The Maryland Terrapins have lost a beastly commitment along the interior of the defensive line, a critical position group epitomized both by talent and depth amongst successful programs. 

Four-star in-state tackle Marcus Bradley has backed off of his verbal commitment to College Park and reopened his recruitment, according to 247 Sports.

“I’d like to start off by thanking God, my family and my coaches/trainers for placing me in this blessed position I’m in,” Bradley said during the big reveal. “After reviewing my decision with my family and loved one I will be decommitting [sic] from the University of Maryland and reopening my recruitment. Thank you to the Maryland fans, staff and recruits for everything during this process.”

Bradley ended his statement cryptically with the hashtag “money.”

Whether the hashtag means Maryland didn’t pay him enough—an obvious violation—or another school may pay him more—still a violation—or he believed he had a better shot to make money in the NFL by playing college football for another program—not a violation—was not clear. Bradley did not elaborate on the hashtag.

It is not uncommon for high-school recruits to back off verbal commitments, with more than 600 players changing their mind over the last year, per 247 Sports data. In addition to the often fickle desires of teenagers, the 2021 recruiting cycle has been made bizarre by the Covid-19 pandemic. Coaches cannot go visit players and shore up personal relationships, and players cannot make campus visits to decide where they want to spend their near future. 

Bradley had an epic scroll of offers before committing to Maryland, including Arizona State, Boston College, Duke, Florida, Florida State, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisville, LSU, Michigan, Michigan State, Nebraska, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Oregon, Penn State, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas A&M, USC, Virginia and Virginia Tech.

Where he’ll end up, nobody knows, but someone is getting a 6’3″ 275 pound tackle, and Maryland’s loss will be their gain.