Maryland Officially Names Mike Locksley As Offensive Coordinator

Maryland made the news everyone already new official today, pegging former New Mexico head coach Mike Locksley as Maryland’s new offensive coordinator, replacing Gary Crowton. Here’s the press release from the school:

"COLLEGE PARK, Md. – Randy Edsall, head coach of the University of Maryland football team, announced Thursday that Mike Locksley has been hired as the Terrapins’ offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach.Locksley, a native of Washington, DC, returns to Maryland after previously spending six years (1998-02) as an assistant coach on the Terrapins staff. During his first tenure, Locksley coached running backs and was the recruiting coordinator for five years.A veteran coach with over 20 years experience, Locksley most recently spent four years (2005-08) as offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach for the University of Illinois and two-plus years (2009-11) as head coach at the University of New Mexico.“I’ve always had an affinity for this university and am honored to have the opportunity to rejoin the Maryland Terrapins family,” Locksley said. “I look forward to working with Coach Edsall and focusing my energy on leading our offense and recruiting student-athletes that will make a positive mark on the field and in our community.”Known for strong recruiting skills, Locksley was listed as a top-25 recruiter in the nation three different times (2003, 2005, 2006) and was a finalist for 2007 recruiter of the year by Rivals.com. He also engineered top 10 recruiting classes during his two seasons (2003-04) as running backs coach and recruiting coordinator at the University of Florida.“Mike is passionate about Maryland football and we’re happy to welcome him back home,” Edsall said. “He has a tremendous offensive mind and his recruiting ties to the state of Maryland and the Washington, DC, area will play a key role for us moving forward. He brings excellent qualifications and a commitment to upholding the excellent standards of our university.”Locksley’s career highlights include: • Helping the Fighting Illini offense improve from No. 86 nationally in total offense (338.1 yards per game) in 2005 to No. 19 (438.3 yards per game) in 2008.• Leading a Fighting Illini offense that ranked in the top 10 nationally (No. 10 in 2006; No. 5 in 2007) in rushing yards and set a new school record for total offense in 2007.• Tutoring the careers of quarterback Juice Williams (2008 All-Big Ten Team), wide receiver Arrelious Benn (2007 Big Ten Freshman of the Year and a 2008 first team all-conference pick) and running back Rashard Mendenhall (2007 Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year and a first-round pick of the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 2008 NFL Draft.)Locksley, 41, played safety at Towson University, where he was the team’s defensive MVP as a senior in 1991. He got his coaching career started the following year at Towson, overseeing the defensive backs coach and special teams unit. He went on to coach at the U.S. Naval Prep School (1993-94), Pacific (1995) and Army (1996)."

This obviously gives a huge boost to recruiting, and it can’t hurt the X’s and O’s aspect of Maryland’s offense, either (after Crowton, no one could). Edsall said today Maryland will run a “multiple, pro-style offense with some spread principles”, and when asked about Danny O’Brien said “We’re going to run an offense that’s best suited for the talents of our players.” He said that last year as well, but if it’s true, that’s great news.

Terrapin Station’s official response after the jump.