Colleges https://www.washingtonsun.com/sports/colleges Colleges en-US Wed, 21 Oct 2026 15:41:20 GMT Maryland Fires Football Coach Mike Locksley After Eight Seasons https://www.washingtonsun.com/sports/colleges/maryland-fires-football-coach-mike-locksley-after-eight-seasons Alex Schiffer The Terrapins had lost their last 12 Big Ten games. Wed, 21 Oct 2026 15:41:20 GMT https://www.washingtonsun.com/sports/colleges/maryland-fires-football-coach-mike-locksley-after-eight-seasons Michael Locksley AP - 26287773830857
Maryland dismissed Mike Locksley after he posted a 39-54 overall record as head coach of the Terps. (Jay LaPrete/AP)
The University of Maryland fired head football coach Mike Locksley on Wednesday, ending his eight-season tenure leading the program.

The Washington, D.C., native finished his time with the Terps with a 39-54 overall record. Despite leading Maryland to three consecutive bowl wins from 2021-23, his teams never won more than eight games in a season. Things had gotten particularly dire the last few seasons, with his team losing 20 of its last 22 Big Ten games.

On Saturday, Maryland dropped to 2-5 after squandering an early lead in a 37-30 home loss to Rutgers.

Locksley was paid $6.4 million this season and was under contract through 2028. In light of his termination, the school owes him a buyout worth more than $9 million.

The Terps hired Locksley in December 2018 in the aftermath of the death of offensive lineman Jordan McNair from heatstroke earlier in the year, which led to the firing of head coach D.J. Durkin.

Locksley was largely effective in helping to move the program past the Durkin era and earned high marks for his ability to recruit from the DMV area and add talent through the transfer portal. But that did not result in positive results on the field.

Replacing Locksley will fall to Maryland athletic director Jim Smith, who’ll be leading a hiring search for a new football coach for the first time. Hired in July 2025, Smith previously spent five years with the MLB’s Atlanta Braves as senior vice president of business strategy, and before that he ran the Ohio State Alumni Association.

Co-defensive coordinator Aazaar Abdul-Rahim will be the Terps interim coach, according to The Athletic’s Bruce Feldman. Abdul-Rahim, another local, was the head coach at Friendship Collegiate Academy in D.C. before jumping to the college ranks.]]> Maryland Loses to Rutgers, 37-30 https://www.washingtonsun.com/sports/maryland-loses-to-rutgers-football The Associated Press Losing to Rutgers on Homecoming in front of a sparse crowd is about as bad as it gets. Sat, 17 Oct 2026 20:33:55 GMT https://www.washingtonsun.com/sports/maryland-loses-to-rutgers-football Maryland Terrapins wide receiver Chris Durr Jr.
Maryland Terrapins wide receiver Chris Durr Jr. (13) makes a reception. Mark Goldman/Icon Sportswire/AP
By Noah Trister

COLLEGE PARK,Md. (AP) — KJ Duff caught two touchdown passes — including one with a spectacular one-handed grab — and Rutgers held on for a 37-30 victory over Maryland on Saturday.

The Terrapins (2-5, 0-4 Big Ten) have lost five in a row, and they blew a 10-point halftime lead in this matchup between embattled coaches Mike Locksley of Maryland and Greg Schiano of the Scarlet Knights. Duff caught nine passes for 113 yards, and Clay Thevenin scored both a rushing touchdown and a receiving one as Rutgers (2-4, 1-2) rallied in the final two quarters.

Antwan Raymond’s 2-yard TD run gave the Scarlet Knights a 37-23 lead with 4:03 left in the fourth quarter. Malik Washington’s second touchdown pass of the game, a 10-yarder to DeJuan Williams, brought Maryland back within seven with 2:17 to play.

After a false start on fourth-and-1 from its own 34, Rutgers had to punt, giving Maryland the ball with 1:52 remaining. The Terps reached the Rutgers 11, but Williams dropped a pass in the flat that would have been an easy first down — and maybe a TD — and on fourth-and-2, Washington's pass to Dorian Fleming in the back corner of the end zone was ruled incomplete with 16 seconds left.

A replay showed Fleming's toe appearing to be on the sideline as he made the catch, and the call stood.

