Turtledroppings.com

Just when you are ready to go full bore into football season, the ACC wants to remind everyone that basketball is still lurking in the background.  The Terps open the season November 8th against Seattle.  They are also a part of the Coaches VS. Cancer Tournament this year.  They open up the ACC slate on January 9th at Duke!  Hello.  Duke returns to Comcast Center on February 2nd.  The lone matchup with North Carolina is on February 27th in Chapel Hill.  There will be more on the schedule later, but I wanted to get this posted quickly.

MARYLAND
N8 Seattle CSN 8:00
Coaches vs. Cancer, College Park, Md.
N10 College of Charleston ESPNU 7:00
Coaches vs. Cancer, College Park, Md.
N14 Maine CSN/NESN 2:00
N18 vs. Pittsburgh ESPN2 7:00
Coaches vs. Cancer, New York, N.Y.
N19 in Coaches vs. Cancer ESPN2 5/7:00
Coaches vs. Cancer, New York, N.Y.
N23 Delaware State 8:00
N26 Elon CSN 8:00
D1 at Penn State ESPN2 9:15
D5 vs. Temple MASN/FSN 8:00
BB&T Classic, Washington, D.C.
D8 UNCG CSN 7:30
D12 Boston College FSN 4:00
D22 NJIT 8:00
D29 North Florida 8:00
J4 Colgate CSN/NESN 8:00
J9 at Duke FSN 8:00
J12 at Wake Forest Raycom 8:00
J15 at Villanova CBS 1:00
J20 Virginia Tech ESPN/ESPN2** 9:00
J22 Clemson Raycom 2:30
J27 at Virginia CSN 7:00
J30 at Georgia Tech FSN 7:45
F2 Duke ESPN 9:00
F5 Wake Forest Raycom (split) 1:00
F9 Longwood 8:00
F12 at Boston College Raycom (split) 1:00
F15 at Virginia Tech Raycom (split) 8:00
F20 NC State FSN 5:30
F23 Florida State Raycom (split) 9:00
F27 at North Carolina FSN 7:45
M2 at Miami ESPNU 7:00
M5 Virginia Raycom 2:00
M10-13 58th Annual ACC Tournament (Greensboro Coliseum)
All Times Eastern

I always thought it would take a monumental event to get Bob and I to write on one post.  Only I thought it would be something to do with Maryland.  But alas, the calendar reads 9/02/10,  or for those of us who were fans of the show 90210.   With that being said here is Bob and I’s ode to Beverly Hills.

It is finally here!  90210 Day.  The day where the calendar proclaims to the world what it’s favorite TV program is.  For us here at Turtledroppings.com, this is a very special day.  I have often joked to Chris on certain anniversary’s of the website’s founding that “I can’t believe we’ve made it this long and haven’t switched over to writing exclusively about 90210”.  It has been tough to say the least, but on this day it is our civic duty to celebrate the greatest show in all of TV history.

Today’s post is going to be a two parter.  First I am going to recall my top 3 favorite moments of BH 90210, and we will follow that with Chris’s look back on his 90210 memories.  So grab your 90’s gear, pull up a seat and get ready to clap as we fire up the 90210 theme song in our heads.  By the way why does the new version of 90210 quickly gloss over the clap-clap, it was by far the best part of the whole song and should be punctuated by a sound worthy of its significance.  Anyway, before this post turns into War and Peace, we need to get going, so without further adieu, my top 3 moments:

Donna  Martin Graduates.  Is this the crown jewel of the franchise, oh God no!  If someone were to walk in on me watching this episode with everyone in the background chanting this, do I pretend the remote is broken…absolutely.  But can any phrase better sum up an entire episode?  To make this list you have to be a moment where, much like the Kennedy Assassination, or for our generation the Challenger Explosion, you know exactly where you were and who you were with when it happened.  Does Donna Martin Graduate fit that bill, indeed it does.  Donna Martin, you not only graduated, you came in 3^rd in my top 3 moments of 90210 history, and you didn’t even need to get pushed down the stairs!

DMG also get’s bonus points because it reminds me of a story a college roommate told us about working at a temp agency and having to walk around at a store opening singing Kool and the Gang’s “Celebrate”.  I always invision that story to look like the DMG episode.  By the way if I ever tell that Celebrate story without a smile on my face you will know I’m officially dead inside.

