Maryland Football: Three storylines to follow on National Signing Day

The Maryland football program has a very strong class in 2017 already in the fold.

D.J. Durkin’s first full year as the Terrapins’ head coach has definitely been very successful. Durkin led Maryland to a 6-7 record, which is a big improvement from a three-win season under the combination of Randy Edsall and Mike Locksley in 2015.

Durkin has also gotten the job done off the field as he’s put together a phenomenal recruiting class. According to 247Sports, Maryland has the No. 17 class in the nation and the fourth-best in the Big Ten.

While that’s plenty of positives to ponder on National Signing Day, there’s still a few things that should be of interest to Terp fans on Feb. 1.

Here’s our three storylines to follow throughout one of the biggest days for college football aficionados:

• Tariq Castro-Fields announcing – Riverdale Baptist (Md.) cornerback Tariq Castro-Fields is one of the most talented defensive backs in the DMV and he’s yet to make up his mind. He was supposed to announce earlier this week, but he pushed the announcement back to National Signing Day. Castro-Fields has a final three of Alabama, Maryland, and Penn State, but many believe it may be a two-horse race between the Nittany Lions and Terps. He’s the No. 294 player in 247Sports’ Composite rankings and the eighth-best player in the state of Maryland. The extra time certainly could allow the Terps to land him on National Signing Day. He’ll announce his decision at 2 p.m.
• Can Maryland get a flip? – A flip on National Signing Day isn’t something that happens every day. It happened for Maryland a few years back when wideout Taivon Jacobs spurned Ohio State for the Terps. One could be happening in the form of three-star wide receiver Tahj Capehart from Bishop Sullivan Catholic in Virginia Beach. Does that school sound familiar? It should because that’s also the alma mater of Breyon and Brandon Gaddy. Capehart has been a Virginia Tech pledge since August, but took an official visit to College Park this past weekend. Maryland has gotten 14 Crystal Ball predictions in the past 24 hours, so it’s looks like it could be inevitable. However, National Signing Day is a strange animal, so buckle up for a potentially wild ending.

Next: Maryland Football: 2017 National Signing Day Tracker

• Kofi Wardlow not a given – Aside from early enrollees, you never really know what can happen on National Signing Day. St. John’s College defensive end Kofi Wardlow has been committed to the Terps since December. However, he has been on official visits to Notre Dame and Virginia Tech the past two weekends. In addition, there have been eight Crystal Ball predictions in the past 24 hours in favor of the Fighting Irish for Wardlow’s services. Maryland has a ton of defensive line help slated to come to College Park in this class, but a flip on National Signing Day is always tough to take. Wardlow is definitely one that could go elsewhere before the dust settles on Wednesday.