With the Terps up 7-0, Dylan Lonergan lofted a pass to the left side of the end zone toward Duff. He was able to catch the ball with his right hand while landing his right foot inbounds. He was so off balance that his left foot was up around his head.

After that 15-yard touchdown catch, Duff added a 9-yarder in the second quarter, but Maryland's Trey Reddick blocked the extra point, and Jamare Glasker ran it back to give the Terrapins two points and a 16-13 lead.

Chris Durr Jr. scored on a 16-yard reverse to give the Terps a 23-13 halftime lead, but Maryland fell apart after that. Sean O'Haire missed a third-quarter field goal from 34 yards, and Lonergan found Thevenin for a 19-yard touchdown that tied it at 23. After the Terrapins went three-and-out, Thevenin gave Rutgers the lead with a 7-yard scoring run.

The takeaway

Rutgers: The Scarlet Knights beat an FBS opponent for the first time this season, and Duff earned himself a well-deserved highlight.

Maryland: Was this Locksley's last game at the helm? The Terps have an open date coming up, so if a change is going to be made during the season this might be the time. Losing to Rutgers on Homecoming in front of a sparse crowd is about as bad as it gets.

Up next

Rutgers: at Northwestern next Saturday.

Maryland: off next week before hosting Illinois on Oct. 31.
]]> University of Maryland Tennis Club Suspended for Racist Image https://www.washingtonsun.com/metro/university-maryland-tennis-racist-image Kendall Staton The image was reported by Howard University’s club tennis team. Tue, 13 Oct 2026 15:27:36 GMT https://www.washingtonsun.com/metro/university-maryland-tennis-racist-image University of Maryland
The school referred the matter to the University of Maryland Police Department for further investigation. (Edwin Remsberg/VWPics via AP)
The University of Maryland indefinitely suspended its club tennis team for distributing materials with racist imagery ahead of a tournament hosted by the school.

The image appeared in an information packet emailed to participants in a tournament held this weekend, the university said. The first page of the document included the Maryland state flag, with the coat of arms replaced by pointed white hoods associated with the Ku Klux Klan, according to Howard University's club tennis team, which first reported the graphic.

Upon learning of the materials on Saturday, the school suspended its tennis club, launched a student conduct investigation into team leaders and referred the matter to the University of Maryland Police Department for further investigation. The tournament continued, and UMD’s team forfeited its matches. The club’s student leaders sent an email to each participating school apologizing, according to the university.

“The University of Maryland is horrified and expresses its regret and sincere apology for the harm that this has caused,” university spokesperson Jordan Dunklee said in a statement to The Washington Sun.

The Howard club team is calling for the University of Maryland to publicly apologize to Howard University, launch a formal investigation into who created the image, provide sensitivity training for UMD’s tennis team leaders and make a donation to the National Museum of African American History and Culture.

“True accountability has yet to come,” the Howard team said in a statement posted on social media.

University of Maryland President Darryll Pines said in a statement Tuesday that the university will give cultural sensitivity training to its club tennis team.

Wayne Frederick, Howard University’s interim president, thanked the University of Maryland in a statement Monday for its “commitment to accountability” by suspending the club tennis team and launching an investigation into its student leaders.

“As institutions of higher learning, we share a responsibility not only to confront acts of racism but also to foster communities where respect for the humanity of others is an expectation, not merely an aspiration,” he said. “Our shared humanity demands nothing less.”

The University of Maryland’s Black Student Union called the incident “deeply disturbing” in a statement posted to social media and thanked Vice President for Student Affairs Patty Perillo for reaching out to the organization directly following discovery of the image. Still, the group said administrative action is not enough to address the impact on Black students.

“Racism disguised as student programming is not an accident or victimless oversight; it is a direct assault on the dignity, safety, and belonging of our students,” the statement said. “While apologies and forfeited matches are a necessary starting point, true resolution requires confronting the culture that allows such behavior to occur in the first place.”

The University of Maryland club tennis team did not respond to questions from The Sun.

