The Maryland Terrapins will officially kick off spring practice in a few weeks, but the storylines are already piling up. In this article, I will look at what to expect from the offense during practice, with a look at the defense next week.

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Quarterback Competition

Just like last season, all eyes will be on the quarterbacks during spring practice. The Terrapins currently have just three quarterbacks on their roster, but may add one or two after holding walk-on tryouts. However, the real competition will occur between those three currently on the roster: Perry Hills, Caleb Rowe, and Gage Shaffer. New offensive coordinator Walt Bell will likely take his time in evaluating these three players, and will not make a decision until fall practice when he gains his two freshman quarterbacks: Tyrrell Pigrome and Max Bortenschlager.

I fully expect Hills to win the Terrapins’ starting quarterback job in fall practice, but it will be interesting to see how he performs in Bell’s new spread offense after getting the majority of the snaps behind center last season. Bell’s offense requires a quarterback with the ability to distribute the ball effectively to the team’s playmakers on short and intermediate throws, primarily on screens and timing routes. It also requires a quarterback who can make quick decisions on the fly, as Bell wants to move very quickly. Ideally, the quarterback should have the mobility to be able to keep the opposing defense honest on option plays. Of the five quarterbacks who will be on the roster come fall practice, Hills fits this bill most closely.

While I believe that the starting spot is relatively secure for Hills, the backup quarterback job is up for grabs. Rowe and Shaffer have the upper hand on the job since they will have a few months of experience in Bell’s offense before fall practice begins. While Rowe is the more experienced of the two quarterbacks, his inconsistent, interception-laden play makes him a bit of a liability behind center. If Shaffer can prove a better ability to take care of the ball, he may leapfrog Rowe for the backup job behind Hills. While I am not as high on Pigrome as some others are, with just a few weeks to learn an entire collegiate offense, he will likely need to spend the year redshirting and improving his passing mechanics. If he does play this season, I would expect it to be in a very limited, wildcat-style role.

Running Back Rotation

The competition that I will be following most closely throughout spring practice and beyond is the one that will take place at the running back position. Even though the Terrapins have lost both of their top two rushers from last season (Brandon Ross and Wes Brown), they are still laden with talent at the position. This spring will feature three very talented backs vying for playing time in Bell’s backfield this season.

Ty Johnson is the lone returning running back on the roster, and showed off his speed and elusiveness in his freshman season. However, he is likely not an every-down back and will play more of an H-Back role in Bell’s offense, getting the ball on sweeps and screen passes. Trey Edmunds comes to Maryland from Virginia Tech as an immediately-eligible transfer, and will likely win the job as the Terrapins’ starting running back in 2016. He has the size to be the between-the-tackles runner that Bell wants, while also possessing good agility and elusiveness. The competition between these two backs will be very interesting.

One of the biggest wild-cards in this competition will be the presence of freshman running back Jake Funk. Funk had an incredibly successful high school career in the state of Maryland, and has already started classes at Maryland in order to participate in spring practice. If he impresses the coaching staff, he may force his way into the rotation at running back. As things currently stand, I would expect Edmunds to be Bell’s starting running back, getting 10-15 carries per game. Johnson will serve as the team’s change-of-pace back, getting 5-10 carries per game. I would also expect Funk to receive about 5 carries per game.

Offensive Line

Going into a season, the offensive line is probably the toughest position to project. Since most offensive linemen can play multiple positions on the line, it’s very hard to see where the coaching staff will place them in the end. But let’s try anyway.

I expect Michael Dunn to start his senior season at left tackle, due to his experience and his very impressive play there last season. Some may want to put Derwin Gray or Damian Prince here, but Dunn earned this job last season and I expect him to retain it in 2016. I expect there to be a strong competition for the starting job at right tackle between Gray and Prince, with Prince winning that job and Gray moving over to backup Dunn at left tackle. Both are very talented players, but Prince was set to start the 2015 season at right tackle before suffering an injury.

The interior of the offensive line is currently impossible to project. I feel relatively confident in projecting Brendan Moore to start at center for the Terrapins this season, but the two guard spots are very much up in the air. I expect Quarvez Boulware to compete with Mike Minter for the starting left guard spot, with Boulware winning that battle. However, Minter started there last season before suffering an injury. On the right side, I see Ellis McKennie, Maurice Shelton, and Will McClain all competing for the starting right guard job. I expect McKennie to win the job, but Shelton has the edge as far as experience goes.

See why this is hard to project?

Where Do the Fullbacks Go?

While they weren’t heavily used by former offensive coordinator Mike Locksley, fullbacks certainly played a role in his offense as blockers and (in the case of Kenneth Goins, Jr.) occasional ball-carriers. Bell does not use fullbacks at all in his offense, and I don’t expect that to change. Therefore, fullbacks like Goins, Jr. and Shane Cockerille must find new homes.

Due to his ball-carrying abilities and size, I expect Goins, Jr. to make a transition to running back. This shouldn’t be difficult for him, and he would serve as a big asset to Bell as a short-yardage back. Cockerille is a different story, as his size and skill-set don’t make him a likely candidate to move to running back. Unless he can improve his passing mechanics drastically, I don’t expect him to make the move back to quarterback. If he stays on the offensive side of the ball, I would expect him to move to tight end, where he can use his blocking ability. As a fullback last season, he saw a good amount of time playing in the wing in a tight end’s position, so this wouldn’t be a hard transition for him. If he were to move to the defensive side of the ball, I could see him fitting into defensive coordinator Scott Shafer’s defense as an inside linebacker. This would likely be his best chance for immediate playing time, but he will probably see most of his time on special teams regardless.

Tight End Competition

The final competition that I will be keeping a close eye on is the one that will take place at the tight end position. Last season, we saw three tight ends split playing time for the Terrapins: Derrick Hayward, Avery Edwards, and P.J. Gallo. While Hayward and Gallo were the better run-blockers, Edwards saw most of his time in the slot as a receiver. This season, Bell loses Gallo but re-gains Andrew Isaacs, who has not seen the field since the beginning of the 2014 season due to injury.

Isaacs is the favorite to start the season at tight end, as he is not only a large-bodied run-blocker, but also has the ability to play in the slot as a receiver. However, he has not played in a college football game since early 2014, and Edwards showed his immense talent as a freshman last season. The most likely scenario is that both Isaacs and Edwards split playing time this season. However, Bell does not utilize two-tight end sets in his offense, so it is very unlikely that both of them see the field at the same time.

Zack Kiesel
Zack Kiesel

Terps Analyst

Zack is a financial analyst for a defense contractor in Washington, DC. The Owings Mills native focuses most of his efforts on Maryland Football recruiting and individual coach and player pieces; but also covers Terps Basketball. He has established relationships with Big Ten beat reporters across the conference, which he utilizes in his game previews. Now a Sr. Terps Analyst for BSL, Zack can be reached at: [email protected].

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