These last two moments are tough, it’s like picking which of my children I love most, but unfortunately in this case I have to make a decision.  Coming in at number two, is Dylan leaving after his wife, known as the Noxema commercial girl, gets killed.  Oh so sad.  It definitely meets the “Where was I when this happened” criteria, but not only that, there were actually people in the room who cried after that scene, and I’m not talking chicks here.  I will protect their identity because there actually are a few times a guy can cry.  For example, the end of Field of Dreams, and…well that may be the only other time.  Definitely a touching moment.

In addition Dylan gets extra credit for putting the cat carrier on his motorcycle.  Guys who are jerks would have left the cat, but having him ride off into the sunset with the cat carrier shows that he is macho, but also sensitive….sigh, where was I?  Sorry I sort of drifted off into some day dream.  Anyway, that’s my number 2 BH 90201 moment, which leads to…

The number 1 BH 90210 moment for me is Dylan and Kelly’s first kiss in the pool.  Much like Pickett’s Charge at Gettysburg which proved to be the “High Water Mark of the Confederacy” this moment was the absolute zenith of the whole 90210 franchise.  This was the summer when Brenda and Donna went to Paris, and Dylan and Kelly started hanging out.  The whole summer was leading to this one moment and that scene did not disappoint.  There is a line in Field of Dreams (I know…I know one too many Field of Dreams references in this post) where James Earl Jones talks about America being “Built up, torn down, and built back up again”.  This was that moment for 90210, basically it was as if the show was written on a dry erase board and along came a wet cloth.  The show was turned upside down and would never be the same.  It marked the end of the beginning of the show and led us into those middle years where every week you could count on one solid episode after another.

This also passes the “Where were you when…” measuring stick as I was in my parent’s living room back in Elkton and watching it with my dad and sister.  My dad may never admit it, but even he was on the edge of his seat.  In fact, speaking of seats, I was sitting in the exact same spot a few years earlier when Gulf War I broke out, and that is only the second most historically significant event I witnessed from that local.  That’s how you know it was number 1!

So there you have it, I’m sure I stirred up some controversy, if you have other memories to share (and there are plenty!), please do in the comment section below.  I know the Navy game is just a couple short days away, but come 9/02/10 only comes around, well…once.  So as my old college roommate would sing “Celebrate!”.

When Bob asked me to write about Beverly Hills, I had some ideas.  Top shows.  That is kind of hard to pinpoint.  The list is virtually endless.  I began to think about why I liked the show.  First of all they were a year older (in character anyway).  So there was always that link to them as if they were class mates, or potential class mates anyway.  Then,  I began to think about it a little more, and it became clear I liked it more because things happened to them that weren’t happening to me.  So I figured I would put out a list of things that just didn’t happen to me, but I guess in some kind of made for TV drama world possibly could have.

My best friend didn’t blow his head off with a gun in his house by accident (David’s friend Scott).  I didn’t know anyone who got a nose job (Kelly).  My homecoming float wasn’t  burned down by a deranged ex-girlfriend, who I would later hunt down for a rondez-vouz in San Francisco (Brandon).   My father wasn’t killed by his enemy (Dylan), only to find out he wasn’t really dead.  My father didn’t marry the mother of the girl I essentially stalked when I was in high school (David).   My wife wasn’t killed by her father, who happened to be the supposed killer of my father (Dylan).  We didn’t surf in Elkton.  I didn’t develop a nasty gambling habit and have to have my boss bail me out from the bookie (Brandon).  I never had my Corvette stolen by some girls that looked like lingerie models (Steve).   I never had to steal and forge a check from my Girlfriend to cover the liquor bills at my club (David).  I didn’t become a parent and derail my chance at going to Yale (Andrea), and as Bob mentioned earlier, I didn’t need a stand in at the school committee to allow me to graduate after over indulging at my prom (Donna).

Here is where it gets really fun.  Kelly.  I didn’t get raped, shot, develop a coke addiction, get burned in a fire, have a coke head for a mother, have a father who never showed up when he said he would, I wasn’t portrayed as the rich kid born with a silver spoon on a local gossip show, abuse diet pills, or are you ready for the kicker? I Never joined a cult.  Wow that is a lot for a high schooler/college student to go through, and those are only the ones I remember.

In short, I think we all liked the idea of their lifestyle, but after putting this list together, I think I am quite happy with the way things turned out.

