Malik Washington spent the summer doing more than running routes and throwing passes. He was building something bigger.
At Under Armour’s headquarters in Baltimore, Washington hosted his fourth annual football camp, turning a bright Friday night into a chance for dozens of local kids to learn the game, meet new friends and spend time in an environment many of them had never seen before. Maryland teammates Daniel Wingate, Preston Howard, Dorian Fleming, Jayden Kitchens and Jordan Williams were there too, helping lead drills and scrimmages and giving the event extra energy.
“It was super cool. It was so fun for the kids to get to see that environment.
It was just an amazing event at an amazing place. It gave kids a chance to come out and enjoy football without the pressure of having to perform in a game.
They can come out, even with no football experience, and meet some friends and see how they like the game. They get to try a little bit of everything, every position on the field.”
For Washington, the night was about more than football instruction. It was about showing up for the community that helped shape him.
“The reason I started it was really to give back to the community that helped raise me and put me in the position I’m in now,” Washington said. “They're kind of the driving force.
I know there are a lot of kids in the community, a lot of people in the community looking up to me, praying for my success and wishing me the best. Things like that always keep me going.”
The camp’s biggest moment, Washington said, came during the seven-on-seven scrimmages that closed out the evening. But he also made it clear how much it meant that his teammates carved out time to be part of it.
“The fact that my teammates took time out of their Friday nights to come help out was really encouraging,” Washington said. “The fact that they were able to come help not just me, but be there for the kids, is a testament to their character.”
Wingate saw Washington’s role in the community up close and had nothing but praise for him.
“Malik is a great leader in the community,” Wingate said. “He's somebody who really gives back to the youth, and he makes sure that everybody's able to have a nice time. It doesn't matter to him if you're a boy or girl, he's just a person who's there for the community.”
Washington wasn’t the only Maryland player using the summer to make a difference. Freshman Zion Elee organized a backpack drive designed to help kids head into the school year with a little more support, and for him, the motivation came from personal experience.
“It means a lot to me knowing that a bunch of kids are able to look at what I’m doing and get motivated to want to do something,” Elee said. “It’s just all-around positivity, and that’s great.”
He said his own path helped shape why he wanted to get involved.
“As a young guy, I didn’t get the best education,” Elee said. “A lot of kids need the resources and support to get educated. There were a lot of things I didn’t know myself that other kids should know, and I want to help set them up for success.”
Together, Washington and Elee gave Maryland fans a look at what leadership can look like beyond the field. Washington leaned into his role as an established voice in the program, while Elee showed that even a newcomer can find ways to serve the community right away.
“I remember looking up to high school and to the college players and seeing how they move and how they act,” Washington said. “They had a lot of influence on me. Now that I'm able to do that for somebody else, I hope to have a positive impact and hopefully I inspire somebody in the future to do the same exact thing.”
In Other News...
Malik Washington Is Giving Maryland Fans Another Reason To Be Proud
Malik Washington is already making an impression in College Park beyond whatever he does on Saturdays. The Maryland sophomore quarterback has been named to the 2026 Jason Witten Collegiate Man of the Year Watch List, a group that recognizes FBS players for leadership, courage, integrity and sportsmanship both on and off the field.
Washingtons profile keeps growing because of the way he has shown up in the community, too. He has hosted a youth football camp and taken part in literacy and disability support programs, giving Terrapins fans another reason to take pride in what he represents as much as in how he plays. [Read more 🡒]
Maryland Faces A Bigger Test Than Fans Realize This Week
A 62-0 opener can make just about any team feel like it has everything figured out, and Maryland certainly left Saturday with plenty to like. The Terps piled up 365 rushing yards against Hampton, their biggest ground output since 2018, and finished with six rushing touchdowns, the most in a game since 2019. DeJuan Williams and Iverson Howard each found the end zone twice, giving the offense a physical, downhill identity it hopes to carry into the rest of September.
UConn arrives next, and the challenge is different even if the momentum feels the same. Maryland will try to keep leaning on the ground game against a defense that should be a far stiffer test than the one it saw in Week 1, which makes this a useful early measuring stick for how real the run-game surge is. If the Terps can keep that balance and efficiency going, the opener may look less like a one-day outburst and more like a sign of what this offense can become. [Read more 🡒]