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Trio of Terp Commit Notch Friday Night Wins, but Football Back in Maryland?

A trio of out-of-state commits notched victories on Friday night, while conflicting statements this week provide no clarity for the fate of fall sports in Maryland.

Ahmed Ghafir

Trio of Terp Commit Notch Friday Night Wins, but Football Back in Maryland?
Trio of Terp Commit Notch Friday Night Wins, but Football Back in Maryland? /

A handful of Maryland commits hit the field on Friday night as all three notched wins in the midst of their 2020 seasons.

Venice avenged last season’s loss to Riverview (FL) with a resounding 35-7 victory on Friday night. Maryland tight end commit Weston Wolff got in on the action with a 21-yard touchdown reception from Colin Blazek as the Indians topped the state’s twelfth-ranked team to move to 3-1 on the season.

Trinity Christian (FL) notched their first win of the season in a 28-21 victory over Lake City Columbia, while Winton Woods (OH) rolled over Anderson in a 48-13 win as Booker reeled in five tackles, two sacks and one forced fumble to help move to 5-0 on the season. While the vast majority of Maryland's 20 commitments in the 2021 cycle are not playing just yet, Thursday's announcement from Maryland State Superintendent of Schools Karen Salmon gave hope for an amended fall schedule to still be played.

Under the proposed plan, fall sports for cross country, field hockey, football, golf and soccer to begin practice starting October 7 and competitions October 27 to December 12, while winter sports begin practice on December 14 with first competition set for January 4, 2021. Maryland is currently one of just seven states to not have fall sports in 2020, but the gradual reversals by states has become a growing trend in recent weeks as Maryland governor Larry Hogan issued joint support with Salmon to resume competition.

“We think it’s really important to try to make efforts to get more of them back into face-to-face instruction and to give them the opportunity to have some of this sports activity that they also need," he added. While the state has given the green light, the final decision now sits within each county's board and administration to move forward with fall sports. 

Montgomery County announced shortly after news broke that it will continue with virtual instruction as outlined on September 11, while the Public School Superintendents' Association of Maryland (PSSAM) followed suit "on behalf of the twenty-four public school superintendents" and reaffirmed their stance that fall sports is not imminent. "We have learned so much more about this disease since the initial months of quarantine, and there is certainly more unknown, which makes it even more imperative that we get this right," executive director Mary Pat Fannon said. "As we return to classrooms, so too will we return to play, but the timing may not be perfectly aligned."

Quince Orchard (MD) defensive tackle Marcus Bradley has been approved to enroll midyear for the Terps in a move that was finalized when fall sports were postponed. Now, the late-week contradictory messages provides ambiguity as to whether a return to fall sports in Maryland is feasible. With a chance for their voices to be heard, a rally has been organized to help bring competition back for high school seniors and more.

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Ahmed Ghafir
AHMED GHAFIR

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