Maryland backup quarterback Jeremy Ricker has been released from his scholarship, his father, Robert, said yesterday.
Ricker, a highly touted recruit from Bishop McDevitt High School in Harrisburg, Pa., had stopped going to spring practices, and Maryland coach Ralph Friedgen said Ricker planned to transfer.
According to his father, Ricker wasn't getting enough repetitions at practice as the No. 4 quarterback on the depth chart and, therefore, "wasn't getting better."
"There's a difference of opinion with the situation as far as how they chose to do things and how we thought things should be done," Robert Ricker said. "We thought it would be better for us to move on."
Ricker is still at Maryland and will finish the semester. Jeff Weachter, his high school coach, said other college coaches have expressed interest in Ricker.
Weachter said Friedgen left the opportunity open for the 6-foot-2, 201-pound quarterback to change his mind. Out of high school, Ricker, a redshirt freshman, was ranked the No. 9 quarterback in the nation by ESPN.com, and the No. 5 dual-threat quarterback by Rivals.com.
"It's a shame," Weachter said. "They're struggling at quarterback and Jeremy has a lot of ability. I'd like to see him go back to Maryland. It's a good opportunity for him. I don't know if the differences can be reconciled."
Robert Ricker said there are no hard feelings between his son and the Maryland coaching staff. "My son has the utmost respect for Coach Friedgen," he said.
"He has nothing negative to say about Coach Friedgen, but at the same token, there are too many quarterbacks and he's not getting enough reps."
heather.dinich@baltsun.com