach at University of Maryland in 1998. Vanderlinden, 42, was named the Terps' head coach in December of 1996 after a five-year stint as assistant head coach and defensive coordinator at Northwestern under Gary Barnett.
13 STARTERS AMONG 37 RETURNING LETTERMEN FOR TERPS
Maryland will return 37 lettermen -- including 13 offensive and defensive starters -- when it opens spring camp Tuesday. On offense, key returnees include tailback LaMont Jordan, runner-up for ACC Rookie of the Year honors last season; wide receiver Moises Cruz, who led the Terps in receptions and receiving yards as a redshirt freshman; and three starters on the offensive front, including 6-7, 299-pound tackle John Feugill, who has made 23 starts in his career. Defensively, the Terrapins return one of the country's top linebacking tandems in seniors Kendall Ogle and Eric Barton, who ranked 2-3 in the ACC in total tackles last season; tackle Delbert Cowsette, who is the lone returning starter on the defensive front; and defensive back Lewis Sanders, who had four interceptions last season.
QB CUMMINGS, DE OGBOGU AMONG KEY LOSSES
Among key losses from last year's Maryland team are quarterback Brian Cummings, who finished his four-year career ranked among the school's top five in a host of passing categories, and defensive end Eric Ogbogu, the team leader in sacks in '97. Cummings, who signed a free agent contract with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League, ended his Terrapin career in fifth place on Maryland's career lists for passing yards (4,080), attempts (595), completions (344) and total offense (3,964). Cummings was Maryland's team MVP in 1997. Defensive end Eric Ogbogu, who had four sacks in the Hula Bowl to earn defensive MVP honors for the South squad, led the Terps in sacks (4), fumbles caused (3) and fumbles recovered (3). The Terps also lost starting strong safety Henry Baker, who finished fourth on the team in tackles (66).
A GLIMPSE AT THE TERPS ENTERING SPRING DRILLS
Offense
QB -- The Terps must find a replacement for three-year starter Brian Cummings, whose eligibility expired at the end of last season. Fourth-year junior Ken Mastrole, who has thrown 108 career passes, enters spring camp No. 1, and will be pushed by junior Trey Evans and redshirt freshmen Gil Harris and Erik Lipton.
TB -- LaMont Jordan, who set a number of school freshman rushing standards in '97 on way to finishing second in balloting for ACC Rookie of the Year, is the featured performer at the running back spot. The coaching staff has high hopes for Damone Boone, who missed most of last season with a hamstring injury. Maryland loses its second- and third-leading rushers in Brian Underwood (219 yards) and Buddy Rodgers (194).
WR -- Seven lettermen who accounted for 89 receptions for 1,195 yards and seven TD's return, led by redshirt sophomore Moises Cruz, who topped the Terps in catches (29) and receiving yards (337). Third-year sophomore Omar Cheeseboro, who had a team-high four touchdown catches in '97, also is back.
TE -- Returning starter Mike Hull (13 catches in '97) returns, and will be challenged by junior John Waerig (redshirt transfer from Wisconsin) and redshirt freshmen Eric James and Matt Murphy.
OL -- Three starters are back, but the coaching staff is anticipating some position changes in an effort to put the best five linemen on the field. Senior right tackle John Feugill (23 career starts) heads the offensive front, which also returns starters in center Ben Thomas and Brad Messina, who is being shifted to left tackle from left guard.
PK -- Sophomore Brian Kopka (6 of 10 FG's) and senior Brad Rhodes (1 of 3) return.
Defense
DL -- Terps must replace three starters from '97. Junior Delbert Cowsette, an 11-game starter who led the team in TFL's (10) last season, is the top returnee.
LB -- Maryland boasts one of the nation's top duos in seniors Kendall Ogle (138 tackles) and Eric Barton (134), the ACC's top two returning tacklers. Also back is starter Erwyn Lyght, who ranked sixth on the team in total tackles (62) in '97.
DB -- A major area of concern for the Terps, who featured four first-year starters in the secondary last season. Six lettermen are back, including Lewis Sanders, whose four pickoffs ranked third in the ACC. Sanders, who started 10 games at free safety last season, is being shifted to cornerback this spring. Maryland returns three DB's who accounted for nine of the team's 11 INT's last season. Henry Baker, the starting strong safety who finished fourth on the team in tackles (66), is gone.
P -- Senior Russ Edwards returns after posting a 38.0-yard average in 1997.
QUOTING RON VANDERLINDEN
"Our primary concern entering the spring is to continue to develop our running game and a tenacious attitude that will enable us to move the ball on the ground vs. all opponents on a consistent basis. Equally important, we need to make consistent improvement in our passing game. The development of a starting quarterback is also a primary concern.
"We will maximize the allowed practice time in order to do justice to both the running and passing games this spring. The challenge for us offensively will be to get all four quarterbacks enough work to allow them to display their abilities and grow within the system. [On defense], Kendall Ogle and Eric Barton should provide great senior leadership from the linebacker position. As a tandem, I can't imagine there is a better duo in the ACC."
