Sept. 16, 2007

By Joey Flyntz, Athletic Media Relations Assistant

COLLEGE PARK, MD. - Despite the obvious appeal of playing football for traditional powerhouse Notre Dame, Isaiah Gardner couldn't stand to be so far away from home.

After one redshirt season in South Bend, Ind., Gardner left the farmlands of north-central Indiana for the busier lifestyle of the East Coast in 2003. His journey has landed him a spot as a starting cornerback for the University of Maryland Terrapins.

Metropolitan Washington, D.C., not only offered Gardner the faster pace he desired, but also allowed him to be closer to his family, especially his mother, Frances Knight, in Virginia Beach, Va.

"Notre Dame is a great place for football, but the area was just really dead. I'm a city boy and it's just different up there," said Gardner, who originally hails from the Detroit area. "I'm a mama's boy, too. I'm a mama's boy to the 10th power. When I was at Notre Dame, she only got to come and see me twice in a year-and-a-half. I felt like I needed to be closer to home just in case an emergency popped up."

Once Gardner decided to leave Notre Dame, he looked at Maryland, Virginia Tech and NC State. He chose the Terps in part because of the area, but also due to his relationship with Maryland offensive line coach Tom Brattan, whom Gardner grew fond of during the recruitment process while he was at Salem High School in Virginia.

Gardner admitted the view of Maryland's football program is considerably different than that of Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish are arguably the most popular college football team in the country, and football is almost like a religion in the area. However, Maryland football has to compete with the Washington Redskins and Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League, as well as the other attractions of a metropolitan area. That's just fine with Gardner.

"Notre Dame football is on another level," Gardner said. "It's the Mecca of college football. But I like the social life around here. I like the atmosphere around here. There's not just football, there's great basketball and the overall campus life is so diverse. You meet so many different people from different cultures. There are 40,000 students here and you get people from Washington, D.C., and Baltimore. I love it here."

Gardner sat out the 2004 season due to transfer rules and served as a backup in 2005. He became a starter last season, finishing fifth on the squad in tackles with 63. Gardner's solid corner play aside, his most memorable plays of the season came as the gunner on the punt team. Gardner recovered a muffed punt that sparked a crucial come-from-behind win at Virginia, a victory that very well might have turned the team's season around. Later in the season, Gardner forced a fumble on a punt return which was recovered by safety J.J. Justice in the closing minutes of a victory against Miami.

Gardner's big-play ability puts him in good company with his Maryland predecessors at cornerback. These are former Terps like Curome Cox, Domonique Foxworth and Josh Wilson, all of whom are currently collecting NFL paychecks.

Come this time next year, Gardner hopes to have his name listed with those before him.

"I'm trying to leave my own mark. I want people to talk about Maryland's strong cornerback tradition with people like Foxworth, Wilson and Isaiah Gardner," he said.

Whether or not Gardner plays at the next level, his future seems secure. A criminal justice major, Gardner has options in law enforcement, which would make for another interesting stop on what has been quite a journey thus far for one of Maryland's defensive leaders.