Sending Thanks

Head coach Michael Locksley was sitting in church in July as the Terps prepared for the upcoming season when he learned an unexpected valuable lesson. 

The coach gained an understanding that would allow him to grow as a coach and teacher of life. Locksley learned that it's more effective to introduce a new habit than trying to eliminate an old one. The pastor at the church gave the example of replacing entitlement with gratitude. When he heard the analogy, it stuck with him. He even began applying the lesson to his coaching habits. 

To replace entitlement with gratitude, Locksley came up with the idea of handing out thank you cards to the many individuals who have supported Maryland football over the years. On select days of fall camp, student-athletes and staff showed their gratitude to Maryland’s academic staff, the Mighty Sound of Maryland, team bus drivers and many others who support the program, whether it's with their time or money.

“We’ve done some great things here the last three years, and I know that isn’t done just because of me,” Locksley said. “[There’s] been a lot of people that have given me the resources, whether it’s financial [or] whether it's advice. … “To replace entitlement with gratefulness, I said, ‘Let's look at some of the people that have helped our program.’”

Locksley dedicated time before each practice to discussing a specific person who had impacted the football program. The lectures allowed each student-athlete and staff member to become familiar with the person, even if they had never interacted with them. 

Each student-athlete and staff member then hand-wrote a letter thanking them for their contributions. Each individual received more than 120 thank-you notes with distinctive messages.  

“It really gave me a different perspective about this team because they got into it, and they really enjoyed hearing the stories about the different people,” Locksley said. “With all the changes that happened, look at our football program. We’ve had quite a few head coaches come through here since 1985, and some of these people have been supportive throughout.” 

Maryland’s Barry P. Gossett Director of Athletics Damon Evans was one of the many who received a stack of thank you cards. 

"It was very touching to receive so many thank you notes from our Terp football players," said Evans. "Our student-athletes understand there are so many individuals who contribute to their college experience and this really demonstrates that. I want to thank each of them for their notes, thank you!"

Another individual who received the cards was Jose Canu, a facilities management worker in Gossett Hall for the University of Maryland. Locksley explained to his team that he had known Canu since 1997 when he first arrived at Maryland as the Terps’ running backs coach. 

“He's been cleaning up in the morning at 4 a.m., 5 a.m. every morning since I've been here,” Locksley said, describing his work ethic. 

Locksley told his team a story about Canu that showcases his love and support for Maryland football. The coach was in the locker room hyping up his team before they were set to take on Rutgers in Piscataway, N.J., on Nov. 27, 2021. The game was Maryland’s regular-season finale, and a win would’ve been the program’s first bowl game appearance since 2016. 

The coach looked up and saw Canu in the locker room. He was confused because Maryland was on the road on a Saturday — Canu didn’t travel with the team or work on weekends. 

“I was just like, ‘Why are you here?’” Locksley asked. “He's basically like, ‘Coach, these are my guys, and I want to be here to see you go to your first bowl game with this team. I know how hard you work.’” 

He continued. “It blew my mind on a day off he's driving up to Rutgers, New Jersey, to come support his team. It showed me just how important this team is to a bunch of people.”

One of Locksley's priorities as a coach is to field a competitive football team that can contend for championships. He also believes in doing things the right way to achieve that goal. His belief is an extension of his other priority of developing his student-athletes into role models and respectable young men. The thank-you cards ensured the student-athletes kept appreciation in the forefront while teaching how far a simple thank-you can go and how it can make another person's day.

“That's what we do here,” Hemby said. “We want to make sure that we value the people who value us, and with those letters, we were able to do a little bit of that.”