TERP SCHEDULE NOTES
1. Florida State
12. North Carolina
22. Clemson
27. Virginia
29. Georgia Tech
35. North Carolina State
1997 MARYLAND RESULTS (2-9) 14-21 L Ohio 7-50 L at #5 Florida State 14-40 L #6 North Carolina 24-21 W at Temple 16-10 W Duke 14-31 L West Virginia 17-35 L at Wake Forest 9-20 L Clemson 0-45 L Virginia 28-45 L at NC State 18-37 L at Georgia Tech
COACHING STAFF
Head Coach: Ron Vanderlinden
Offense
OC/QB: Craig Johnson
RB/RC: Mike Locksley
WR: Mike Gundy
TE/OT: Bob Heffner
OG/C: Elliot Uzelac
Defense
DC/ILB: Wally Ake
DL: Rubin Carter
DB: Doug Mallory
OLB: Dan Rocco
5 BOWL TEAMS HIGHLIGHT TERRAPINS' 1998 SCHEDULE Maryland's 11-game 1998 football schedule will feature five schools coming off bowl appearances, seven teams which posted winning records last season, and a cumulative opponent regular season winning percentage in '97 of .562, second-highest among ACC schools. The schedule features non-conference matchups vs. West Virginia, Temple and James Madison in addition to the regular eight-game ACC slate. The Terps are scheduled to kick off their 106th season of intercollegiate football in College Park Sept. 5 when they host James Madison in a non-conference game at Byrd Stadium.
It will be the first of six home dates for the Terrapins, who also will host non-conference foe Temple (Sept. 26) and ACC opponents Florida State (Oct. 3), Wake Forest (Oct. 17), Georgia Tech (Oct. 31, at Baltimore) and North Carolina State (Nov. 21). Maryland's five-game road slate includes ACC contests vs. Virginia (Sept. 12), Clemson (Oct. 10), North Carolina (Nov. 7) and Duke (Nov. 14), and a non-conference matchup vs. West Virginia (Sept. 19). The game against West Virginia is the first of five contests vs. teams that advanced to bowl games last season. In addition to WVU (Carquest Bowl), other bowl teams on Maryland's '98 schedule are Florida State (Sugar), Clemson (Peach), Georgia Tech (Carquest), and North Carolina (Gator).
2 NEW ADDITIONS TO MARYLAND'S COACHING STAFF Head coach Ron Vanderlinden tapped a pair of experienced college coaches to fill vacancies on his coaching staff in mid-February, hiring former Navy head coach Elliot Uzelac and former Texas aide Dan Rocco. The 56-year-old Uzelac has spent 30 years at the collegiate level and one in the NFL. He most recently served as offensive coordinator/offensive line coach at the University of Minnesota this past season. In addition to a three-year stint as Navy's head coach from 1987-89, he served as head coach at Western Michigan from 1975-81. Uzelac also served a two-year stint as offensive coordinator at Colorado (1993-94) under Bill McCartney and two stints (1973-74, 1982-86) as an offensive line coach under Bo Schembechler at Michigan. At CU, he directed an offensive unit that led the Big Eight in total offense both seasons and set or tied 55 school records. Rocco, 37, is a 1984 graduate of Wake Forest who has worked at five schools over the past 14 seasons. He spent the previous four seasons on the staff at Texas, coaching defensive ends and special teams in 1997 after coaching outside linebackers from 1994-96. Uzelac will coach the offensive guards and centers at Maryland; Rocco will coach the outside linebackers. Vanderlinden also announced increased responsibilities for two other members of his staff. Tight ends coach Bob Heffner will also coach the offensive tackles, and defensive coordinator coach Wally Ake will also handle inside linebackers.
Said Vanderlinden of the new additions: "Elliot Uzelac brings a wealth of experience to the Maryland football program. In general, he is considered the finest offensive line technician in the country. Dan Rocco and I worked together at the University of Colorado in 1987, and I know him to be an excellent football coach and person. Dan played collegiately at Wake Forest, where he later coached, so he knows the ACC. He originally is from Pittsburgh, so he should definitely be an asset recruiting the state of Pennsylvania. The experience both bring to our staff should help keep us on schedule as we rebuild the Maryland football program."
LOCKSLEY ASSUMES DUTIES AS TERPS' RECRUITING COORDINATOR Mike Locksley, Maryland's running backs coach, has assumed duties as the Terps' recruiting coordinator. Locksley replaces Chris Cosh, who accepted a position at Michigan State.
TERPS ADD A PAIR OF SIGNEES TO 1998 RECRUITING CLASS Randall Jones, a quarterback/free safety who starred at Gov. Thomas Johnson High School, and Chad Killian, a fullback out of Fox Chapel High School in Pittsburgh, have signed national letters of intent to play football at University of Maryland, second-year coach Ron Vanderlinden announced. Jones, a 6-2, 207-pounder, graduated from Gov. Thomas Johnson High in 1997 and played this past fall at the Naval Prep Academy in Rhode Island. In high school, he was a two-time all-state free safety who totaled 21 interceptions in a three-year varsity career. As a quarterback, he rushed for 19 touchdowns and passed for 13 others during his senior season of '96. He helped lead the Naval Prep Academy to one of its best seasons in recent years this past fall.
Killian, 6-2, 235, was a first team all-state selection in 1997 after scoring 28 TDs and rushing for nearly 1,500 yards.
