Maryland has reached the halfway mark of its 2026 season, and the record tells the story as clearly as anything else: 2-4 entering Week 7 against Rutgers, with any talk of a breakthrough now sounding pretty far-fetched.
Still, the Terps haven’t been one uniform disaster. Some units have held up, a few have even flashed, and others have dragged the whole operation down. The first six games have sorted out the roster in a pretty unforgiving way.
The biggest letdown sits at quarterback, where Malik Washington came into the year as the obvious source of hope. A highly touted local prospect who was excellent as a freshman, he has gone from centerpiece to problem.
He answered in the Week 3 loss to Virginia Tech, but since then the numbers have turned ugly: two touchdowns and three pick-sixes over his last three games. At this point, a switch to Sac State transfer Cardell Williams is very much on the table.
The run game hasn’t offered much relief either. Maryland was already the Big Ten’s second worst rushing team a year ago, and the improvement this season has been minimal.
Even after stripping out the bloated production against FCS Hampton, this still profiles as one of the conference’s worst rushing attacks. DeJuan Williams missing three weeks with injury explains part of it, but it doesn’t excuse the lack of depth behind him.
That transfer portal miss has shown up in a big way.
There has, however, been one real offensive bright spot in Chris Durr Jr. Even after a quieter outing at Ohio State, Durr sits fourth in the nation with 46 catches and leads Maryland with 476 receiving yards and four touchdowns.
After that, though, the receiver room has largely vanished since Big Ten play started. The grade here gets some help from Washington’s rough play, but if the group disappears again this weekend, that leniency may not hold.
Dorian Fleming has continued to fill the role of the dependable fourth option he had last season, while Preston Howard has been slowed by injury and hasn’t become nearly as impactful as Maryland would like. It’s been solid, if unspectacular.
Up front, the story has gone in the wrong direction. Last season’s strength on the offensive line has become a weak spot, especially on the left side, where Washington’s blind side has been exposed too often.
Maryland has also piled up 13 penalties already, which is more than it committed all of last year. The one constant has been Michael Hershey, who remains one of the nation’s best pass-blocking centers.
The pass rush has been the defense’s best argument for optimism, and it has done its work without Zahir Mathis, who is out for the year. Zion Elee has stepped into the spotlight and produced 2.5 sacks along with two forced fumbles.
Sidney Stewart has kept rolling too, posting an 87.6 PFF pass rush grade. As a group, Maryland ranks 15th nationally in that category, with run defense still keeping it from a true “A” grade.
Elsewhere on defense, though, the picture gets much murkier. The front four have held up, but the rest of the unit has been a problem. Missed tackles and poor pursuit angles have allowed opponents to gash the Terps on the ground, and coverage has not been much better.
Jamare Glasker has been the exception in a secondary that has otherwise unraveled. Injuries have hit that group hard, and things got so thin that Dontay Joyner returned after previously being off the team for threats of violence, only to be picked apart by Ohio State. Even the raw numbers probably flatter Maryland’s pass defense, since opponents have often built leads and then leaned on the run.
Special teams has had its own issues. Maryland owns the lowest net kick return and punt yards average in the Big Ten, factoring in one Washington pooch punt. The Terps are more middle of the pack in punt return and kickoff yardage, and kicker Sean O'Haire has gone 8/9 on field goal attempts with a long of 42.
In Other News...
Maryland Gets One Last Test Before The Games Start Counting
Marylands preseason tune-up against Georgia Tech offered a useful snapshot of where Kevin Willards team stands before the results start to count. The Terrapins handled the exhibition with the kind of edge coaches like to see in October, leaning on defense and a quicker pace while getting an early look at how the roster fits together in live action.
There is still plenty of attention on the pieces that could shape the season, starting with Pharrel Paynes return after a lost stretch and Andre Mills coming off the kind of freshman year that suggested more is coming. Paynes presence gives Maryland another proven frontcourt option, while Mills gives the Terps a perimeter scorer who has already shown he can take over stretches. The next test will say even more about how ready this group is when the games begin to matter. [Read more 🡒]
Maryland Faces Early Rotation Test As Buzz Williams Keeps Sorting Lineups
Marylands preseason tune-up continues this weekend with a public scrimmage against West Virginia after an exhibition against Georgia Tech, giving Buzz Williams another chance to sort through combinations and see what this roster looks like against live competition. For a team still taking shape early in the process, these October looks matter less for the scoreboard than for the feel of the group, especially with a new coach trying to establish roles, rotations and tempo before the games start to count.
West Virginia coach Ross Hodge already sounded like he came away respecting what Maryland brings, pointing to the Terps physicality and overall talent while mentioning players such as Pharrel Payne and Andre Mills. From Marylands side, the value is just as clear: this is another useful test against a high-major opponent, and the scrimmage should help both staffs get a better read on lineups and team dynamics as they build toward the 2026-27 season. [Read more 🡒]
Maryland Baseball Just Got The Schedule Test That Will Define 2027
Marylands baseball program now has its 2027 map, and it is the kind of schedule that will tell the Terps plenty about themselves before the Big Ten race fully takes shape. The 56-game slate mixes a demanding non-conference lineup with an expanded conference grind, while the roster brings back key offensive pieces David Mendez, Rylen Stockton and Jackson Sirois, plus transfers Jackson Logar, Andrew Middleton and Charley Magoulick to help absorb the challenge.
The early portion alone should demand quick answers, with road tests against Ole Miss, Coastal Carolina and East Carolina setting the tone before the league portion brings even more strain. Maryland will also have to navigate a Big Ten slate that now includes familiar rivals and newer far-flung opponents such as UCLA and Oregon, giving the Terps a season-long measuring stick that could say a lot about where this group stands by the time the schedule tightens. [Read more 🡒]