Maryland’s secondary enters the season with a different look, but not a thin one.
The Terps lost two of their most important defensive backs in the offseason, with All-Big Ten safety Jalen Huskey and cornerback Dontay Joyner both out of the picture. Huskey, Maryland’s lone selection in the 2026 NFL Draft, was the team’s top safety last season. He tied for the team lead with four interceptions and finished second on the roster in tackles behind linebacker Daniel Wingate.
Joyner’s exit came under different circumstances. Despite still having eligibility left, he and head coach Michael Locksley mutually agreed to part ways after Joyner was arrested in June. That departure leaves Maryland looking for a new answer opposite standout cornerback Jamare Glasker.
Even with those losses, the Terps have plenty of bodies and some real options. The challenge now is turning that depth into a clear starting group.
Glasker is the headliner. His first year in College Park lived up to the billing, and then some.
The All-Big Ten honorable mention became the first Maryland player since 2014 to record an interception in three straight games, a run that included a pick-six against UCLA. Quarterbacks tested him plenty - he was targeted a team-high 50 times - but only 24 of those throws were completed, the lowest reception rate allowed by any Maryland defensive back.
He also stayed disciplined, drawing just two penalties in 10 starts. All signs point to him leading the cornerback group again in 2026.
The other established piece is safety Lavain Scruggs, who took a major step forward last fall. The 6-foot-3 Archbishop Spalding product started all 12 games and finished third on the team with 64 tackles.
His season included a career-high 11 stops against Illinois, plus two interceptions and three pass breakups. After seeing the field in 23 games across his redshirt freshman and sophomore seasons, Scruggs finally looked like the player Maryland expected when it landed the No. 21-ranked class of 2022 prospect in the state.
Those two give Maryland a solid spine in the back end, but the Terps still had to address the departures. Locksley turned to the transfer portal for help, adding two veteran cornerbacks who could factor in quickly.
Jordan Scruggs arrived late, joining the program on Aug. 17 to fill an open roster spot. He comes from West Virginia, where he played in 12 games and posted 32 tackles and three pass deflections. At 5-foot-11 and 176 pounds, he’s not built like a prototype outside corner, but he brings experience from a long football journey that has taken him to his sixth school after starting at the NJCAA level.
Amari Jackson is the bigger-name addition. A former four-star recruit, he spent four seasons at Boston College and started 28 games there, including a stretch as the team’s primary cornerback.
Jackson’s résumé includes 87 tackles, with 38 coming in his breakout sophomore year. Last season, even while working back from a season-ending injury in 2024, he allowed only 66 passing yards on 15 targets.
There’s also a second-year group that could push for bigger roles. Safety Messiah Delhomme and cornerback Jayden Shipps didn’t always grab the spotlight as freshmen, but both showed enough to suggest more is coming.
Delhomme split time between safety and special teams, yet still tied for one of the more unusual national marks in the country: he was one of 11 players to block two kicks. He also finished third on the team with 39 tackles and added four pass breakups.
As the No. 6-ranked safety in the class of 2025, he looks positioned to start next to Lavain Scruggs.
Shipps enters the fight for snaps with Jackson and Jordan Scruggs, but he has the advantage of familiarity. He played in every game last season and put together 11 tackles, a sack and a tackle for loss, showing enough versatility to stay in the mix.
Maryland’s pass defense had its share of work last season, with all but two opponents throwing for more than 200 yards. Now the Terps are counting on Glasker, Scruggs, Delhomme and the newcomers to steady the group after a notable offseason reset.
In Other News...
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Marylands offseason turnover on offense has left the Terps looking for answers in the passing game, where the top three wide receivers from last season are gone and the team has leaned on the transfer portal to restock. Chris Durr Jr., a transfer from Wyoming, is among the new faces expected to help, joined by Naeem Abdul-Rahim Gladding and Ejani Shakir as Maryland tries to identify who can become reliable playmakers for quarterback Malik Washington.
Durr has already made himself part of the conversation by talking openly about what brought him to College Park and the connection he is building with Washington, which is exactly the kind of early chemistry Maryland needs as it reshapes the room. The Terps are also managing a separate concern on the edge after Zahir Mathiss season-ending injury, but there is still depth there with returning players and incoming recruits, leaving the bigger offensive question hanging on how quickly these new weapons can turn potential into production. [Read more 🡒]
Maryland Is Putting A Different Kind Of Pride On Display This Season
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Among that group are 21 double-Terps, athletes who completed both undergraduate and graduate degrees at Maryland, a point the school is understandably eager to spotlight. Brady Rourke, the athletic departments associate athletic director, said the effort underscores the value of the universitys graduate programs and the broader student-athlete experience, a reminder that pride in College Park is not measured only by what happens on the field. [Read more 🡒]