In his first full year to put together a recruiting class at Maryland, head coach Mike Locksley signed 23 prospects on National Signing Day Dec. 18 and currently has the Terps sitting at the No. 5-ranked class in the Big Ten and No. 26 nationally, according to Rivals.com.

The crown jewel of Maryland’s class this year is Washington (D.C.) St. John’s College High five-star wide receiver Rakim Jarrett, who was committed to LSU before flipping on signing day to stay home and play for the Terps. Jarrett staying local made Maryland the only Big Ten program other than Ohio State to sign a five-star in the 2020 class.

Jarrett is ranked as the No. 2 wide receiver in the 2020 class by Rivals. The 6-foot, 190-pound pass-catcher is Maryland’s highest-rated signee since Stefon Diggs in 2012, and the program’s first five-star since Damian Prince in 2014.

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Jarrett’s flip superseded what would have otherwise been Maryland’s biggest signing day acquisition, Hollywood (Fla.) McArthur four-star linebacker, Ruben Hyppolite, who committed to the Terps back in April and stayed true to his word when it came time to put pen to paper last Wednesday.

Maryland also reloaded big time at running back. After losing Anthony McFarland and Javon Leake, who both recently declared for the NFL Draft, Locksley added two talented four-star tailbacks on signing day to fill the void.

Owasso (Okla.) running back Isaiah Jacobs — brother of Oakland Raiders rookie runner Josh Jacobs — and Detroit (Mich.) Martin Luther King halfback Penny Boone signed with Maryland on signing day, giving the Terps two players in the backfield that should be able to make an immediate impact. Boone — Detroit’s player of the year — is a bit raw but has immense upside, while Jacobs is said to be the more polished runner at this point with perhaps a little bit lower of a ceiling.

In total, the 23 student-athletes that signed with Maryland during the early signing period hail from 12 different states, showing that the program is indeed what Locksley has referred to before as a “national brand.”

While some of the Terps’ marquee recruits came from the DMV, the most heavily represented state in Maryland’s 2020 class is Florida. Locksley and his staff received Letters of Intent from seven Sunshine State prospects.

With 10 offensive players and 13 defensive players signed, sealed, and delivered to College Park already, Maryland is expected to have nine early enrollees come January who will be able to participate in winter workouts and spring practice — Jakorian Bennett, Beau Brade, Johari Branch, Ja’Khi Green, T.J. Kautai, Devyn King, DeaJuan McDougle, Shane Mosley, and Hyppolite.

Maryland’s full list of early signing period acquisitions includes:

Jakorian Bennett
Defensive Back
Jr.-JUCO., 5-11, 192
Mobile, Ala. (McGill-Toolen HS/Hutchinson CC)

Penny Boone
Running Back
Fr.-HS, 6-0, 230
Detroit, Mich./Martin Luther King HS

Beau Brade
Defensive Back
Fr.-HS, 6-0, 191
Clarksville, Md. (River Hill HS)

Johari Branch
Offensive Line
Jr.-JUCO, 6-3, 330
Chicago, Ill. (Phillips Academy/Independence CC)

Frankie Burgess
Linebacker
Fr.-HS, 6-1, 202
Pahokee, Fla. (Pahokee HS)

Nick DeGennaro
Wide Receiver
Fr.-HS, 6-0, 190
Princeton, N.J. (Hun School)

Viliami Finau
Defensive Line
Jr.-JUCO, 6-2, 334
Euless, Texas (Trinity HS/Independence CC)

Delmar Glaze
Offensive Line
Fr.-HS, 6-4, 274
Charlotte, N.C. (West Mecklenburg HS)

Ja’Khi Green
Offensive Line
Fr.-HS, 6-6, 310
Baltimore, Md. (St. Frances Academy)

Ruben Hyppolite II
Linebacker
Fr.-HS, 6-0, 219
Hollywood, Fla. (McArthur HS)

Isaiah Jacobs
Running Back
Fr.-HS, 5-10, 209
Tulsa, Okla. (Owasso HS)

Rakim Jarrett
Wide Receiver
Fr.-HS, 6-0, 205
Temple Hills, Md. (St. John’s College HS)

T.J. Kautai
Linebacker
Jr.-JUCO, 6-1, 240
Euless, Texas (Trinity HS/Independence CC)

Devyn King
Defensive Back
Fr.-HS, 5-11, 168
Gardena, Calif. (Junipero Serra-Gardena HS)

Khristopher Love
Offensive Line
Fr.-HS, 6-2, 315
Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (American Heritage School)

