Maryland Minute 8.9.09 - Football Practice Kicks Off Tomorrow, Nike Global Games

New-look Terps have high hopes -- Sun
The Sun has an overview of before football practice opens up tomorrow. This is essential if you haven't been keeping up during the offseason.

2009 Football Season Outlook - Part III
Another somewhat lengthy read on Maryland football from the official athletic site. Good way to waste 10 minutes.

2009 Football Season Outlook - Part IV
The final part of Maryland's official preview. It's packed with quotes again, so it's a good read, but who's preseason All-America list was Torrey Smith on?

USA struggles in Nike World Games
Nike Global Challenge was Friday (we had an update on yesterday's action), and a bunch of Terp targets - from Trevor Cooney to Tobias Harris to CJ Leslie to Terrence Jones - were competing. Unfortunately, the USA East team - led by Josh Selby, Will Barton, and Tobias Harris (who dropped 17) - was the only one to win, with the USA Midwest team losing by one to Senegal, and the USA West/South team getting blown out by Brazil.

Nike Global Challenge Day 2
More from the Nike Global Challenge, some of the stuff I didn't mention earlier - luckily for the US, they performed much better this time around.

Tobias Harris had to spend most of the second and third quarters on the bench in foul trouble. When he was in the game, though, he has an impossible match up for the Brazilian post players. Harris used his driving skills to score 14 points on 6-9 shooting, 1-2 from behind the arc.

[Terrence] Jones was the game's high scorer with 22 points on 10-19 shooting and also blocked four shots. [CJ] Leslie was once again an energizing force for his team. Along with his strong overall play, Leslie scored 17 points on 7-15 shooting.

As for the recruiting news:

[On James Johnson] Virginia is on the docket for an official visit in September. Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and Connecticut are on the list of probable visits. Maryland might get an official visit as well.

I really, really hope he doesn't go to UVA or UConn. I want to be able to like him.

College hoops preseason guide for 2009-10
It might be the pre-pre-season, but FOX has a guide on the college basketball...already. Maryland doesn't crack their top 25, but is a "team to watch". Similarly, Vasquez gets an Honorable Mention for the "Top 10 Returning Players" category.

Vernon Davis With an Action-Packed Day
Ex-Terp Vernon Davis had a busy day, at first getting into a fight with a teammate, then calling out Michael Crabtree. Actually, that's a good thing: Crabtree doesn't have his head on straight.

Osby Signs a Contract in Germany
I kind of miss Boom. I wish he had gotten here before his junior year, but it's good to see him getting paid.