The transfer portal has changed the way schools recruit, allowing them to add experienced college players they are able to plug right into a starting spot following the loss of upperclassmen to graduation or the NFL.
Maryland head coach Mike Locksley took full advantage of the transfer portal this offseason, adding 10 transfers to the roster, including five from Power 5 programs. Many of those transfers are expected to be slotted into starting roles when the first depth chart of the season which is released Tuesday morning.
With Saturday's season-opener versus Towson just days away, TSR takes a look at six newcomers from the transfer portal who should have an immediate impact this season.
While sixth-year senior Jeshaun Jones is the Terps' leading receiver from a year ago and the No. 1 wideout heading into the season, it is Kaden Prather who could very likely prove to be the Terps' most talented receiver when it is all said and done.
Prather brings to College Park a blend of length, explosiveness, body control and balance that Maryland fans haven't seen since, dare say, Stefon Diggs.
Prather will likely be the Terps' top red zone threat and has the ability to pick up big chunks of yardage in the short-passing game, as well as making big plays deep down the field.
Coming off a season in which he caught 52 balls for 501 yards and three touchdowns at West Virginia, it is a good bet that Prather will put up similar numbers this year in Locksley's offense. And if he does, look for his draft stock to rise throughout the season.
At first glance, you might be wondering what Jordan Phillips is doing on this list. The Tennessee transfer played sparingly last season as a true freshman, seeing the field in just three contests and recording just a single tackle for the Vols.
But one look at Phillips in pads and it becomes quickly obvious why Maryland coaches are so high on the Florida native. At 6-foot-2, 295-pounds he looks to have the size, strength and explosiveness to play at the next level.
And while his current college stats don't necessarily reflect his ability, Phillips posted 56 tackles, 29 tackles for loss and 11.5 sacks his senior year at Ocoee High School.
All throughout fall camp, Locksley talked about how the defense often got the better of the offense and Phillips is a big reason why. Look for him to make some big plays in opposing backfields this season.
An argument can absolutely be made that Tyrese Chambers belongs at the top of this list along with Prather. In two seasons at FIU, the Baltimore native had 96 receptions for 1,618 yards and 13 touchdowns, earning second team All-CUSA honors in 2021 after setting single-season school records for receiving yards (1,074) and touchdown (9).
Chambers, like Prather, will likely start along the outside and is an excellent deep threat that is also a more than capable receiver on shorter crossing routes.
This Terps offense is known for spreading the ball around to numerous receivers so there should be plenty of targets for both Chambers and Prather to put up big numbers. Our guess is that Prather has the natural ability to put up slightly better numbers, but both should put up big numbers and it wouldn't be surprising at all to see Chambers as the Terps' leading receiver.
While Jordan Phillips looks like the Terps next star along the defensive line, it is former St. Francis (Pa.) FCS All-American edge rusher Donnell Brown who might be the most important new piece along Maryland's defensive front.
The Terps will basically deploy an entirely new defensive front this season and Brown was brought in to help wreak havoc in opposing backfields, a place where Maryland has struggled in recent years.
Last season, Brown totaled 48 tackles (31 solo), 14.5 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks en route to becoming the NEC Defensive Player of the Year. Over three seasons at St. Francis, Brown finished with 23.5 tackles for loss, 10.5 sacks and two forced fumbles.
The transition from FCS to Big Ten football isn't an easy one and Brown has needed time to get fully acclimated. He has split reps on the edge with former Florida State defensive lineman Quashon Fuller throughout fall camp.
Still, Brown has continued to come on strong throughout camp as he gets comfortable with Maryland's defense and is very likely to be atop the Terps' opening depth chart when it is released. A big season from Brown could mean big things for the Terps defense overall.
No one has bigger shoes to fill coming into the 2023 season than Cincinnati transfer Ja'Quan Sheppard, who was brought in to replace current New York Giants cornerback Deonte Banks, a first-round pick in this year's NFL Draft.
Luckily Sheppard has the chops to step into Banks' spot without there being much of, if any, drop off this season.
Like Banks, Sheppard has excellent size for a corner and his 10 pass breakups, 50 total tackles (33 solo), 4.5 tackles for loss and one sack last season were good enough for first-team All-AAC honors.
Sheppard also had the benefit of sharing the field with current NFL star cornerback Sauce Gardner back in 2021 so he has seen first hand what it takes to succeed both at the college and NFL levels.
The Terps likely won't be as deep at cornerback this season as they were last year, but with Sheppard and Tarheeb Still, Maryland should still have one of the top starting cornerback tandems in the Big Ten.
The Terps will have an entirely revamped offensive line this season, with tackle DJ Glaze the lone returning starter.
With the departure of Jaelyn Duncan to the NFL, Glaze has slid over from right tackle to his more natural position of left tackle, opening the door for Frostburg State transfer Gottlieb Ayedze to slide into Glaze's old spot.
At 6-foot-5, 320-pounds, Ayedze has decent size to play tackle in the Big Ten. And while he is moving up several levels from Division II, he arrived in College Park with an All-American resume at his previous stop.
While the tackle spots are largely considered the two most important spots along the offensive line, honorable mention should probably go to Duke/Elon transfer Mike Purcell.
The former All-Colonial Athletic Conference center at Elon joined the program a bit late after spending the spring with Duke.
Returning center Aric Harris began fall camp getting the majority of the starting reps along the o-line, but Purcell saw an increased workload with the starters throughout camp as he got adjusted to life as a Terp.
The Harris-Purcell battle for the starting center spot seemed to be one of the few real position battles of fall camp. And while it wouldn't be surprising to see Harris listed as the starter on the Terps' initial depth chart, Purcell was brought in to hopefully win the starting job and it seemed things were trending that way heading into the season opener.
The play of Ayedze, Purcell as well as North Carolina Central transfer Corey Bullock will go a long way in determining just how explosive the Terps' offense can be.
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