Big Ten · Mike Locksley, year 8 (38-44) · SECU Stadium · 51,802 · 43,421 avg in 2026
LastW 38–14 at UConn · Sat Sep 12 · Derrick LeBlanc 2 sacks, 2 TFL, 2 tackles
Nextvs Virginia Tech · Sat Sep 19 · 7:30 pm ET · SECU Stadium · Virginia Tech by 3 · series 17-15, won the last 2 · Game preview
Updated Tue Sep 15 · through week 2
| Wk | Date | Us | Opp | Line | Opponent | Result | Record | Conf |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sep 6 | #76 | #260 | -45.5✓ | Hampton | W 62–0 78 | 1-0 | 0-0 |
| 2 | Sep 12 | #75 | #124 | -11.5✓ | @UConn | W 38–14 130 | 2-0 | 0-0 |
| 3 | Sep 19 | #66 | #43 | +3 | Virginia Tech | |||
| 4 | Sep 26 | #65 | #51 | UCLA | ||||
| 5 | Oct 3 | @Nebraska | ||||||
| 6 | Oct 10 | @Ohio State | ||||||
| 7 | Oct 17 | Rutgers | ||||||
| 9 | Oct 31 | Illinois | ||||||
| 10 | Nov 7 | @Purdue | ||||||
| 11 | Nov 14 | Wisconsin | ||||||
| 12 | Nov 21 | @USC | ||||||
| 13 | Nov 28 | Penn State |
| Date | Opp | Result | Yds | TO | TOP | EPA/play | Success% | Explosive% | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 12 | @UConn | W 38–14 | 475 | 0 | 35:31 | +0.264 | 46.8% | 131.9% | |
| Sep 6 | Hampton | W 62–0 | 646 | 0 | 29:03 | +0.504 | 59.5% | 124.2% | |
| Season average (2 games) | 560 | 0.0 | +0.384 | 53.2% | 128.0% | ||||
Maryland has the most striking identity in college football — the state flag stitched into the jersey — and a team that keeps coming up short of letting the look mean what it could.
The fanbase watches the same DMV recruits it should own get pulled away by Ohio State and Penn State and Michigan, then sees those programs run the league — the sense that Maryland is a supplier to th…
The season in chapters
What fans said
Real posts from the day of the game, chosen by community score · usernames not shown
What it is like to watch them2025 · 4-8 · last season
✓ measured from 12 games · ranks are among Big Ten teams the same season
Recent form · last 10 games · incl. 2025
Cooling. 2-8 over the last 10, and won the last two.
That’s too big of a picture for me to worry about. I’m more concerned about week one
Next Sep 19
vs Virginia Tech · at home
✓ fact on line · ~ our read on style
Market outlook
Sportsbook consensus · best odds across multiple books · 2026-09-14
the open questionwhere does it go from here?
Mike Locksley enters his 7th season with a 4-8 losing record and a #52 talent rank, raising the question of whether this rebuild can finally translate to more than 5.5 wins.
our readdeveloping
Octavian Smith Jr. produces at a notably LOWER rate when his team is an underdog than when favored -- he fades when the pressure is on, and his per-target value drops too.
our readdeveloping
Shaleak Knotts produces at a notably LOWER rate when his team is an underdog than when favored -- he fades when the pressure is on, and his per-target value drops too.
our readdeveloping
DeJuan Williams does NOT see a usage spike in garbage time -- his workload holds steady regardless of score.
our readbackground
Dorian Fleming is used almost exclusively underneath -- a low share of his targets are downfield shots.
our readbackground
Jalil Farooq is used almost exclusively underneath -- a low share of his targets are downfield shots.
our readbackground
Kaleb Webb is a real deep-ball threat -- a high share of his targets come on throws past the sticks.
our readbackground
Shaleak Knotts is a real deep-ball threat -- a high share of his targets come on throws past the sticks.
our readbackground
Maryland: coordinator change reshaping a unit.
our readbackground
Maryland enters 2026 — the 75th-ranked SP+ jump is real, but bottom-quintile returning production and a 4-8 record raise the question of whether this is a step forward or another.
our readbackground
Outcome band · Maryland · 2026
Floor, base and ceiling come from the season-path projection, which plays out conference title games and the CFP — so a ceiling can run past 12 games.
Maryland win total rose from 4.5 to 5.5 (+1 wins) between Jul 17 and Jul 18, 2026 (tier B). It is win total up 1.0 from 4.5 to 5.5. The market moved; the fan base is split on what it means. Oddsmakers react to information, not sentiment — but that doesn't mean they're right. The room is divided — bulls and bears both have game-specific cases.
The 'market knows something fans don't' read -- when odds move, it's on information.
The 'markets overcorrect' counter -- lines move on noise too; the receipts may not hold.
This event was in 90 of 880 board posts (10%) over the last 60 days — engaged but not consumed. Fan text shown verbatim, attributed to the community not the individual poster.
The boards ≠ the fanbase: a vocal, self-selected slice.
Fan mood index · most recent r/cfb data
More in this tab
Maryland is the program with the most beautiful uniforms in CFB and the eternally rebuilding football team underneath.
Maryland DE Zahir Mathis out for season
Mathis was Maryland's best pass-rush prospect and now he's gone before he played a snap — a D-line room that was already thin on developed edge talent just lost its highest-ceiling piece heading into Big Ten play.
Maryland CB sentenced to probation
Probation, not prison — but a CB room already flagged for depth issues doesn't need any more uncertainty hanging over its roster heading into Big Ten play.
QB Cardell Williams transfer commits from Sacramento State
Six portal QBs cycled through and Justyn Martin walked out the door — Williams arrives from the Big Sky with starting tape Locksley can actually build a spring depth chart around.
Win total: 4.5 → 5.5 (▲1)
The 4.5 to 5.5 move confirmed what was already public — the market repriced after the news landed.
Maryland receiver suspended indefinitely
Locksley's receiver room takes a hit right before Hampton week — depth at wideout was already thin after one draft departure, and an indefinite suspension doesn't pair well with a top-25 class trying to prove the Big Ten revival is real.
RB Terrez Worthy transfer commits from Temple
Four departed, four added — but Nolan Ray's carries don't replace themselves, and Worthy's AAC tape shows a back who earned touches in a real conference, not a depth chart placeholder.
Top 3 commits
Recruiting Footprint · 2026
MD leads the 2026 class with 7 commits. National footprint reaching 10 states.
Where they recruit · 2023-2026
91 signees across 14 states, 2023-2026. MD leads the pull.
That is 16.8% of every high-school FBS signee MD produced over those cycles — the biggest share any program takes — Temple is next. The full map →
Miles from home · 2026 roster
The median Maryland player grew up 73 miles from campus.
Half this roster came from closer than that; half came from farther.
Straight-line distance from each player's listed hometown to SECU Stadium. Hometowns are placed at city-centroid precision, not street address — fine at this scale, but a player's true door-to-door number can differ by a few miles. 100 of 109 listed players have a geocoded hometown. Source: CFBD roster hometowns.
No high-engagement r/cfb discussions tracked for this program in the last year.
Fan confidence in a typical range for this program right now
32nd percentile among FBS programs
The penalty battle is a wash: 11 penalties committed vs. 17 drawn on opponents.
107 penalty yards committed vs. 132 drawn on opponents, 2026 season total.
Outcome band · Maryland · 2026
Recruiting Footprint · 2026