This story has been updated with Tuesday’s statement from UMD’s president. ]]> Ed Cooley Defends Georgetown’s ‘Mystique’ Ahead of Pivotal Season https://www.washingtonsun.com/sports/ed-cooley-georgetown-basketball-fourth-season Alex Schiffer The Hoyas coach completely rebuilt the team’s roster this offseason, knowing it needs to post better results entering his fourth season in charge. Tue, 06 Oct 2026 14:29:15 GMT https://www.washingtonsun.com/sports/ed-cooley-georgetown-basketball-fourth-season Ed Cooley
Ed Cooley and his coaching staff completely overturned the Hoyas' roster this offseason. (Frank Franklin II/AP)
NEW YORK — Ed Cooley still believes the Georgetown brand is strong despite the Hoyas’ fall from the ranks of college basketball’s premier programs over the past 20 years.

Cooley spoke at Big East media days last week, where the program was picked to finish 10th in the 11-team conference, with no players receiving any preseason all-conference honors. The Rhode Island native is 42-57 in three seasons coaching Georgetown, after a 12-year run with Providence that included seven NCAA Tournament appearances.

As Cooley enters a pivotal fourth season, he defended the program’s brand and strength, despite the lack of recent success.

“Absolutely the mystique is not gone,” Cooley said. “Absolutely not. Yeah, have we had some turbulent waters? We haven't had the success that we want — absolutely. But the mystique will never go away. You can't erase history. You can't erase dominance. You can't erase Hall of Famers. We have not done what I wish we would do and there's a lot of variations and reasons why — zero excuses. Year four we need to make a big jump. There's no hiding behind a lack of success. We have to do a better job.”

Georgetown hasn’t been to the NCAA tournament since 2021, when an improbable run to the Big East Tournament title propelled Patrick Ewing into his lone Big Dance appearance as the program’s coach. The Hoyas haven’t been to the second weekend of the tournament since the 2007 Final Four, which was in John Thompson III’s third year.

Cooley took over a Georgetown program that hardly resembled the one from Thompson’s early tenure. The Hoyas won a combined 13 games in Ewing’s last two seasons from 2021 to 2023. Cooley left Providence, which he had turned into a perennial conference contender, to undertake a massive rebuild.

The Hoyas haven’t even been a bubble team under Cooley, and went 16-18 last season. Cooley cited injuries and late-game execution as two reasons the program has struggled to win under him. He has a point. The Hoyas lost KJ Lewis in February due to an ankle injury, depriving them of their leading scorer going into March. A year earlier, center Julius Halaifonua missed the majority of the season due to a foot injury.

To get things on track this season, Cooley’s staff prioritized experience, shooting and “know-how” as they assembled this season’s team.

“Those were the marching orders to try and build this roster,” Cooley said.

The result is eight newcomers and 11 departures, giving Cooley a completely remade roster. The Hoyas added additional ball handlers such as Jaland Lowe (Kentucky) and Elmarko Jackson (Kansas), two players who were highly touted out of high school but have had mixed success in college. Cooley predicted that Jackson would be one of the conference’s best on-ball defenders.

Lowe is coming off of shoulder surgery for an injury that limited him to nine games at Kentucky last season. When healthy, he could be one of the Hoyas’ best scorers and playmakers.

“The last college player I had that had a shoulder injury was the No. 5 pick in the NBA draft,” Cooley said of Lowe. “If his shoulder is anything like Kris Dunn’s, then I’m going to love coaching this kid.”

Injuries and availability remain concerns as the Hoyas enter the season. Cooley said Lowe, Kayvaun Mulready and Caleb Williams, the latter a Sidwell Friends graduate, were not healthy over the summer. Two international players did not arrive until August.

The Hoyas are also awaiting word on St. John’s transfer Vince Iwuchukwu, who was granted a temporary restraining order by a New York court to play this season, but could have his eligibility overturned. Cooley said the program doesn’t know when that situation could be resolved. Iwuchukwu went into cardiac arrest while at Southern California and has missed close to a full season over his career due to health issues, which is why Cooley said he has a strong case to be granted another year of eligibility.

Mulready signed with Providence out of high school, before electing to follow Cooley down I-95 to Georgetown. The junior guard said Cooley told him it would be a multiyear rebuild and his coach has done a good job of addressing last year’s issues with the current team.

“Sometimes we get yelled at for passing up open shots,” Mulready said in an interview with The Washington Sun. “But it’s a great problem to have. There’s a lot more options offensively around the perimeter.”

Whether Cooley is coaching for his job this season is unclear. Georgetown President Eduardo M. Peñalver started the role in July after a tenure at Seattle University, a school not known for its basketball success. But Cooley knows that no matter what, the program needs to take a step forward after years of national irrelevance.

