Maryland WR Marcus Leak Leaves Program Till January: Your Reactions

October 20, 2012; College Park, MD, USA; Maryland Terrapins wide receiver Leak Marcus (82) runs following his catch to set up a touchdown against the North Carolina State Wolfpack at Byrd Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mitch Stringer-USA TODAY Sports

On Thursday afternoon, the University of Maryland announced that Marcus Leak has decided to leave College Park temporarily for personal reasons. While it’s hard to garner much, if anything, into the reasons why he decided to head home, Leak did stress that he intended to come back in January, in time for the spring semester. Leak was suspended earlier in the offseason, but figured to play a big role for the Maryland Terrapins after catching 23 balls for 393 yards last year despite only playing in seven games before succumbing to a foot injury that required surgery.

The bad news is that Marcus Leak leaves the Terrapins a little thinner at wideout than before. Leak was more than likely going to be a major factor in the offense even after coming off injury and getting into trouble, which would have given major hassles to opposing defensive coordinators. Having Diggs in the slot, with Leak and Long outside, meant mismatch central in the middle of the field and could have really opened things up. Losing Leak means that the offense might have to be retooled a bit in that regard.

The good news, however, is that Maryland might be able to take this one in stride because of their depth at the position. Diggs could still line up in the slot, because Nigel King has more than enough strength and skill to be a competent wide receiver who command attention. With Deon Long on one side, and King on the other, Diggs will find himself in man-to-man coverage more often than not, and will be able to break off some huge plays. Even if the Terps decided to play Diggs outside, they can insert a scat back speedster in the slot like former track star Taivon Jacobs, who very few linebackers could adequately cover. That’s not even saying anything about the very talented but largely unproven Amba Etta, Daniel Adams and Tyrek Cheesboro.

In short, Maryland still has plenty of options, and two guys who can make their other receivers even better than they are in Diggs and Long. Not to mention the fact that Marcus Leak puts a pause on his remaining years playing college football. He has already played two season, but he has two more to go. As weird as it is to say, the Terrapins will probably have more use for him a year from now rather than next season since there are so many good receiving options.

When Maryland goes to the Big Ten, Stefon Diggs will be a junior, Deon Long for all we know could be gone if he has an incredible year in 2013, and Marcus Leak could step right in if that’s the case and help with what will be a very tough year. You have to assume by 2015 Diggs will be gone, and Long will 100% be out of eligibility regardless of production, so that means the two best options are departed. Fortunately that’s where Leak factors in, as he would be a senior ready to explode after taking a backseat to those two. With Leak, the impact of losing Diggs and Long is at least mildly cushioned.

But enough with me, here are some of your reactions to the news: