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Maryland Football Countdown: No. 88, Marcus Badgett

By Chris Bengel

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Nov 15, 2014; College Park, MD, USA; The Maryland Terrapins take the field prior to the game against the Michigan State Spartans at Byrd Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

With just 41 days until the Maryland opens the season on Sept. 5, TerrapinStationMD continues our series based on past Terrapins with Marcus Badgett next up. We’ll continue to look at the most talented and/or popular player to wear the number and analyze their time in College Park. If you think of a player that had a big impact and is also associated with that number, leave a comment below.

Next up on the countdown is a Maryland wideout who had one of the most impressive single seasons in the program’s history.

The Maryland football program has some very talented receivers over the years. Marcus Badgett was one of the top players at the position, despite only having two years of above-average production.

During his three years in College Park, Badgett caught 100 catches for 1,748 yards (17.5 yards-per-catch) and grabbed 11 touchdowns. His best season came in 1992 when he registered 75 receptions for 1,240 yards and nine touchdowns as a senior.

His 75 catches were an ACC single-season record at the time, but Badgett fell further down the list due to the current day being the age of spread and read-option offenses. Duke’s Jamison Crowder currently leads the ACC with 108 all-time receptions over his career.

The 75 receptions rank second in Terps single-season history with only Geroy Simon having more (77 in 1994).

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While he was first in the ACC in receptions that season, he also came in seventh in the NCAA in the same category, just behind the likes of Victor Bailey (Missouri) and Michael Westbrook (Colorado). Both would go on to play in the NFL for the Philadelphia Eagles and the Washington Redskins respectively.

Despite primarily being known for his 1992 campaign, Badgett was very productive during the 1991 season as a junior. The New Jersey native hauled in 16 passes for 336 yards and two touchdowns. He led the Terps with 21.0 yards-per-catch and caught the longest pass of the season (a 58-yard reception against Pittsburgh).

His best game of his junior season came against Wake Forest when he caught five passes for 94 yards. Badgett was named the ACC Offensive Lineman/Receiver of the Week for his performance against the Demon Deacons.

In addition to his solid junior campaign through the air, Badgett also returned 10 kickoffs for 203 yards, which was good for a 20.3 average per return.

The 6’1, 185-pound wideout had a very successful career at Maryland. Badgett became a part of the fraternity of talented Terp wide receivers, which also has included Darrius Heyward-Bey, Jermaine Lewis, and Torrey Smith.

Badgett was the type of home-run threat that paced the Maryland offense in the early 1990s. In terms of yards-per-catch, he put up similar numbers to that of Stefon Diggs and Smith.

When you look at single-season performances, very few Terps had the type of success that Badgett did.

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