“‘Can we finish the mission?’ is what our goal is with this group,” Cooley said.]]> Maryland Loses Big to Nebraska, 48-23 https://www.washingtonsun.com/sports/maryland-nebraska-football-oct-3 The Associated Press The Terps led early, but a pick-six sparked a Cornhuskers run in the defeat, which only further ratchets up the pressure on coach Mike Locksley. Sun, 04 Oct 2026 11:44:12 GMT https://www.washingtonsun.com/sports/maryland-nebraska-football-oct-3 Nebraska Maryland
Nathanial George/Icon Sportswire/AP
LINCOLN, Neb. — Dwayne McDougle III’s 81-yard interception return for a touchdown sparked Nebraska in the first half, and the Cornhuskers all but shut down Maryland after that in a penalty-filled 48-23 victory Saturday.

The Cornhuskers (5-0, 2-0 Big Ten) are out to their best start since 2016 with defending national champion and sixth-ranked Indiana coming to Memorial Stadium next week.

The Terrapins (2-3, 0-2), a week removed from a 54-3 home loss to UCLA, led most of the first half before seeing the game turn on the third pick-6 thrown by Malik Washington over four quarters. Their 18th loss in 20 Big Ten games only increased the pressure on eighth-year coach Mike Locksley.

Without injured running back Jamal Rule, quarterback Anthony Colandrea had the first 100-yard rushing game of his career, going for 108 on 10 carries. He was 26-of-39 passing for 238 yards and three touchdowns. Kwazi Gilmer had career highs of 11 catches for 147 yards and two TDs.

“The way we play, it’s maybe not all the time the coolest thing, the visual, but we’re going to try to be physical,” Nebraska coach Matt Rhule said. “Sometimes we might go three and out, but if we continue to be physical, we give ourselves a chance in the fourth quarter.”

Washington was 23 of 44 for 254 yards and a touchdown, and his two interceptions increased his season total to six, all in the last two games. Chris Durr Jr. caught seven passes for 149 yards and a TD.

The Huskers were down 23-14 midway through the second quarter when McDougle stepped in front of Washington’s pass intended for Kaleb Webb and ran it back all the way for Nebraska’s longest pick-6 since 2007.

“I was playing off the quarterback, and as soon as he pulled the trigger, I knew I was taking it the other way,” McDougle said.

Washington’s three pick-6s over four quarters are the most over such a short span since Kyle McCord threw three in the first two quarters against Pittsburgh on Oct. 24, 2024, according to Sportradar.

Colandrea passed one yard to Luke Lindenmeyer to finish a quick eight-play, 80-yard drive that put the Huskers in front 28-23 at half, and Gilmer’s TD catches of 5 and 30 yards pushed the lead to 25 points.

Maryland totaled 300 yards of offense in the first half and just 62 the rest of the way.

“I can’t complain about the effort and the energy we started the game with,” Locksley said. “Make no make no mistake about that. I thought they came and approached this team with the right mentality, but had way too many self-inflicted wounds. And when you play good teams like Nebraska, they don’t need help.”]]> Maryland Gets Blown Out By UCLA at Home, 54-3 https://www.washingtonsun.com/sports/maryland-ucla-54-3 The Associated Press Terps quarterback Malik Washington threw four interceptions in the loss. Sat, 26 Sep 2026 23:54:31 GMT https://www.washingtonsun.com/sports/maryland-ucla-54-3 Maryland UCLA
Ben Hsu/Icon Sportswire/AP
Ta’Shawn James and Scooter Jackson returned interceptions for touchdowns in the third quarter, and UCLA dominated Maryland 54-3 on Saturday.

Wayne Knight ran for 100 yards and a touchdown for the Bruins, who enter their open date undefeated under new coach Bob Chesney. UCLA (4-0, 2-0 Big Ten) led 20-3 after the first half and then extended its margin as rain began to fall harder in the final two quarters.

“I thought we finally played a complementary game of football, where offense, defense and special teams all got each other’s back,” Chesney said. “And at the same point, when you got to make some plays, we made some plays. So I thought overall, a good day at the office.”

