Maryland’s place in the Big Ten preseason conversation is about where you’d expect it to be, at least according to On3’s latest media poll: No. 15 in the conference.
That leaves the Terrapins near the bottom of the league heading into August, with only Michigan State and Rutgers behind them. Rutgers, though, finished one game better than Maryland in 2025, and the Terps also dropped games to both of those teams last season.
At the top of the poll, the familiar heavyweights occupied the first five spots. Ohio State checked in at No. 1, Oregon followed closely behind, defending national champion Indiana landed at No. 3, and USC and Michigan rounded out the top five.
For Maryland, the bigger question isn’t where the preseason poll places them. It’s whether this roster can finally turn a long-running Big Ten struggle into something more competitive.
The Terps have gone 1-8 in conference play in each of the past two seasons, and last year’s league slate was especially frustrating. They coughed up double-digit leads early, then watched the offense and overall competitiveness fade as the schedule wore on.
There is at least a case for a better showing this fall. Maryland brings back much of its offensive and defensive production, which should give the staff some stability.
Malik Washington returns as the starting quarterback for his sophomore season, and Clint Trickett steps in as offensive coordinator. The offense is also expected to get help from new transfers at running back and wide receiver, giving the Terps a chance to spread things out more effectively.
Defensively, Maryland gets key starters back on the edge, at linebacker, and in the secondary. Five-star recruit Zion Elee adds another layer of upside, and the mix of transfers and incoming talent gives the group more pieces to work with.
The schedule won’t make anything easy. Ohio State stands out as the toughest opponent on the Big Ten slate, while Penn State, USC, Illinois, and Nebraska are the other games that could tilt in Maryland’s favor.
The broader conference picture only sharpens the challenge. Indiana enters as the reigning national champion and will try to defend its crown, while Ohio State, Oregon, and Michigan remain in the usual championship mix. Maryland, meanwhile, is still chasing something it hasn’t done in a long time: finish above .500 in Big Ten play under Mike Locksley, who has been in charge since 2019 and owns an 18-53 record against the conference overall.
The Terps’ lone Big Ten win last season came in a 27-10 road victory over Wisconsin in September. Beyond that, the results were bleak across the league, with Purdue going 0-9, Michigan State 1-8, Wisconsin 2-7, Rutgers 2-7, UCLA 3-6, Penn State 3-6, Northwestern 4-5, and Nebraska 4-5.
Maryland’s last season with at least five conference wins came in 2010, when it was still in the ACC and finished 5-3, including an upset of No. 21 NC State.
There’s enough returning talent to make Maryland interesting, but the Terps still have to prove they can turn that into wins inside a conference that has punished them for years. If everything clicks, a 4-5 Big Ten finish is in play.
In Other News...
Quince Orchard State Champion QB William Drakeford Jr. Headed To Kentucky
William Drakeford Jr. has taken the next step in a story that already reads like a local football success tale. The Quince Orchard quarterback helped guide the Maryland state champion program to a perfect 14-0 season as a senior, piling up all-state and all-county recognition along the way, and now he is headed to Kentucky to continue his career.
Drakeford committed to the Wildcats as a preferred walk-on, choosing Lexington over several smaller-college options. For Kentucky, it is another addition to a roster being shaped under first-year head coach Will Stein, and for Drakeford it is a chance to keep building on the momentum he created in high school, even if the path to playing time will have to be earned the hard way. [Read more 🡒]
Marylands New Look Has Fans Dreaming And Worrying At The Same Time
Marylands roster is starting to take shape for the 2026-27 season, and the early look offers plenty for fans to like. Buzz Williams has added guard help through the portal and recruiting, bringing in Bishop Boswell and DJ Wagner, along with forward Tomislav Buljan and wing Baba Oladotun, while Pharrel Payne and Andre Mills give the Terps a couple of familiar pieces to build around. It is the kind of offseason mix that can make a team look deeper, longer and more versatile before a single game is played.
The challenge, of course, is turning all that promise into something coherent once the season arrives. Maryland still has to sort out how the pieces fit, and the non-conference slate will not make that process any easier with games against South Carolina, Georgetown and Virginia on the schedule. There is real reason to think this group could improve under Williams, but there is also enough moving around to leave the Terps with questions they will not answer until the lineup settles and the games start counting. [Read more 🡒]
Maryland Just Landed A Baltimore Showcase Fans Will Be Watching
Marylands non-conference schedule is starting to take shape, and the most eye-catching date so far is a December 19 trip to CFG Bank Arena in Baltimore to face South Carolina. It will be the first time the Terrapins and Gamecocks have met in Baltimore, and it adds another local showcase for a program that continues to look for ways to keep its biggest games close to home.
The matchup also brings back an old series that has been dormant since 2005, when the teams last met in the NIT semifinals at Madison Square Garden. Maryland still owns the edge in the all-time series, and the broader schedule announcement comes with some added program context, including a year-long celebration tied to the 25th anniversary of the Terps 2002 NCAA championship. [Read more 🡒]