Coach Edsall was estemely upbeat emphasizing how he was able to keep 11 of the top in state players at home.

It seemed like the entire team was there mingling with the audience. I had to a chance to sit with Matt Robinson the strong safety who was injured early in the year but received his medical redshirt. Just a great kid.

While introducing the recruits, Edsall over and over used words like 800 on one part of the SAT, Captain of the team, 3.4, 3.5 3.9  average, mechanical engineering (Mike Maderas), etc. This is a high quality recruiting class in character and academics, as well as athletic ability.

Speed was the keyword for the night.

QB1 Danny O’Brien was in great spirits and haws his usual affable self.

Hottest item on the Silent auction list–Torrey Smith signed Terrapin jersey of #82–last time I looked it was up to $700.

The name Stefon Diggs was on the minds of many of the MGN members. No doubt he could move this recruiting class to a higher level he if stays home and attends Maryland.

I talked to recently hired Offensive Coordinator Mike Locksley and he was just ecstatic to be bcd home.

The class includes both 12 offensive and defensive players, with 11 of the prospects hailing from the Maryland/Washington, D.C., area, more than double last year’s total, and five incoming players labeled as four-star recruits.

“I’m excited about the depth and quality of this class,” Edsall said. “All of these student-athletes are outstanding individuals who come from winning programs, have a great work ethic and leadership skills, and understand the team concept. Our staff did a great job in identifying the players who fit the profile we’re looking for in a Maryland football player.”

According to ESPN.com, five of the top 18 players in the state are heading to Maryland, including a pair of SuperPrep All-Americans in offensive lineman Mike Madaras and running back Wes Brown, who were teammates at Good Counsel (Md.) High School.

“We were able to make some in roads in our prime recruiting areas of Maryland, Washington, D.C., and Pennsylvania,” Edsall said. “We got into some areas and schools which we haven’t been able to in a long time.”

Maryland fulfilled a number of needs on both sides of the ball with running back, linebacker and defensive back the most represented positions.

“I’m really pleased with the balance of this class,” Edsall said. “This is a class which will come in and blend in well with our returning players.”

In addition to Brown, the Terps added another four-star player in Albert Reid, the 2011 D.C. Gatorade Player of the Year, as well as Kenneth Goins and Joe Riddle, to their backfield. That group comprised the second-best running back class in the nation, according to Scout.com.

Abner Logan is the most highly regarded of the five linebackers who will join the team in the fall. Logan was a four-star selection by Rivals.com and 247Sports.com. Rivals.com has the Maryland linebacker class pegged as 16th-best in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS).

All-state performers Brock Dean, one of five players from Pennsylvania, Stefan Houston, Shawn Petty and Avery Thompson will join Logan as first-year linebackers in the program.

The Terps also added five defensive backs, including Sean Davis of Maret School in Washington, D.C., Alvin Hill, one of three signees from the state of Georgia, and Anthony Nixon, the lone New Jersey recruit.

Isaac Goins and Zach Dancel are a pair of transfers who will join the secondary. Goins, who played at Contra Costa (Calif.) College the last two years, enrolled in classes last month and will have two years of eligibility remaining. Dancel, who played at Good Counsel with Brown and Madaras, will join the team in the fall. He is transferring from the University of New Mexico at the end of the spring semester.

Name                        Pos.     Ht.      Wt.     Yr.-Elig  Hometown (High School/Previous School)

Roman Braglio           DL        6-3      240    Fr.-HS     Owings Mills, Md. (McDonogh High School)

Nick Brigham             OL        6-2      280    Fr.-HS     Atlanta, Ga. (Marist School)

Wes Brown                RB        6-1      210    Fr.-HS     Olney, Md. (Good Counsel High School)

Malcolm Culmer         WR       6-0      180    Fr.-HS     New Jersey N.J. (Willingboro High School)

Zach Dancel^             DB       6-0      185    So.-TR    Ellicott City, Md. (Good Counsel High School/New Mexico)