So if you wanted to how much 90201 mattered, think back to a time before DVR’s.  My four college roommates and I would position ourselves on the couch about a half an hour early to get the best spot on one of our four couches.  We would not under any circumstances take phone calls, and quite honestly would be very upset at anyone who would dare call.  That my friends,  is appointment television.  Let’s raise a glass to the late Aaron Spelling for giving us an hour a week where we would get together with friends, and get to take a good look at Valerie Malone (Tiffani Amber- Thiessen).  Happy 9-02-10 day!

There are a lot of question marks coming into 2010, but LB and RB’s aren’t any of them.  In fact if I was as confident in our LB Corp and RB’s as I was every other aspect of the football team, I think we’d be looking at a 10 win season.  But alas football doesn’t work that way.  Especially in college.  For example last season, by the time we got Chris Turner good and experienced as a senior QB, the Offensive line was terrible. 

But in 2010, I’m expecting a great deal from the Running Backs.  I am hoping they will be able to pound the ball, allow us longer possessions (and a longer breather for the Defense) and give Jamarr Robinson enough space to work with, afterall the run games sets up the pass, or is it the other way around?  We’ll stick with this version of the saying for now.

Leading the RB’s is Senior Da’Rel Scott.  Scott looks to come back healthy to finish out his career in College Park.  Let’s hope that he can, when on the field last year Scott averaged 5  yards a carry, so we know he can do it.  He just needs to avoid the injuries, but if he does get banged up, we do have some depth.  Also returning is Junior Davin Meggett.  Regardless of how healthy Scott is, Meggett’s touches will not be limited, he led the team in rushing TD’s last year with 6.  Not a ton of TD’s but considering we scored 13 on the ground as a team, and that makes up half our production.  

Continuing on down the depth chart is Sophomore Gary Douglas.  Douglas, like Scott had great success with the ball in his hand.  He averaged over 5.1 yards per game in 2009.  Douglas was limited to just 16 carries, but made the most of his chances.  He is currently 3rd on the depth chart which will give him plenty of opportunities to show that his yards per carry wasn’t just a few lucky breaks.  Fourth on the depth chart, and also the youngest of our top 4 backs is DJ Adams.  Adams is just a pup as this Freshman is looking to make his mark on the record books for the first time in 2010.  The buzz has been strong around him, and it gives us Terps fans hope that the Running Back position will continue to be strong in the coming years.

As bright as the RB’s future appears to be, there is plenty to improve on from 2009.  For example, Maryland was out rushed by over 500 yards by their opponents, who also outscored them with 20 TD’s on the ground to our previously mentioned 13.  Another key will be the Terps ability to hang on to the ball.  Maryland had 14 fumbles lost to our opponents 8.  As you can see there is plenty of room to improve the ground game in 2010.  I think we have the personel in place to do it.  Let’s just hope everyone stays healthy and builds off their previous success. 

Extra Droppings:

Don’t forget coming up next week is 9/02/10 day, or better recognized as 90210 Day!  I don’t know what this site has in store to mark this momentous occasion, but we’ll have to think of something.  So start growing your sideburns now, and for those of us who can, work on the Brandon-esque hockey puck like hair.

Turtledroppings:  First I am going to start off saying it is tough routing against Navy. I will even go so far to say if I had to say I had a second favorite team, Navy would be it.  I have always thought highly of the service academy’s.  While I was a student, I can remember thinking what are those guys doing, and where will they wind up when they are done?  Nothing but respect for everything they are doing.  After graduating from Maryland I lived in Annapolis for 5 years, so I began to follow Navy a little more closely.  Throw in the fact that play with a little different offense, and they are fun to watch.  However, when they are playing Maryland they are public enemy number one.  Personally I think it would be really cool to play Navy every other year.  It makes a lot of sense to me, and I expecting it be fun again this time.  What are your thoughts on really making this a rivalry?  I know we will never ever compete with Army, but where do you think Maryland can fit in?

Birddog:  I don’t think rivalries are really “made.” They just sort of happen. The Maryland-Navy series has an unusual history that might help kickstart a rivalry, but it’s not like it was an annual game before all the animosity.

I would like to see Navy play Maryland on a regular basis. The only issue is how regular. When you enter into a long-term scheduling arrangement, you aren’t scheduling a team as much as you are a program.  Who’s good in the ACC may vary from year to year, but Maryland is basically the same caliber of program, with the same kind of potential, as everyone else in the conference. That kind of arrangement doesn’t really exist with Navy, with only 2 other comparable programs that face a similar set of circumstances. It doesn’t make very much sense for a service academy to enter an annual series with a BCS program that has far more resources and a much higher ceiling. Navy is favored this year, but that won’t be the norm.

