Profiles In Terpage – A Countdown To The Football Season: Tony Logan
By petevolk
A recurring series where we will profile every player and coach on Maryland’s roster, counting down to kick-off against Miami. Thanks to OBNUG for the idea.
Today we profile one of the top punt returners in the country.
Tony Logan, Senior (RS), Wide Receiver
Stats:
Height: 5’10”
Weight: 180
Ratings: Four stars, #6 in New Jersey, #22 athlete by Rivals; four stars, #34 cornerback by Scout; three stars, #21 quarterback by ESPN, #42 wide receiver in 2012 draft class by NFL Draft Scout
40-yard dash time: 4.4
High School Stats (Senior Year): 1500 yards passing with 10 touchdowns, 500 yards rushing with five touchdowns, two interceptions in only five games
College Stats (through three seasons): 52 punt returns for 709 yards (13.6 average) with two touchdowns, two kick returns for 46 yards (23.0 average), five tackles, two fumble recoveries, four rushes for nine yards, one reception for seven yards
High School: Piscataway High School (Piscataway, Nj.)
How’d He Get To College Park?
Tony Logan was one of the best players in the state of New Jersey coming out of Piscataway in 2007. A cousin (and high school teammate) of former Boise State star and current New York Jet Kyle Wilson, Logan played cornerback, quarterback, and wide receiver at Piscataway. In only five games as a senior, he posted 2,000 total yards of offense with 15 touchdowns. That’s out of this world. He was selected as an All-American by multiple publications and chose Maryland over offers from Kansas State, Mississippi State, and Virginia, among others.
Logan redshirted his first season in College Park, and due to injuries almost saw playing time at quarterback. He played sparingly on special teams as a freshman, and has been the punt returner for the Terps over the past two seasons. After an unimpressive first year on the job, he really came into his own last year, averaging over 18 yards per punt (good for tops in the conference and third in the nation) and scoring two touchdowns.
More after the jump.
Nickname:
Tony “The Tiger” Logan
Career Highlight:
Everything from last year.
Career Lowlight:
His inability to contribute in the passing game so far.
Arbitrary Top Five List:
Top draft picks from Boise State, recent history:
1. Ryan Clady
2. Kyle Wilson
3. Titus Young
4. Daryn Colledge
5. Gerald Alexander
Dream Season:
Logan is named a first team All-American as a punt returner, and contributes in the passing game.
Nightmare season:
Teams kick away from the senior and he catches less than five passes.
2011 Prospectus:
Maryland’s preseason depth chart does not have the return positions listed. There’s no question that Tony Logan is the starting punt returner for the Terps, and he is most likely the kick returner as well (though that spot is more up for grabs). He’s on just about every preseason All-ACC team and a good amount of preseason All-American teams as well.
In terms of wide receiver (a position that’s actually listed on the depth chart), Logan is listed as the backup to Quintin McRee at WR-Z, in front of true freshmen Tyrek Cheeseboro and Marcus Leak. Apparently, both Logan and Leak have had impressive camps so far, so it will be interesting to see how the playing time at the position unfolds.
Logan has had an incredibly successful career as a punt returner at Maryland, and if that’s all he’s known for by the time he leaves the program, Terps fans will be happy. He is third in school history and 22nd in conference history in punt return yards, but only has one reception for seven yards over his career.
The Terps are in need of wide receiver help this season. With Torrey Smith, Adrian Cannon, and LaQuan Williams all headed to the NFL, Maryland is left with a lack of experienced receivers. Logan is one of the most experienced playmakers on the team, just not yet at receiver. If he can apply some of his explosiveness that he has in the return game to the passing game (and that means getting him in open space, Gary Crowton), he could have a breakout year this season.
Up Next:
Our next player was featured in the first episode of this season’s Terrapins Rising.
Follow this writer on Twitter @Pete_Volk.