Aug. 18, 1997
Leaner Tailback Carries His Weight for Terrapins
By Nicholas J. Cotsonika
Washington Post Staff Writer
His favorite was fried chicken wings at a University of Maryland hot
spot called Danny's. Tacos would work, too, or maybe a juicy
cheeseburger, oozing with enough saturated fat to sicken an offensive
lineman. Hunger has never been a problem for Terrapins senior tailback
Buddy Rodgers; but for now, Danny's will have to wait.
Rodgers is hungry for something else. In this new era of Terrapins
football, under Coach Ron Vanderlinden, Rodgers and his fellow
tailbacks will be the offense's featured, and potentially best,
option. With few of last season's top wide receivers returning, no one
can afford to be sluggish if the Terrapins are to begin a return to
prominence, especially Rodgers.
After Maryland went a disappointing 5-6 last year, Rodgers -- whose
season also was less than stellar -- drowned his sorrows in grease. His
weight ballooned from 230 pounds to 242, not a promising statistic for
a player who stands 5 feet 11 and contributed just 447 yards rushing
last season while dealing with a bad hamstring and other nagging
injuries.
"He absolutely had to get his weight down," Vanderlinden said. "He
needs to be lighter, to be quicker. He needs to be in shape."
For the past three seasons, Rodgers has carried the ball an average of
100 times. But he is sixth in school history with 17 rushing
touchdowns and seventh in school history with an average of 4.4 yards
per carry. He has an ability to find holes and accelerate through
them-the hands to catch, the muscles to block, the brawn to gain tough
yards.
This winter, however, he had girth, too.
So for a few agonizing months, he traded his lard for lettuce, tacos
for tofu and his beloved wings for wins. "It's all about winning,"
said Rodgers, a Parade high school all-American in 1994 as a senior at
East Providence High School in Rhode Island. "I had to be
self-disciplined, staying away from bad food and not eating late at
night like I used to. I realized that it wasn't worth the pleasure of
eating if we were losing."
Rodgers ran extra miles after his normal training routines. He ate
broccoli. He wrinkled his nose and his stomach rumbled, but he now
weighs 219 pounds. Vanderlinden said he is excited to "see Buddy has
come into camp in shape. That means a lot."
Vanderlinden said he plans to firmly establish the running game this
season, and without a strong corps of fullbacks, that means Rodgers,
senior Brian Underwood, sophomore Harold Westley and others -- possibly
including freshman Lamont Jordan -- will have to contribute.
Underwood nipped Rodgers for the team lead in rushing last season, 449
yards to 447, and Westley added 421. And each had his individual
highlights. Underwood gained 80 yards on 14 carries against Clemson.
Westley was named ACC rookie of the week for his performance against
Wake Forest, in which he gained 120 yards-a school record for
freshmen-on just 11 carries.
But Rodgers had the biggest game of all, when he followed a 106-yard
game against Wake Forest with a 176-yard game against Duke. He also
rushed for 718 yards as a sophomore, the most by a Maryland runner
since Alvin Blount had 828 in 1985.
He should be a major part of an offense that will pride itself on
being relentless. Part of the reason he was so motivated to lose
weight was Vanderlinden's edict that has not been cliche at Maryland:
If at first you don't succeed, try again.
"In the past, it seemed if a play didn't work the first time, we
didn't try it again until the fourth quarter or the next game,"
Rodgers said. "The coaches seem to have a little more faith in us now.
With this team, we're determined to make it work. We're going to
practice that play, and if it doesn't work, we're going to run it
again, more and more until we get it right."
Terrapins Notes: Junior linebacker Eric Barton and several of his
teammates took some extra initiative during training this offseason.
Working independently in seven-on-seven practices is common, but
Barton and his teammates traveled to Howard University on occasion for
some competition against the Bison. Linebackers coach Chris Cosh said
he had never heard of players doing such a thing, but Barton said it
made sense. "It's boring going against your own guys," he said. "We
wanted to add some bitterness and some fire, and they gave it to us."
...
Freshman defensive back Tony Jackson, also an exceptional offensive
player at Wilde Lake High School in Ellicott City, said he will
compete in baseball for the Terrapins if his grades are high enough.
He has set his personal standard as a 2.5 grade-point average.
"Anything below that," Jackson said, "is unacceptable."
