When Maryland football has team meetings, coaches tell players to “shuffle the deck.”
They force them to sit with a different group each time and encourage them to share stories and reflect on deep questions, sometimes invoking cries and hugs in the process.
The bonding method that started over the offseason is important for a youthful roster. Maryland’s freshmen have fueled its early success this season — helping usher in coach Michael Locksley’s new win-now standard.
“[This year] feels a little bit different because of the levels in which [freshman] have been able to come in … more ready than most of the freshmen that we’ve had to play over the years,” Locksley said.
The three true freshman starters — Malik Washington, Sidney Stewart and Zahir Mathis — are the Terps’ most since Locksley became coach in 2019. Washington has already broken multiple true-freshman quarterback records through five games, while Stewart and Mathis lead the team in sacks.
Locksley stressed a developmental approach with young players in past seasons. But with name, image and likeness now playing a key role in roster building, he said freshmen are expected to immediately contribute.
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“When you pay people to do a job, people have a different expectation,” Locksley said. “Even the freshmen, you can’t negotiate that standard.”
Still, Locksley made adjustments for a young offense.
Maryland plays with less pace, rarely going no-huddle, and simplified verbiage. Locksley said new players not memorizing as many signals helps them see the field quicker.
Washington, who arrived in College Park last spring, leads the new offense. The Archbishop Spalding product ranks second in the Big Ten in completions, seventh in passing yards and has thrown only two interceptions.
“Since the day that he came up and stepped in the doors at Maryland, he’s just always been a professional,” guard Isaiah Wright said. “Doesn’t seem like a nervous guy at all. He shows up and he’s comfortable.”
Washington suffered his first collegiate loss and first overall in more than 700 days in his latest game against the Huskies. But his impact stretches beyond the field — including his ability to attract recruits.
Washington played alongside Mathis in middle school for the Maryland Heat travel team. Early this year, he helped Maryland recruit Mathis, who re-opened his recruitment after decommitting from Ohio State. Washington promoted the familial sense the program provides.
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“[Washington] is just inspirational,” Mathis said. “He knew my situation, and he knew the position I was in and he didn’t have to think twice to help me at all. He took it upon himself to help me in the process of finding a home.”
Mathis already blocked a kick and is tied for fifth in the Big Ten in sacks, helping Maryland lead the conference with 19 this season after it recorded a Big Ten-low 14 last year.
Stewart is the other major difference in Maryland’s pass-rush.
The defensive lineman leads true freshmen nationally with more than four sacks, also pacing the Terps with seven tackles-for-loss. He admitted he felt a “little bit of pressure” when he first arrived on campus in the spring, but said he now feels comfortable.
Stewart noted many programs disregard freshmen regardless of how they perform, and he appreciates the Terps’ immediate trust. He, Mathis and Washington have arguably been Maryland’s most impactful players.
“I really like this team, like I said, they’re just young and dumb and don’t know what they don’t know,” Locksley said. “They don’t play cautious, they don’t play fearful, they don’t play as if they’ve already experienced bad things.”
