The University of Maryland Football program, led by head coach D.J. Durkin, has continued to show fans and alum all over the country that they are moving in the right direction despite a dismal 4-8 record.

One of the hardest parts of such a disappointing season is consoling your seniors and convincing your recruits that the program is still where they want to be. Durkin proved he is still in complete control and the program is on the rise by earning 22 commitments including Auburn transfer Byron Cowart, who was once the #1 recruit in the nation, and Florida receiver Jeshaun Jones.

🖐️⭐️ from the Sunshine State!

Byron Cowart is OFFICIALLY a Terp! #FLtoUMD | #Shell18 pic.twitter.com/txv7ZsTajU

— Maryland Football (@TerpsFootball) December 20, 2017

“Football is the ultimate team sport and you’ve got to stack great classes on top of one another in order to build a team, build the depth you need to go compete in the greatest conference in college football which is what we play in. This puts us a long way towards that,” Durkin said.

Durkin has certainly put that philosophy into action by compiling the second top-25 recruiting class in the country in a row.

“This is a class of guys that was mainly committed throughout the entire season,” Durkin said. “As we know, there were struggles through the season, and there are reasons for that, but you look at these guys and they didn’t waiver one bit. That says something about what these guys are about,” said Durkin.

There were some disappointments on signing day like defensive back Noah Boykin and tight end Maleak Bryant, who de-committed from the Terps, but they are still possible additions come the February deadline. Five-star Maryland (St. Frances) defensive end Eyabi Anoma, unfortunately, ended his recruitment by committing to Bama, but there is still plenty of work to be done on DC five-star (APB rank #4/ DC rank #1) running back Mychale Salahuddin.

The Maryland offensive line received the most love on signing day and the DMV movement in college park kept rolling. Four-star DeMatha tackle Jaelyn Duncan (OT rank #13/ MD rank #7), three-star DeMatha guard Evan Gregory (OG rank #18/ MD rank #10) and three-star Bishop McNamara tackle (OT rank #80/ MD rank #19) are all headed to College Park this summer.

Just in: @TerpsFootball hauls in another heralded recruiting class.

Let's hear from the man responsible for it all. pic.twitter.com/8EMPFKJ9Wv

— Maryland On BTN (@MarylandOnBTN) December 20, 2017

Categories: Maryland

Tags: BIG10, DMV, Football, NCAA, Recruiting, Terps, UMD