Maryland expected to make defensive coordinator hire, part ways with defensive assistant

Maryland Terrapins head coach Mike Locksley is going to have some turnover on the defensive side of the ball. A new defensive coordinator and linebackers coach will be joining the program for the 2022 season.

According to Matt Zenitz of On3, Maryland is finalizing a deal to have Kevin Steele take over their defense. Chris Low of ESPN was the first to report.

Steele has worked at some of the biggest programs in the country, most recently working at Tennessee as the interim head coach between Jeremy Pruitt and Josh Heupel. Before then, he was the defensive coordinator for Auburn and has held the same position at Alabama, Clemson, and LSU.

Defensive coordinator is not the only space Maryland will be making a move. According to Pete Thamel of ESPN, Terrapins linebacker coach Brawley Evans was informed by the school that his contract will not be renewed.

Evans was in his second stint with the program, originally being a graduate assistant in 2012 and 2013. He was an analyst for four seasons (2016-2019) before coaching outside linebackers in 2020 and inside linebackers this past season.

Maryland is coming off a season where they gave up the second-most yards in the Big Ten, just behind Michigan State. Opposing teams got into the end zone 46 times against the Terrapins, proving a change was needed at defensive coordinator.

Maryland Terrapins, Big Ten could get rid of divisons

The Athletic’s Scott Dochterman spoke with Iowa athletic director and former College Football Playoff committee chairman Gary Barta about a potential shakeup to scheduling. The Big Ten currently plays a nine-game conference schedule with three non-conference games, including three inter-divisional games.

But that might move to eight league games to create another non-conference matchup. That would allow the Big Ten to schedule an extra game with a Pac-12 or ACC opponent as part of The Alliance. As a result, divisions could go away completely.

“We’ve had several conversations,” Barta told Dochterman. “One of the things that we’re watching is whether it’s related to The Alliance, which we’re talking through and/or, what gives us the best opportunity to have the most success in the College Football Playoff format?

“We’re wondering if we’re going to know what the format is before we have to make that decision. So, we’re kind of waiting to see where that lands. But we have had active conversations about the schedule beyond 2022.”

The changes wouldn’t occur until 2023, according to Barta.