After a loss last week to Virginia Tech, Maryland coach Michael Locksley entered the game under increasing pressure, and the Terrapins (2-2, 0-1) responded with a desultory showing. They tried to establish the run early on, when the weather wasn’t that bad yet. That failed miserably, and Malik Washington threw four interceptions when Maryland tried to pass.

“A lot of belief in this team, the guys in the locker room,” Locksley said. “I won’t stop fighting or coaching for them. We’ve got a long Big Ten season ahead of us. Now isn’t time for us to hang our heads.”

UCLA’s first three touchdowns came on direct snaps to non-quarterbacks. Knight took one 45 yards for a touchdown on fourth-and-1 to open the scoring in the second quarter. Anthony Woods made it 14-0 with a 1-yard run off a direct snap, and the crowd was really disgruntled when Maryland’s next drive began with two runs for minus-4 yards.

UCLA’s first three touchdowns came on direct snaps to non-quarterbacks. Knight took one 45 yards for a touchdown on fourth-and-1 to open the scoring in the second quarter. Anthony Woods made it 14-0 with a 1-yard run off a direct snap, and the crowd was really disgruntled when Maryland’s next drive began with two runs for minus-4 yards.

Jaivian Thomas ran 3 yards for a touchdown on a direct snap to make it 20-0.

James’ interception return for a TD went 39 yards, and Jackson’s was 65 yards after Washington and his receiver were clearly not on the same page.

Nico Iamaleava threw an 83-yard touchdown pass to Aidan Mizell in the fourth, and Troy Leigber added a 63-yard TD run.]]> Maryland 38, UConn 14: Game Recap https://www.washingtonsun.com/sports/univesirty-maryland-football-game-recap-sept-12-2026 The Associated Press The Terps' Malik Washington and Harry Dalton III lead Maryland to a win. Sun, 13 Sep 2026 12:44:51 GMT https://www.washingtonsun.com/sports/univesirty-maryland-football-game-recap-sept-12-2026 Maryland Terrapins quarterback Malik Washington
Maryland Terrapins quarterback Malik Washington in a game against the UConn Huskies. (Photo by Williams Paul/Icon Sportswire via AP Images)
EAST HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — Maryland is benefiting from their up-tempo offense in 2026.

The Terps scored 62 points in their season opening win over Hampton and rolled to a 38-14 win over Connecticut on Saturday in front of 34,494 fans at Pratt and Whitney Stadium.

After the host Huskies took a 7-0 lead in the first quarter, the Terrapins (2-0) scored on six of their next eight drives with five touchdowns and a field goal.

Maryland sophomore QB Malik Washington completed 34-of-41 passes for 347 yards and two touchdowns while Harry Dalton III ran for 48 yards and two touchdowns for the Terps.

“I am proud of this team. I told them this would be an audit for us,” Maryland coach Michael Locksley said. “I thought we did a good job of taking care of business. Malik was really efficient today.”

Washington, who completed 18 passes in a row at one point, completed passes to eight different receivers. Chris Durr Jr. pulled in a career-high 10 receptions for 103 yards and a touchdown. Na’eem Abdul-Rahim Gladding caught eight passes for a game-high 130 yards and a touchdown.

“We’re always going to be a multi-tempo offense,” Lockley said. “With us and a guy like Malik getting him in the rhythm is really important. It is more flow than tempo.

“There will be times we want to play fast and keep people off the field in certain situations. But I think our goal is to get 80 plays and the only way you can get 80 plays in today’s game is you have to go with some tempo,” he said. “When you have as many playmakers as we have on offense and the diversity of how we spread the ball around, you won’t get enough plays if you play slow.”

The Terps ran 78 plays on Saturday.

UConn (1-1) was led by QB Kalieb Osborne, who completed 10 of 21 passes for 156 yards with two touchdowns. He was UConn’s leading rusher with 30 yards on 13 carries. Maryland limited the Huskies to 67 yards on 31 carries.

Washington completed 16 of his first 16 passes in the second half for 138 yards and a touchdown as he marched the Terps up and down the field.

Streaks

Maryland has won 20 straight non-conference games. It is the longest streak in the FBS.

The loss to Maryland snapped a nine-game winning streak at Pratt and Whitney Stadium for the Huskies, dating back to a loss to Wake Forest in October 2024.

Up next

Maryland: vs. Virginia Tech next Saturday]]>