COLLEGE PARK, Md. – An eager Maryland football team returned to practice for its first of 15 practices to begin the 2015 spring season Wednesday morning at Capital One Field at Byrd Stadium.

“I thought they gave a strong effort and they were really excited to get back into it,” said head coach Randy Edsall, who is entering his fifth season at the helm of the program. “The first few days are all about learning the new techniques and installing new packages before spring break.”

The hot topic of the day surrounded the football program's decision to switch from a 3-4 base defense to a 4-3 base under new defensive coordinator Keith Dudzinski, who remains the team's inside linebackers coach, as well.

Dudzinski has a plethora of experience as a defensive coordinator, serving in the role from 2004-10 at UMass-Amherst and guiding the Minutemen to top-20 team defense rankings in three seasons.

“I think things went well,” Dudzinski said. “There's going to be a little bit of a learning curve there, but we're going to make sure we put our guys in the right position to make plays.

A pair of notable players directly affected by the new defense are 2014 Honorable Mention All-Big Ten honoree Yannick Ngakoue and Jesse Aniebonam. Both played outside linebacker last season and will move to defensive end positions on the defensive line.

“Yannick will be fine and he is excited about the new position,” Edsall said. “You're going to see Yannick and Jesse get better and better every day and we'll be able to take advantage of their skillsets.”

Edsall noted the key difference to this season's spring workouts is the players' knowledge of the Big Ten Conference. With a season of Big Ten play under their belts, the players have a better idea of the competition to expect and prepare for.

“I told them we need to make the most of every opportunity,” Edsall said. “If we perfect the fundamentals of the positions that we play, then we will be a very good football team.”