March 29, 2005
COLLEGE PARK, Md. -
The following is the first in a four-part series to run the remainder of this week on the Maryland football team as it approaches its annual spring session in College Park. With the Terrapins' first practice slated for Saturday morning, today's focus will be on the offense in general, quarterbacks, tailbacks and fullbacks.
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In his now five years at Maryland, there may not be a spring football session head coach Ralph Friedgen has looked forward to more than the one his team is about to embark on.
Spring football means the same thing to almost every team in the country every year - fill spots that have been depleted, build depth, bring along young players and continue the education and physical progress of the veterans. This year's University of Maryland team will look to do all of those things, but will be doing it with a young team for the second year in a row and on the heels of its toughest season under Friedgen.
Questions abound at nearly every position, but the focus this offseason will primarily be on the quarterback and tailback spots. But whereas youth will again be the order of the day for the Terrapins, one other thing is clear - the Terps continue to get bigger, stronger and faster.
"When I look at our roster, we again have 60-plus players with three or more years of eligibility left, so we will be young," said Friedgen. "But the thing I see - if you go down to the weight room right now and you start looking at our players -- because we recruited guys with height, they are starting to turn into men."
The following is a look at the 2005 Maryland Terrapins as they enter their fifth offseason under Friedgen and possibly the most interesting.
OFFENSE
It is not a secret that the 2004 season was an atypical one offensively for Maryland the last few years. The team struggled moving the ball, scoring and with turnovers. All marks of a young team.
The 2005 squad will again be young, but almost across the board, that youth will have served a season in the system and be more physically and mentally prepared to succeed.
There are needs at almost every offensive position. A clear-cut starter at quarterback will be one of the primary goals. Finding a new tailback (or set of tailbacks) would fall second. In addition, the team will need to bring along some young - but extremely talented - offensive linemen and find some depth at receiver before reinforcements make their way into town in the fall.
"I think there are a few main things we have to come out of spring with," said Friedgen. "We have to find a quarterback and establish ourself at running back. We have to find consistency running the football and throwing it. We have to stop the turnovers. Hopefully as we mature, that will happen. There is a real desire on our offense to be good again and I see that our kids want to return to a bowl game."
Quarterback
All three of the primary players in last year's quarterback rotation - Joel Statham, Jordan Steffy and Sam Hollenbach -- are back and will participate in spring ball. The race will again be wide open with the latter pair, Steffy and Hollenbach, sitting atop the depth chart as spring commences.
The contrast between Steffy and Hollenbach could not be more different and if there is not much change to one or the other, it may be that contrast that helps the coaching staff with a decision. Steffy is an athletic signal-caller who combines a strong, accurate arm with very good feet and the ability to find his way out of trouble by scrambling. The uncertainty surrounding him comes in his youth, inexperience and inconsistency, all traits that the coaching staff hopes to be cured with a full season and offseason under his belt. Just a true sophomore, spring ball is a luxury he was not afforded a season ago before being thrown into the fire.
Hollenbach's strengths come in the poise and mistake-free football he played at the end of last year. He is a big, pocket-type quarterback who led the Terrapins to a season-ending victory in his only start after performing well late in a loss at Virginia Tech. His arm has improved in his time at Maryland and more importantly, he seemed to play his best ball at game time.
Statham will once again get a shot at the job after spending most of 2004 as the starter. Cutting down on mistakes will be the biggest goal for the fourth-year junior as he has shown flashes of both the throwing ability and athleticism it takes to be effective. Consistency in game-like situations will play a major role in his resurgence as a starter.
"I am hoping we will be better as a group," said Friedgen. "I am counting on all of them benefiting from the experience they had last year. I hope we can come out of spring with a clear leader going into fall practice. The one thing I feel good about is that it isn't going to be like last year as they all have game experience at this point."
Tailback
The tailback situation is a good news, bad news one. The good news (and it's a stretch) is that senior-to-be Josh Allen is scheduled to be a member of the Terps in 2006. Bad news is that the knee injury he suffered in the season-finale against Wake Forest was bad enough that the Terrapin coaching and medical staff has already decided to give him 2005 to completely recover before making his way back to the playing field.
Allen's absence paves the way for the first true wide-open competition at the position since Friedgen's first year and the ultimate emergence of Bruce Perry. Senior Mario Merrills, along with sophomores Lance Ball and Keon Lattimore, will be the primary contenders in the spring.
The hard-working Merrills played well, showing a hard-charging style when he found the playing field last season. Friedgen hopes that he will progress in his final season much like Chris Downs did in 2002, a season that saw Downs finish second in balloting for ACC Offensive Player of the Year.
Ball has all the intangibles one looks for - good size, quick feet, good hands and enough speed to get through the secondary. The hope is that he can minimize assignment errors and become a player in the race for the starting job. Lattimore has bulked up in the last year and has the ideal combination of size and speed. Like Ball, his comfort level in the system will play a large role in dictating playing time.
One other player the coaching staff will be looking at is T.D. Callahan, a back who walked on last year and would give the team a big back option. J.P. Humber will miss spring after having surgery on his shoulder but will also be in the mix in the fall as will be newcomer Morgan Green.
"I thought Mario played well in spots last year and I hope to see him blossom after all of the hard work he has put in," said Friedgen. "Lance Ball is entering his third year and I expect him to start coming into his own. And Keon Lattimore is a big, fast back with a lot of talent and he seemed to pick things up well last year. Overall, I am interested in seeing what they can all do."
Fullback
Due mainly to personnel issues, the Terps went away from, to some degree, the "traditional" fullback a year ago. This season, the plan is to go back to the isolation-blocking, hard nosed, fullback-as-lead blocker approach.
A pair of players who have seen time on defense the last few years will get a good look at the position in the spring. Senior Ricardo Dickerson and sophomore Tim Cesa will each be given a chance to win the starting role with Dickerson ahead as spring approaches. Both are hard-nosed players with Dickerson being the more experienced player at the position. Cesa is strong and has a hitter's mentality so the battle should be a good one. Depending on how depth pans out at the drop end position on defense, the second man of these two could end up back on the defensive side of the ball.
Another player who will factor in will be the Terps' lone signee from 2005 who will be here in spring, Jeremy Navarre. Navarre's focus will be on learning the offense, but he comes in physically ready and with a reputation as a tough player with good hands (15 receptions, three TDs as a senior in high school).
"The first thing we will look for out of our fullbacks is blocking," said Friedgen. "We have changed some things offensively because I think we are more athletic up front than what we have been. I am looking to see how the changes work for us in the spring. I am hopeful that it will take us back to the physical aspect we lacked at certain times last year."
SPRING OUTLOOK SCHEDULE
Offense, QB, TB, FB -- Today
WR, TE, OL -- Wednesday
Defense, DL, LB -- Thursday
DB, Special Teams -- Friday
