Maryland improved its depth at quarterback earlier this week, when the Terps received a letter of intent from Trey Evans, a senior from the suburbs of Austin, Texas.
Maryland will go into spring practice with only two scholarship quarterbacks, but Evans and Floridian Ken Mastrole will arrive as true freshmen in the fall.
The Terps' interest in Evans increased after they lost Pittsburgh prospect Marc Bulger to West Virginia. Evans, who was leaning toward Memphis or Louisville, waited until last weekend to visit College Park. Evans, 6 feet 2 and 185 pounds, threw for nearly 1,600 yards for Round Rock, which qualified for the Texas 5A playoffs.
Maryland has received letters of intent from 24 players, including three transfers who will participate in spring practice. The Terps can award one more scholarship.
More run-and-shoot
The Terps spent much of spring practice last year experimenting with different offensive looks, but the end of the 1994 season and some personnel moves point to coach Mark Duffner going into 1995 with an even greater emphasis on the run-and-shoot.
Last spring, the Terps worked with a tight end, fullback and two-back sets, and offensive coordinator Dan Dorazio, quarterback Scott Milanovich and others thought the experimentation took away from the cohesion of the run-and-shoot.
With the exception of the short-yardage offense, the Terps were back to the four-wideout look by mid-October. Freshman Eric Ogbogu was moved from tight end to defensive end, and Erik Henry, the other tight end, transferred to Boston University.
"The run-and-shoot is what the players know best," Dorazio said.
No I-AAs on schedule
Athletic director Debbie Yow is moving toward her two main goals for future football schedules: no Division I-AA opponents and six home games.
When Yow arrived at Maryland last year, the Terps' nonconference schedule for 1996 included a game against VMI, a I-AA school, but that date recently was canceled. It would have been the Terps' first game against a I-AA opponent since 1982, and it wouldn't have helped their bowl aspirations, since the NCAA requires bowl participants to have seven wins against I-A teams.
Maryland has added two teams that are moving up to I-A. The Terps will play Alabama-Birmingham in 1996 and Northern Illinois in 1997.