There is too much money to be made not to play, though. The right answer for Navy would be to play Maryland in those years when it makes sense in the context of the rest of the schedule.

TD:  What are your expectations for the season?

BD:  Navy has won 8+ games and gone to a bowl game for 7 consecutive seasons. There is no reason why that streak can’t continue. There has been some preseason talk from various media outlets of Navy being a BCS dark horse, but I won’t be setting any expectations based on that. I do believe that there’s no team on Navy’s schedule that they can’t beat, but I’m sure fans of most of those teams look at Navy and think the same thing.

TD:  Can Ricky Dobbs really make a run at the Heisman?  Why or why not?

BD:  Ricky Dobbs is not going to win the Heisman Trophy. No matter how he does, there are too many voters that would simply never consider someone from the Naval Academy. Even if he doesn’t win, though, the hype that comes from a Heisman run is good exposure for a school that’s trying to reach as many potential candidates for admission as possible.

TD:  How big of a loss is slot back Marcus Curry?  Who will replace him?  Is Navy’s system so good, they can just plug anyone with speed and a few nice moves in and he can instantly become a 1,000 yard rusher?  It seems to me every year they lose someone that had an excellent season the year before, but never really miss a beat.

BD:  I think losing Curry hurts more than some Navy fans would like to admit. It isn’t devastating, but he was the best receiver on the team. Navy doesn’t throw very much, but when they do they want it to be for maximum effect. Most of Curry’s biggest plays came in the passing game. The coaches have said that slotback is the deepest position on the team, so it isn’t as if the cupboard is bare; but only one (Gee Gee Greene) has had very much playing time. Gee Gee is one of the fastest players on the team and is the most likely to pick up the slack left by Curry’s departure, but you’ll see as many as 6 slotbacks rotated in throughout the game. It won’t necessarily be a one-man show.

TD:  As a fan, what is your take on the offense?

BD:  Navy’s offense should be better than it was last year. Both fullbacks are back, 4 of the 5 starters on the offensive line already have starting experience, and Dobbs will be more comfortable running the offense with another year of experience under his belt. The irony behind Ricky’s great statistical year in 2009 is that if he had a better grasp of the offense, he wouldn’t have had so many carries with which to pile up those numbers. He kept the ball a lot more than he should have; Navy QBs don’t usually average 25-30 carries per game. The added experience will help him make better decisions, meaning that he probably won’t be keeping the ball as much. It won’t help his Heisman campaign, but the offense will be better off for it.

TD:  I will be totally honest.  I know very little about the Navy D.  I do know, that they (like Maryland) don’t make a ton of plays behind the line.  Is that because of size, lack of true talent, or more of a defensive philosophy?

BD:  Navy’s defense is fairly conservative. They don’t attack the line of scrimmage as much as they prefer to prevent the big play. The Mids will use 3-4 personnel, but will frequently move one of those linebackers to the line of scrimmage to for a 4-man front. They’ll give up yards between the 20s, but were one of the most improved scoring defenses last year in giving up only 19.43 points per game (18th in the country). The unit will have to replace several of last year’s excellent linebackers, with only one 2010 starter having much experience.

TD:  If I was to watch one guy on the defense, who should I keep an eye on?

BD:  The player to watch on Navy’s defense is defensive end Jabaree Tuani. If he was 3 inches taller, he’d probably be playing for Tennessee, not Navy. He is remarkably fast for his position, and has made plays all over the field. Even if he’s not making the tackle himself, he can disrupt a play enough for the linebackers behind him to finish off the play. He was the 2008 ECAC Rookie of the Year as a freshman, beating out freshman from the Big East and several other schools.

TD:  I am not sure how much you know about our beloved Terps, but where do you think they might have an advantage?  Where do you think Navy has an advantage?

BD:  When Charlie Taaffe was offensive coordinator, the option was a much bigger part of the Maryland offense. Not that it was ever thebulk of the offense like at Navy, but guys like Shaun Hill and Scott McBrien were mobile enough to rush for 200-300 yards in a season. That isn’t earth-shattering, but it was an added dimension that opened up a lot of other areas of the offense. With Jamarr Robinson showing how well he can run last year, I suspect that we’ll see more of the one- and two-back zone-read option game from Maryland now that he’s the starter. Zone blocking offenses have been a problem for the Navy defense in the past because they get the defensive line moving laterally, making typically undersized Navy linemen a lot easier to push around. That, coupled with Maryland’s depth at running back, could help the Terps to a big day on the ground.

