Maryland fired long-time head coach Mike Locksley on Wednesday after a 2-5 start to the 2026 season, sources told CBS Sports. The Terrapins lost, 37-30, to Rutgers in its homecoming game Saturday inside SECU Stadium.
Locksley, who arrived at Maryland in December 2018, had a 39-54 record over seven-plus seasons as the Terrapins' head coach. The high point of the Locksley era in College Park came from 2021-2023, when Maryland won at least 7 games and reached a bowl game for 3 consecutive seasons. A Music City Bowl win over Auburn to finish the 2023 season with an 8-5 record portended a bright future.
Instead, Maryland went 4-8 in 2024 and 2025 as the program fell down the Big Ten totem pole. The school and its top supporters increased the financial support for Locksley's program ahead of a critical 2026 season. Locksley brought in a new offensive coordinator, Clint Trickett, added top-five recruit Zion Elee and retained rising quarterback Malik Washington. Maryland was no longer among the lowest spenders on football rosters in the Big Ten. The schedule seemed manageable enough that Maryland supporters were hoping for seven or more wins.
It didn't pan out the way anyone hoped, as the Terps dropped home games to Virginia Tech, UCLA and Rutgers. The 54-3 loss to first-year coach Bob Chesney's UCLA Bruins was especially embarrassing and all but decided Locksley's fate. Locksley hadn't notched a win over a Power Four opponent in more than a year and had a 2-20 record in the Big Ten since 2024.
Maryland will owe Locksley more than $9 million in buyout money. He was making $6.4 million this season.
Maryland is the first Power Four program to fire its head coach this season. A year after a wild coaching carousel that featured Penn State, Florida and Virginia Tech all firing their coaches by mid-October, Maryland finally broke the seal and started this season's cycle.
Newly promoted defensive coordinator Aazaar Abdul-Rahim will take over as the interim coach, sources told CBS Sports. His first game as interim head coach will be Oct. 31 against Illinois in College Park.
Future of the program
Who Maryland turns to next to guide the program will be fascinating.
Locksley, a Washington, D.C. native, made so much sense when Maryland hired him away from Alabama after a stint as Nick Saban's offensive coordinator. He had deep ties to the area and a strong recruiting reputation. He had just won the Broyles Award as the nation's best assistant and legitimately viewed Maryland as a dream job.
He faced an uphill battle with limited resources, especially in the early days of NIL. Maryland had to do more with less, which Locksley had succeeded at before it came crashing down in 2024. Locksley's deep recruiting ties could still lead to a big commit or two, but money quickly became king.
Now, Maryland is dedicating more resources to its football program. It's not at the Ohio State or Michigan level, but it's not at the basement of the Big Ten, either. At least not when it comes to football roster spend. That should be attractive to any prospective next coach, though Maryland will have to sell the program's untapped potential rather than a reputation as a difficult place to win.
With high school recruiting less of an emphasis in the NIL world, Maryland could target an experienced program builder. Would Wake Forest's Jake Dickert have any interest? Perhaps New Mexico's Jason Eck or UNLV's Dan Mullen would jump at a Power Four head coach opportunity?
Maryland is the only Power Four job currently available, which gives it an early advantage.
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