Sean Davis                DB       6-1      185    Fr.-HS     Washington, D.C. (Maret School)

Brock Dean                LB        6-0      210    Fr.-HS     Harrisburg, Pa. (Bishop McDevitt High School)

Amba Etta-Tawo         WR       6-2      175    Fr.-HS     Powder Springs, Ga. (McEachern High School)

P.J. Gallo                  TE        6-2      225    Fr.-HS     Holland, Pa. (Council Rock High School South)

Isaac Goins#              DB       6-0      185    Jr.-TR     Hercules, Calif. (El Cerrito High School/Contra Costa College)

Kenneth Goins           RB        5-10    210    Fr.-HS     Baltimore, Md. (Gilman School)

Alvin Hill                    DB       5-11    190    Fr.-HS     Locaust Grove, Ga. (Luella High School)

Perry Hills                  QB       6-3      205    Fr.-HS     Pittsburgh, Pa. (Central Catholic High School)

Stefan Houston          LB        6-2      192    Fr.-HS     Clarksburg, Md. (Clarksburg High School)

Levern Jacobs#          WR       6-0      180    Fr.-HS     Temple Hills, Md. (Suitland High School/Milford Academy)

Quinton Jefferson*     DL        6-4      250    Fr.-HS     Pittsburgh, Pa. (Woodland Hills High School)

Abner Logan              LB        6-1      220    Fr.-HS     Cambridge, Mass. (Dexter School)

Mike Madaras            OL        6-5      293    Fr.-HS     Olney, Md. (Good Counsel High School)

Anthony Nixon           DB       6-1      200    Fr.-HS     Pittsburgh, Pa. (Central Catholic High School)

Shawn Petty               LB        6-2      228    Fr.-HS     Greenbelt, Md. (Eleanor Roosevelt High School)

Albert Reid                 RB        5-10    177    Fr.-HS     Washington, D.C. (Friendship Collegiate Academy)

Joe Riddle                 RB        6-0      195    Fr.-HS     Frederick, Md. (Linganore High School)

Caleb Rowe               QB       6-2      185    Fr.-HS     Landrum, S.C. (Blue Ridge High School)

Avery Thompson        LB        6-2      205    Fr.-HS     Chesapeake, Va. (Grassfield High School)

* – signed in 2011 and enrolled in January; # – enrolled in January; ^ – transfer who will enroll in the fall

Brian Stewart, a former assistant with four NFL teams who oversaw the Dallas Cowboys’ defense under Wade Phillips, is expected to be introduced as Maryland’s defensive coordinator as soon as Tuesday, according to two sources. Stewart, who spent the past two seasons as the University of Houston’s defensive coordinator, is expected in College Park on Tuesday and — barring unforeseen circumstances – is scheduled to be introduced to the media.

Maryland would not confirm or deny that Stewart was its top target. Stewart, 47, ran a 3-4 defense at Houston, which ranked 62nd in the nation in total defense. The Cougars were fourth nationally in turnover margin and sixth in tackles for loss. Houston finished 13-1 last season. Stewart’s defense worked in practice against Houston quarterback Case Keenum, who led the nation in total offense. Houston has a new coach, Tony Levine, and Stewart announced recently that he intended to explore other opportunities.

Stewart’s specialty is the secondary. Like Maryland head coach Randy Edsall, Stewart has been a defensive backs coach at multiple stops and an NFL assistant. Both had coaching stints at Syracuse, albeit at different times. Stewart has coached defensive backs with the San Diego Chargers and Houston Texans. He was an assistant with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2009, when Asante Samuel had nine interceptions and Sheldon Brown had five. He was the Cowboys’ coordinator under Phillips in 2007 and 2008.

Terp Talk DC Saturday Morning 12-24-11

Hosts–Bruce Guests; Rick Jaklitsch
Subjects–Football review, Basketball Recruits, HoopsMike Locksley Returns, Lacrosse

Stefon Diggs?

Eddie Goldman?

Ronald Darby?

Albert Reid?