Maryland football news: Shawn Petty transferring, Ricardo Young graduating, multiple players out for spring practice

Spring practice is right around the corner (March!), and that means actual news is coming in from the football team (beyond recruitment).

First up, the bigger news -- transfers:

Shawn Petty withdrew from school and will enroll elsewhere in the fall. Dylan O'Connor will transfer after the semester.

— Randy Edsall (@RandyEdsall) February 11, 2014

Petty gained national fame as Maryland's scout team linebacker turned quarterback in 2012, and did a fine job as a reserve inside linebacker last season, recording 24 tackles. The move clears way for Brock Dean, Jermaine Carter, Jr. and Jalen Brooks to compete for playing time -- Petty was expected to compete for a starting job in 2015 after Lorne Goree and Cole Farrand graduate, but now those three will likely be in competition to start with Abner Logan.

O'Connor was a walk-on offensive guard who was not expected to contribute any playing time this season.

Ricardo Young will be graduating in the Spring.

— Randy Edsall (@RandyEdsall) February 11, 2014

This move does not come as much of a surprise at all, as Young found himself on the outside looking in at the quarterback position. Young originally committed to Virginia Tech back in 2010, and after his freshman year, transferred to New Mexico, where Mike Locksley was the head coach. Locksley was fired months later, and Young moved on to Iowa Western Community College before transferring again to Maryland.

Young was moved to wide receiver late in the season after injuries to Stefon Diggs and Deon Long. He was suspended for the Military Bowl for a violation of team rules, and holds quite the distinction:

Ricardo Young was on the roster as a QB at three FBS schools (Virginia Tech, New Mexico and Maryland) and never threw a pass. Unprecedented?

— Patrick Stevens (@D1scourse) February 11, 2014

Now, injuries:

Following players out for Spring. Milan Collins, Yannick Cudjoe-Virgil, Elvis Dennah, Stefon Diggs, Derwin Gray, Deon Long, Kingsley Opara.

— Randy Edsall (@RandyEdsall) February 11, 2014

Also out for spring practice, Jarrett Ross, Ty Tucker and Alex Twine.

— Randy Edsall (@RandyEdsall) February 11, 2014

Diggs, Long and Cudjoe-Virgil have not yet fully recovered from the injuries that ended their seasons prematurely in 2013, and the other big names here are Twine, Gray and Ross (who should figure into the cornerback rotation). The hope was for some of those guys to be able to make it back for spring, but obviously the more important part is that they're healthy by the time fall comes around.

Diggs originally had a timeline of four months, which would have had him recovering in mid-to-late February. These kind of injuries are tricky, however, and it's much better to play it safe than sorry. Long's timeline was six months, so he was never expected to make spring practice.