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College GameDay crew slams Maryland for mishandling DJ Durkin situation
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How does Maryland recover from such a turbulent week? That’s the question members of the College GameDay crew was grappling with on Saturday.
During a segment during the ESPN pre-game show, Desmond Howard, Kirk Herbstreit, Lee Corso and even Paul Finebaum weighed in on the situation in College Park. All four agreed that the board of regents handled the situation irresponsibly.
“If it was a toxic culture, the blame fall squarely on the shoulders of DJ Durkin,” Howard said. “It was a perfect example of how not to handle a situation. It was absolutely the wrong decision.”
The board recommended that Durkin be reinstated on Tuesday. One day later, University of Maryland President Wallace Loh terminate the head coach.
Corso said it was the only option for Maryland.
“He lost the team,” Corso said, referencing players walking out of a team meeting. “He had to be gone.”
Finebaum went a step further, saying that the university made one of the most reckless decisions he’s ever witnessed in his four decades of covering college football.
The SEC Network host didn’t hold back.
“This is the most shameful and deplorable activity I have ever witnessed,” Finebaum said. “This soulless university spit on the grave of Jordan McNair.”
It’s no surprise that the College GameDay crew had such a strong opinion about the situation. And all agreed with the public outcry against the reinstatement of Durkin.
Now, the biggest question looms.
“Where do they go from here,” Herbstreit said. “Who’s going to wan to go there and be head coach?”
Dustin grew up in the heart of Big Ten country and has been in sports media since 2010. He has been covering Big Ten football since 2014. You can follow him on Twitter: @SchutteCFB