#B1GCoachRank: No. 9 D.J. Durkin
Ranking coaches in the B1G can be a pretty easy task. It’s easy to place a number beside a guy, failing to give any reasoning behind his placement on a “power rankings,” list.
At Saturday Tradition, though, we don’t want to just give you the rankings. We want to provide you with a detailed description of each head coach and why he’s ranked in his selected spot.
This was a practice that was kicked up from the ground last year and, since there’s still several months until football season gets underway, it’s worth revisiting. So, let’s continue our 2017 #B1GCoachRank:
Coach: No. 9 D.J. Durkin (Maryland)
Record: 6-7 (3-6 B1G)
Record vs. top 25: 0-3
Where team was when he was hired: Maryland was coming off a 3-9 year and was struggling to bring quality players to College Park. Under Randy Edsall, the program just wasn’t going to be successful in the B1G.
In 2015, the Terrapins had issues on both sides of the ball. They had more interceptions than any team in the country and had trouble slowing teams down defensively. It was evident that a change was needed have such a decline.
Durkin, having experience under Urban Meyer and Jim Harbaugh, was an easy choice to bring in as the head coach. Learning under some of the top minds of the game would certainly be an advantage as the program tries to acclimate to B1G football.
Though it wasn’t to an extensive degree, Durkin was able to get things turned around in his first year and has the Terrapins heading in a positive direction.
Biggest win: Sept. 17, 2016 vs. UCF
For Maryland to be in bowl contention, it needed to go undefeated against its non-conference opponents. So edging out UCF in a double-overtime thriller was a pretty important victory early in the year.
The offense struggled to move the ball against the Knights, but the defense forced four turnovers and was able to keep UCF out of the end zone most of the contest. Fittingly, Maryland forced a fumble in the second overtime and followed it up with a touchdown to seal the win.
Maybe it wasn’t an impressive win as far as opponent, but it proved to be a critical victory as Maryland was barely bowl eligible.
Most embarrassing loss: Nov. 12, 2016 vs. Ohio State
It’s really a coin flip between a 59-3 loss to Michigan and the 62-3 loss against the Buckeyes. But since the contest against Ohio State was in front of a home crowd, that’ll be labeled as the most embarrassing loss of Durkin’s first season.
Maryland had just 176 yards of total offense in the contest and converted just 1-of-15 third downs. The game was practically over by halftime, with the Buckeyes taking a 45-3 lead into the locker room.
Just to compound the issue, the 59-point drubbing came just one week after getting throttled by the Wolverines in Ann Arbor.
Best recruiting class: 2017
Durkin really flexed his muscle in his firs full year in College Park. He notched Maryland’s top recruiting class since rankings have been regularly recorded. Landing 28 total recruits, eight of which were four-star recruits, the Terps ranked N0. 18 nationally and fourth in the B1G with its impressive 2017 class.
When he took over the program, Durkin talked about recruiting in Maryland’s backyard and establishing a firm pipeline in Maryland, Washington D.C., Virginia and Pennsylvania. 19 of the incomers were from one of those four states.
Deon Jones, Markquese Bell and Kasim Hill were the headliners of Durkin’s first class, all guys who are expected to contribute pretty quickly. But from top-to-bottom, Maryland’s 2017 class isn’t filled with just game-changers, but potentially program-changers.
That’s what makes Durkin’s journey on the recruiting trail so impressive and successful.
What could get him fired: Like most of the coaches ranked before him, it’s going to be difficult to imagine a situation where Durkin is fired after this year. With so much talent coming into the program, Maryland would be wise to keep him around for several years.
Why he’s at No. 9: Durkin became one of only a handful of coaches in B1G history to double a team’s win total in a matter of one season, as Maryland jumped from three wins in 2015 to six wins last fall. He did benefit from a favorable schedule and the Terrapins didn’t have a marquee win, but punching a ticket to a bowl game was still a big step.
Really, what’s propelled Durkin into the top 10 of our rankings is a combination of his first-year success as well as his prowess on the recruiting front. If he continues to bring in top 20 classes, Maryland is going to be competitive in the conference, even in the mighty B1G East.
Considering he learned under Meyer and Harbaugh, and was so prevalent as a recruiter on both of those coaching staffs, it’s not surprising that Durkin is having success as a head coach.
Maryland isn’t being taken seriously quite yet. But soon, they will be. Durkin is an up-and-coming coach and could quickly turn Terrapins football into a consistent contender.
#B1GCoachRank
No. 9 D.J. Durkin (Maryland)
No. 8 TBA