DeaJaun McDougle
Wide Receiver
Fr.-HS, 5-10, 172
Deerfield Beach, Fla. (Deerfield Beach HS)

Glendon Miller
Defensive Back
Fr.-HS, 6-2, 189
Orange Park, Fla. (Ridgeview HS)

Shane Mosley
Defensive Back
Fr.-HS, 5-11, 192
Havertown, Pa. (Haverford HS)

Mosiah Nasili-Kite
Defensive Line
So.-JUCO, 6-1, 306
Puallup, Wash. (Emerald Ridge HS/Indepence CC)

Zachary Perkins
Offensive Line
Fr.-HS, 6-4, 319
Wesley Chapel, Fla. (Berkeley Prep HS)

Tre Smith
Defensive Line
Fr.-HS, 6-2, 293
Frostburg, Md. (Mountain Ridge HS)

Tarheeb Still
Defensive Back
Fr.-HS, 5-11, 165
Sicklerville, HS (Timber Creek HS)

Riyad Wilmot
Defensive Line
Fr.-HS, 6-3, 247
Lauderhill, Fla. (St. Thomas Aquinas HS)

The rest of Maryland’s 2020 class will be announced on National Signing Day Feb. 5. The Terps’ unsigned verbals include: Oxon Hill (Md.) Potomac three-star wide receiver Corey Dyches, Springdale (Md.) Flowers three-star offensive tackle Santana Saunders, Canton (Ga.) Cherokee three-star running back Ebony Jackson, and New Berlin (N.Y.) Milford Academy three-star athlete Osita Smith. All are expected to stick with Jackson having the highest flip potential.

Remaining targets for February

The number of scholarships Maryland will have at its disposal will become more clear as we get closer to the next National Signing Day. Early enrollees don’t count against the 25-player recruiting class max, nor do grayshirts or blueshirts.

But while the number of additional players Locksley and his staff will take remains up in the air, the players and positions the Terps will be targeting are a bit more clear.

As it stands now, the 2020 class is the first Maryland recruiting class since 2014 in which the Terps didn’t sign a quarterback, but there’s still time and Locksley is certainly still looking for a signal called to add to his roster. It could end up being a grad-transfer from another program or a JUCO gunslinger, but three-star dual-threat Georgia quarterback CJ Dixon is another one to keep an eye on. Dixon recently decommitted from Illinois, and Maryland has always been a school in the conversation of his recruitment.

But the trenches are where Locksley knows his team needs the most help. The Terps did a good job of adding some size already, but Maryland will certainly need more to climb the ranks of the Big Ten East.

The biggest name to keep an eye on here is Baltimore (Md.) St. Frances Academy four-star defensive end Demon Clowney, who was expected to sign with LSU but decommitted on signing day and will now make his announcement in February. Clowney is a former teammate of Jarrett and will likely be hearing from his fellow former LSU commit soon about the Terps.

Maryland also has a chance to land a couple of JUCO pass rushers — four-star DeAndre Butler from Independence C.C. (Kan.) and three-star Dionte Gipson from Hutchinson C.C. (Kan.). The Terps have already made waves with this junior college programs, signing four from Indy and one from Hutchinson last week. Gipson’s teammate at Hutchinson, three-star linebacker Gereme Spraggins is also firmly on Maryland’s radar for February.

Locksley will also turn to the JUCO ranks to try to reel in three-star offensive lineman Kobe Rios, who has expressed major interest in Maryland coming out of Council Bluffs (Iowa) Iowa Western C.C. but is working his way through some eligibility issues in order to sign in February. In terms, of the offensive line, Maryland also has its sight set on Jonesboro (Ga.) Mt. Zion three-star blocker Phillip Wilder, who recently took an official visit to College Park.

A wildcard signing for the Terps in February could turn out to be Harvey (La.) John Curtis three-star athlete Corey Wren. Wren is a big-time playmaker who was originally committed to Georgia before re-opening his recruitment in early December. He was at Maryland for an official visit Dec. 14.

Pat Donohue
Pat Donohue

Terps Analyst

Pat has been covering sports in the DMV area since 2012. He is a former Washington Redskins beat reporter for PressBoxDC.com and has been covering University of Maryland football and basketball recruiting and daily beats for Rivals.com’s Terrapin Sports Report since 2013. Pat graduated from College Park with his master’s degree in journalism and has received bylines in publications such as USA TODAY Sports, The Philadelphia Inquirer, SB Nation, and Yahoo! Sports. A Philadelphia native, Pat enjoys fishing, golfing, and playing fantasy sports when he’s not covering or watching a game.

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