As for Navy, their biggest advantage might be the Terps’ relative inexperience in the defensive line against a veteran offensive line playing in an unconventional offense.

TD:  Finally, what is your prediction for the game?

BD:

I know I still owe a RB preview, but as I was checking the National Hurricane Center website, which I do daily from June 1-November 1 each year, and I couldn’t help but notice the 5 day forecast for Tropical Storm Earl (Map courtesy of the NHC of course). 

Now chances are that like most East Coast Hurricane’s it won’t be able to fight off the urge to turn back out towards the Atlantic, but still I feel this is something we should keep an eye on going into next week. 

The current forecast has Earl becoming a Category 3 storm (which is a Major Hurricane) over the next 3 days.  If the forecast remains as is, the only story will be the huge waves and rip currents on the East Coast, but if something were to happen to push his path further to the west, then the Maryland-Navy Football game may not be the main story here over the Labor Day Weekend.

Extra Droppings:

Just want to wish Cal Ripken Jr. Happy 50th Birthday, if that doesn’t make you feel old, I don’t know what will!

Last football season was a disaster.  No question.  If you have to ask yourself to think of a bright spot from all the injuries last year, you are likely going to say that the injury to Chris Turner gave Jamar Robinson some game experience against some tough competition. One thing that did was put to rest the year in and year out unknown going into camp.  This year Jamar Robinson is going to be the starter.  There is no open competition for the starting role as they begin camp.  It is Jamar’s to lose.  And in all honesty, from the games we saw last year, I think there is a little to be excited about with Robinson.

Sure Florida State’s defense was very bad last year, but Robinson still gave Maryland a chance to get their first win in Tallahassee.  Jamar also gave the Terps a dimension they haven’t had probably since the days of Shawn Hill and Scott McBrien, and that was a mobile quarterback.  Against Virginia Tech, Robinson rushed for 129 yards, and will hope to use his legs to not only make big plays, but be able to escape possible sacks and turn them into gains.  Robinson may not be the ideal QB to bring Maryland back to an ACC championship, but he is different than Chris Turner.  All reports coming out of the spring early summer camp, is that Jamar is leaps and bounds ahead of where he was last year.  If the coaches open the playbook for him, we might get to see some pretty exciting QB this year.

Now Robinson is not the biggest QB, and if he likes to run around a lot, there is a pretty good chance we are going to see the back up QB at times this year, and as of now it appears Danny O’Brien is going to sew up that position.  He was a Robinson injury away from seeing action as true freshman last year.  He earned the third string status over CJ Brown more because of his knowledge of the playbook than his overall skill.  Brown will likely be the third stringer this year, and he too has gotten a good bit of praise from the coaches over the summer camp so far.  O’Brien is a little more of a pocket passer that can still make some plays with his feet, while Brown might be more known for his athletic ability than is his overall passing skills.  Either way, there is some talent sitting back there at the back up and number three spot.

Also competing for some snaps, is first year player, and early enrollee, Devin Burns.  He joins the Terps out of Georgia and is also a bit of a dual threat QB.   I suspect Mr. Burns will see a lot of time on the scout team this year, but moving forward, he could get into the mix a couple of years down the road.

I hope I put a positive spin on the QB position for Maryland this year.  With Robinson a junior, and two redshirt freshman backing him up, the position is defiantly a bit untested, but there is some talent to be excited about.  The question remains, what can the line do for them this year to help protect them and give them some time to make plays.  stay tuned as we are less than two weeks away from the start of the season.

One of the more heralded recruits out of Baltimore took off this summer to attend Florida.  Before the summer camp has ended he has decided to come back home and will transfer to Maryland.  Adrian Coxson was granted his release by Florida, and will be forced to sit out this year due to NCAA transfer rules, but he will still retain 4 years of eligibility.  Coxson will be a WR, though he played QB for City College in Baltimore, he is 6’2″ and 195 pounds.  He was a 4 star recruit and a Baltimore Sun All Met player.  Coxson is the second player to transfer from Urban Meyer to Maryland.  Josh Portis came to College Park with A LOT of fan fare and athletic ability, but never really earned his opportunity at Maryland.  Here’s to hoping Coxson is a different situation.  Welcome aboard Adrian

(In my best Jerry Seinfeld voice) What’s the deal with all these injuries?!?  Is it me or do we sit through this every year?  I am still with Ralph Friedgen and I think he is the guy to turn this ship around, but I swear, if Ralph does get canned, I am not going to miss the August injuries or the offensive playbook that takes 5 years for the Quarterback to learn.  Both of those things I can live without.

