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Maryland Football: Gary Collins is one of the all-time greats

By Chris Bengel

COLLEGE PARK, MD - OCTOBER 15: Head coach DJ Durkin of the Maryland Terrapins argues a call against the Minnesota Golden Gophers in the first half at Capital One Field on October 15, 2016 in College Park, Maryland. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)
COLLEGE PARK, MD - OCTOBER 15: Head coach DJ Durkin of the Maryland Terrapins argues a call against the Minnesota Golden Gophers in the first half at Capital One Field on October 15, 2016 in College Park, Maryland. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images) /
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The Maryland football program honored Gary Collins on Sunday with an $82 ticket promotion for four upper level seats to the homecoming game against Indiana.

Despite the Terrapins having a long list of talented wideouts come through College Park over the years, Collins may be the most accomplished.

Collins starred at Maryland from 1959 to 1961 and was one of the top players in the ACC and college football in general. In 1961, the Williamstown, Pa. native finished eighth in the Heisman Trophy voting behind Syracuse running back Ernie Davis, who won the award.

The Cleveland Browns star led the ACC with four touchdowns in 1959 and 1961. Collins finished second in that same category during the 1960 campaign.

In 1961, Collins recorded 30 receptions for 428 yards and four touchdowns. He was also tabbed as a consensus All-American for his efforts that season.

If all that weren’t impressive enough, Collins starred back in the days where guys played both ways. He was classified as a two-way end, which was what wide receivers were called in those days.

He did a little bit of everything, including serving as the team’s punter. During his three years with the program, Collins led Maryland to a 18-12 record, which included three consecutive third place finishes in the ACC.

During those days, the ACC was one of the premier conferences in college football. He had to face the likes of Davis and quarterback Roman Gabriel (North Carolina State) during his Maryland career.

Collins had a great career with the Terps and ended up being the fourth overall pick by the Cleveland Browns in the 1962 NFL Draft. The Pennsylvania native ended up playing 10 seasons with the Browns and still leads the organization with 70 touchdown receptions.

Next: Terps set to throwback for Homecoming week

Collins definitely wasn’t flashy by any stretch, but he gave the type of effort that can’t be measured by statistics. He was truly a throwback type of player and ended up being one of the most prolific wideouts to ever wear a Maryland uniform.

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