Maryland Minute 4.8.13: Terps scrimmage again, wrapping up spring practice

A few football notes as spring practice begins to wind down - as a reminder, the spring game is on Friday night, so make your plans now. Plus, lots of moves in the ACC on the hardwood.

Notes from Saturday's scrimmage at Middletown
Joe Riddle had a big day - looks like he's really pushing Albert Reid for the #3 running back slot - and Ricardo Young is still vexing Edsall with inconsistency. Randy probably wouldn't have said if Young was blowing his doors off even if he was, but still, it's not encouraging for those who hoped Young was the savior of the offense.

Also of note: Will Likely is currently edging out Deon Long for the second return spot behind Stefon Diggs. Given that Diggs shouldn't be returning punts, I assume that means a lot of early action of Likely.

Matt Robinson adjusting to new role
There's been very little talk about Robinson's move to outside linebacker, taking the same path Kenny Tate did when he moved down to SAM. Of course, the difference is that unlike Tate, Robinson wasn't All-Everything at safety and has a bigger frame to more easily accommodate playing closer to the line of scrimmage. It's pretty clear that Maryland is going old-school-Miami on defense, emphasizing speed over size at every position, and this move fits that. It's a bit concerning about adding depth at a place where Maryland is loaded with it (linebacker) and taking it away from a decidedly less deep position (safety), but after last year when a few safeties had a baptism by fire, it's doable.

P.J. Hairston returning to UNC, McAdoo and Bullock undecided
If at least one of McAdoo or Bullock returns, and I do expect at least one to do so, Carolina should be the ACC frontrunner. That's a team with the potential to be very good, especially with Andrew Wiggins still on the board. Just a shame that Hairston, who seem sto absolutely love playing Maryland, is still around.

So, things are kind of falling apart at State, huh?
Not that this is necessarily new news, but we haven't talked about it yet. Rodney Purvis to UConn, Lo Brown going pro, C.J. Leslie going pro, and Richard Howell and Scott Wood graduating, which means State's five most important players from last season will all have left the program - and that from a team that pretty much only ran seven deep anyway. Tyler Lewis and T.J. Warren will be a dangerous duo, but I'm far from sold on State's incoming freshmen. Gottfried took this route to relevance knowing that there was always a chance it would blow up in his face, and it just has. Now we get to see what he's made of.

Kiara Leslie, C.J. Leslie's sister, commits to Maryland
She's a high four-star prospect, and has drawn some (early) comparisons to Alyssa Thomas. Kiara's better.