Once again, another Terp is down, this time it is Emani Lee Odai.  Now maybe I’m crazy, maybe this happens at every college across the country, I just don’t follow those teams close enough to notice.  But it sure is frustrating.  Odai now joins Will Yeatman, Devonte Campbell, Cameron Chism am I missing anyone else??  Maybe I should check back to see if anyone got hurt between my opening sentence and this line of the post. 

I guess though if you want to take a more optimistic outlook, we have a lot of key players that aren’t hurt, and as with everything else in life, things can always be worse.  But in a year where our margin for success is razor thin, we need to catch every break we can muster, but so far the only breaks we’ve been getting are bones.  I already have a sinking feeling and we are still over 2 weeks from the Navy showdown.  Let’s hope we run through our spell of bad luck before the season gets officially underway.

Extra Droppings:

If you get Sports Illustrated, the College Football preview has a great picture of Travis Ivey doing an interview at Dolphin’s camp with about 8 pairs of shoulder pads on.  We wish Travis Ivey the best of luck in his attempt to make his NFL dream come true.  Lucky for him, he will be spending his August far away from the dangerous confines of the practice facilities in College Park, Maryland

When you look at the Maryland depth chart, there are several positions that seem a little thin with experienced upper classmen.  Wide receiver is not one of those positions.  Not only does the Terps, and possibly the ACC’s top playmaker reside there, they bring back a whole stable full of talented players that could really be one of the top groups in the ACC.  Sure that statement could be contested, but in all honesty, it may not be that far from the truth.  There are players that have stepped up and made big plays, but lack the consistency.  If a couple of them put it all together this year (and benefit from being on the field at the same time as Smith) things could be exciting in College Park.

Let’s start with Torrey Smith.  He is the face of the Terps right now.  He is on the Biletnikoff watch list for the top receiver in the country.  Sure a lot of people are on that list, but still, I think we only got to see a player who has yet to reach his true potential last season.  He led Maryland in receptions with 61 for over 800 yards and 5 TD’s.  We began to see a little bit of the “Wild Turtle” last year as the Terps did anything to try and get the ball in his hands to try and generate some offense.  The sky is the limit for him this year, and it will likely be his last.  So enjoy him while you can.  The question is, who will benefit from him being on the field and drawing a lot of attention?

Adrian Cannon could be the guy to really step up this year.  He showed flashes last year, and has the size and speed to be a real threat in the college level.  He had 44 catches for 468 yards and 4 TD’s.  Consistency will be the key for Adrian, as I recall a couple of crucial drops.

The final projected starter is Ronnie Tyler in the slot.  The question for Mr. Tyler is academics.  He is currently taking a summer class and needs to do well to be eligible for the fall.  Tyler is a must.  Despite his smaller size, he is not afraid to go across the middle to make tough catches and take the hit.  The memory I have of Tyler was in the rain against UNC two years ago (I erased all memory of last season).  He made a huge third down conversion to help lead Maryland to the win in the rain.  It was just one of those catches I won’t forget for a long time.

Should Tyler not be available, Quintin McCree is listed next on the depth chart.  McCree recorded 5 catches last year, in a limited role.  Join McCree in the backup positions are three other receivers who recorded catches last year.  That brings the total returning wide out’s that had catches to 7.  I think we hoped for bigger things for Laquan Williams after that amazing catch he had his freshman year at Rutgers, but injuries have kept him off the field, and he never really got his chance last year.  All indications are he is healthy and excited to be playing, so I am looking for more from Williams.  Also back are Kerry Boykins (6 catches for 79 yards), and Kevin Dorsey (3 catches 17 yards).  Also looking to get into the mix is Emani Lee-Odai, and Tony Logan.

There you have the deep Maryland wide receivers.  You have 9 players that could make an impact for this team.  They have all shown they can play, but at times there have been moments where they just haven’t put it all together.  Torrey Smith will be the next Terp in the NFL, the question is who else can step up and make a name for themselves game in and game out.

Tonight at 6:00 Gary Williams will be part of Andy Katz College Basketball Coaches show.  I don’t know anything about the show other than I saw Gary’s name on the bottom line while I was watching the Phillies and Mets last night.  Also featured will be John Thompson III, and Jamie Dixon.  The show will be on ESPNU today (Monday) at 6 PM.